SINGAPORE (ANN/THE STRAITS TIMES) – A month after the birth of her son, Lily’s husband abruptly expelled her from their home and barred her from seeing their child. This marked the beginning of a prolonged struggle for the 30-year-old Vietnamese woman, who was unable to see her son for approximately ten months.
“I feel it’s very unfair. I’m not in the wrong and I have not been unfaithful,” said Lily (not her real name) in Mandarin, emphasising that her husband gave no explanation for his actions. “I missed the first 10 months of my child’s life and this is very painful for me.”
Lily had come to Singapore four years prior in search of better employment opportunities and secured a job as a kitchen helper at a restaurant.
A fellow Vietnamese introduced her to her future husband, a Singaporean mechanic 15 years older and twice divorced. After a few months of dating, Lily became pregnant, and the couple decided to marry.
But their relationship started to fray during her pregnancy.
She said: “He kept criticising me and comparing me to other women, saying I was so fat during my pregnancy and I’m not pretty enough. He kept saying I was not gentle with him like the beer ladies.”
They also fought over a sum of money that Lily lent him.
One day after she went to see the doctor after giving birth, her husband kicked her out of his flat.
She called the police and was referred to a crisis shelter, where she stayed for six months.
Her husband told her he wanted a divorce and did not let her see their son.
A social worker referred her to Pro Bono SG’s Family Justice Support Scheme, which offers pro bono legal aid to lower-income foreign spouses with Singaporean children.
On July 15, Pro Bono SG and South Central Community Family Service Centre officially launched the Transnational Family Care Centre, the first social service centre dedicated to serving the needs of lower-income transnational families.
Lawyer June Lim took up her case, and she obtained a court order for Lily to see her son once a week for two hours each time.
Lim said Lily’s husband has to comply with the court order, or he faces penalties for failing to do so.
Lily said: “Without my social workers and my lawyer June Lim, I wouldn’t have known what to do and if I can even see my son.”
