Coming to work in Malaysia was a dream come true but nothing prepared Diah for tasks like confiscating passports, strip-searching women and taking nude photos of them.

“I was recruited by a Malaysian recruitment agency in Jakarta as a trainer for domestic workers and to be based in Malaysia. But when I got there, I was tasked to receive, orientate, manage and keep watch over domestic workers who were held captive,” recalled the young woman who hails from Java.

Speaking to Malaysiakini from an undisclosed location in Java, still hiding from her former employer since she left Malaysia in May 2019...