The families of three maids working abroad have filed a complaint with rights group Adhoc in Kampong Thom province, claiming that one of the maids was abused while there was no knowledge of the whereabouts of the other two, who have been working in Malaysia since 2009.

Phon Pob, 39, who lives in Kampong Thom’s Prasat Balang district, said she has not heard from her two daughters, aged 23 and 22, in years – since they were sent to Malaysia by an agency called IS.

The mother of the remaining maid, Hout Sok, 42, claims her 21-year-old daughter, Hon Son, was forced to work without pay and suffered abuse that caused mental health problems.

Son only returned home last month, after she had spent nearly four years in Malaysia on a contract arranged by recruitment agency Filimore.