OFW gets death in Saudi despite self-defense plea

Despite pleas of self-defense, an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) in Saudi Arabia has been sentenced to death for allegedly killing his landlord in 2009. A release posted on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) website confirmed that the male OFW has been meted the death penalty by the Saudi Court of First Instance on April 13 for allegedly stealing from and killing his Sudanese landlord. According to the Middle East chapter of the migrant rights group Migrante, Filipino worker Joseph (not his real name) accidentally killed his landlord while defending himself. “According to Joseph, he was brutally beaten by his Sudanese landlord when he refused to pay his rent as his payment was not yet due; he fought back and accidentally killed the Sudanese (in) June 2009," Migrante regional coordinator John Leonard Monterona said in a statement. The DFA added Joseph used a hammer in the accidental killing. According to Monterona, Joseph, 30 years old and a native of Mexico town in Pampanga province, worked in Riyadh as a tile setter in October 2008, and has been in prison in Malaz Central jail since June 2009. Monterona added he was told by Joseph in a personal communication that he ran away from his original employer who had allegedly not paid his salary for six months. He eventually found another job and rented a room managed by a Sudanese national. Based on an interview with a Migrante staff in Manila, Joseph’s family expressed confidence that he will win his case as there reportedly were eyewitnesses to prove it was a case of self-defense. The family was shocked however upon learning of the death sentence, and that Joseph was given only until May 1 to file his appeal before the Appellate Court, Monterona said. Joseph said only two interpreters assisted him during his hearing, as the DFA and the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh did not provide him a lawyer, Monterona added. “Joseph is not only a victim of his own deplorable condition under his abusive landlord but also of the criminal neglect by the Philippine post in Riyadh," Monterona said. The DFA, however, clarified in its release that the Embassy provided the OFW a legal counsel during the course of his trial. “The OFW is also visited by Embassy representatives in the Malaz Central Jail. The Embassy also continuously followed up with the Riyadh Prosecution and Investigation Office and the Riyadh Grand Court and frequently inquired about the status of the case," the release stated. It added Joseph was given by the court 30 days to file an appeal, currently being prepared by his lawyer. “The Embassy will also schedule a meeting with the victim's family through the Sudanese embassy in Riyadh to settle the private rights aspect of the case. It is also working with the Department of Foreign Affairs' Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs in providing updates to the OFW's family," the release also said. According to the DFA, Joseph also admitted to the police that he stole his landlord’s wallet and mobile phone, and that he gave the phone to a Filipino woman. The woman was likewise imprisoned for harboring Joseph, but was already repatriated in January this year after serving her sentence. Based on Migrante’s records, there are 28 OFWs who are on death row in the Middle East alone. In January this year, the Kuwaiti Court of Cassation also upheld the death sentence on Jakatia Pawa, a Filipina housemaid who pleaded innocent to the charge of killing her employer’s daughter. (See: Kuwaiti high court: It’s death for Pinay OFW) In China meanwhile, as of January this year, 66 Filipinos are on death row for attempting to smuggle illegal drugs into the People’s Republic. Of these, 53 are women. (See: 66 Pinoys face death in China over drug charges)—JV, GMANews.TV