MIGRANT WATCH
In Kuwait:
Husband
Pins Blame on Gov’t for Wife’s Death Sentence
The husband of an
overseas Filipino worker (OFW) sentenced to die by hanging in Kuwait said
he should not have listened to Philippine government officials who advised
him to keep silent regarding his wife’s case. “Lalo nilang pinabayaan
e. Dapat sana lalo kaming nag-ingay,” (They neglected the case more.
We should have raised our concerns in public.) he said.
BY AUBREY SC MAKILAN
Bulatlat
The husband of an
overseas Filipino worker (OFW) sentenced to die by hanging in Kuwait said
he should not have listened to Philippine government officials who advised
him to keep silent regarding his wife’s case. He accused government
officials of neglect.
Death Row
In 2005, Migrante
International reported that four OFWs were executed in Saudi Arabia. They
were Sergio Aldana, Miguel Fernandez Jr., Wilfredo Bautista and Antonio
Alvesa.
Migrante also
reported that in September 2005, Marilou Ranario, an OFW domestic, was
convicted by a Kuwaiti lower court and sentenced to death by hanging
allegedly for killing her employer, Najat Mahmoud Faraj Mobarak, on Jan.
11, 2005. The Kuwaiti Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the lower
court meting out the death penalty on Ranario on Feb. 17, 2006.
The final judgment on
Ranario’s case will still issued by the Cassation Court, Kuwait’s high
tribunal.
Migrante said, in an
interview with Bulatlat, that it is Ranario who should be given
justice because she was maltreated.
Media reports cited
court records showing that Ranario only meant to “harm” her employer who
had abused her; that was after Ranario allegedly overheard her Kuwaiti
employer telling another person of her (the employer’s) plan to arrange
for some men to rape the maid.
In a related
development, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) announced, in January
2006, that six OFWs charged with offenses punishable by death had their
sentences reduced to jail terms. The six are Guen Aguilar, Zenaida Taulbee,
Ronilo Arandia, Fernie Salarza, Melvin Obejera and Ma. Fe Cruzado.
Maita Santiago,
Migrante International secretary-general, welcomed the news but challenged
the government to save all OFWs in Death Row and to act pro-actively to
prevent abuses committed against OFWs.
“’Di dapat umasa
sa awa lagi ng Kuwait” (We should not always rely on the mercy of
Kuwait), Santiago said. “Dapat comprehensively i-address
ang mga paglabag sa mga karapatan ng OFWs, lalo na sa Middle
East” (The government should comprehensively address violations on the
rights of OFWs especially in the Middle East), she added.
Ranario is one of the
30 OFWs in Death Row that Migrante reported in 2005. DFA spokesperson
Claro Cristobal said, in a phone interview with Bulatlat, that they
could not give the exact number of OFWs in Death Row as it is a “fast
running” figure.
Neglect
Ranario’s family
sought the help of Migrante because they did not see any development in
the government’s handling of her case.
Lolito Dalibutan,
Ranario’s common-law husband, said he gets updates on his wife’s case only
from Migrante.
“’Pag tumawag po
ung hipag ko dito (sa Department of Foreign Affairs), minsan
wala (ang taong kakausapin namin)” (When my sister-in-law calls the
DFA, sometimes the person handling my wife’s case is indisposed.), he
complained. “O kaya sasabihin nila wala pang update” (Or they just
tell us that there is no update).
Cristobal debunked
Dalibutan’s accusations saying that the DFA has a record of assistance
especially legal service given to Ranario and her family.
“The Philippine
government has never been negligent in providing support to Ranario and
family,” he said, adding that they have not missed a single hearing in the
lower and appellate courts.
He also said the
government filed a petition for a review and reversal of the lower court
decision.
Dalibutan regretted
following the advice of DFA officials that they keep silent on her wife’s
case. “Lalo nilang pinabayaan e. Dapat sana lalo kaming nag-ingay”
(They neglected the case more. We should have raised our concerns in
public.), he said.
“Manahimik daw
kami dahil’ pag nakulitan baka di daw gawin ang para sa asawa ko” (We
were told that if they become annoyed with us they might not do what they
had to do for my wife.), he lamented.
Broken promises
They agreed, he said,
because they were promised that the government will act on his wife’s
case.
Santiago said the DFA
even brought Ranario’s parents to Kuwait last year for “photo
opportunities” to make the government look good.
After the visit,
Dalibutan said, Ranario’s parents were given money which they used to buy
three pigs and a carabao.
“Hindi po namin
kailangan ‘yung tulong na yun,” (We don’t need that kind of
assistance.) he said. “Ang pinakaimportante na tulong nila ‘yung
makauwi po ang asawa ko… hindi po ‘yung ganitong halaga dahil kahit
paano nabubuhay kami,” (The most important assistance they can offer
us is to bring my wife back home…not the money they gave us because we are
able to survive somehow.) he added.
The husband also
recalled that Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Ricardo Endaya promised them
that he will bring Ranario home when he returns to the country in December
2006.
“Nasaan na ‘yung
pangako nya na isasama na niya asawa ko?” (Where is his promise that
he will bring my wife back?), he asked.
Santiago recalled
that Vice President Noli de Castro, who is also the presidential adviser
for OFWs, appealed for the commutation of Ranario’s sentence to life
imprisonment during his visit to Kuwait in March 2006.
The vice-president’s
appeal, the migrant leader said, was contrary to the wishes of Ranario’s
family that she be released.
Hopeful
Ranario used to help
her driver husband by working as a teacher. Dalibutan recalled that his
wife was forced to work as a domestic abroad to earn money for their two
children’s education and for their dream wedding. Dalubitan said that they
also planned to buy a jeepney.
It has been three
years since Ranario left to work in the Middle East and a year and a half
since her conviction. Though uncertain about the future, Dalubitan is
still hopeful that they will be together again.
If her wife would be
set free, he said, “Ayaw kong maghiwalay pa kami ulit. Kung nasaan ako,
gusto ko nandun din sila (ng mga anak namin).” (I do not want
to be far from her again. I want them to be with me wherever I am.)
But whenever he
thinks about their current predicament, he cannot help but feel
disappointed over the government’s handling of his wife’s case. “Talaga
naman pong pinapabayaan sya,” he said, “’Yun po ang malaking
kagagawan nila, nasaan na ‘yung pangako nila?” (Her case was really
neglected. That is really the fault of the government. What happened to
their promises?) Bulatlat
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