Three overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia were arrested and allegedly tortured to force them to admit to a crime they did not commit. They have been sentenced to death by beheading.

BY ANGIE DE LARA
MIGRANT WATCH
Bulatlat
Vol. VIII, No. 22, July 6-12, 2008

Since the 1970s, Saudi Arabia has been the top destination of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). Today, there are 900,000 Filipinos working in Saudi Arabia.

Migrante International, however, noted that Saudi Arabia is also one of the worst violators of migrants’ rights.

According to Migrante, five OFWs have already been executed in Saudi Arabia since 2001. They are Antonio Alvesa, Sergio Aldana, Miguel Fernandez, Wilfredo Bautista and Reynaldo Cortez. Had migrant advocacy groups not actively intervened, Marilou Ranario would have suffered the same fate.

At present, three OFWs – brothers Rolando and Edison Gonzales and Eduardo Arcilla – could end up being included in the list of those executed in Saudi Arabia. They have been sentenced to death by beheading after being convicted of killing fellow Filipinos Romeo Lumbang, Jeremias Bucud and Dante Rivero.

During a press conference last July 1 at the Migrante International office in Quezon City, the three OFWs gave their testimonies over the phone.

Torture

On April 8, 2006 at around 9 and 10 p.m., Rolando was watching television at home when police officers arrested him. At the police station, an interpreter was already waiting for them. He denied the accusation that he murdered Lumbang, Bucud and Rivero. According to him, it was then that the police started beating him. “Gusto ko nang mamatay noong pinaparusahan ako,” (I wanted to die as they were punishing me.) Rolando said in tears. “Because I could no longer bear the torture I was forced to admit (to) the crime (we were accused of).”

Rolando said that before he was arrested, he worked for three months as a driver in Saudi Arabia. He has four children and their youngest daughter is only one-and-a half years old then. “Nasira ang pangarap ng aming pamilya.” (Our family’s dreams have been shattered.)

On the same day, Arcilla went to Rolando’s house to deliver lumpiang shanghai. He just left house of Rolando when the police officers arrested the latter. Arcilla then saw police officers on the ground floor of the building, and he said that they took him with them.

Arcilla said, “When they brought me to the investigation room at around 10:30 p.m. they asked me to admit to killing my three fellow Filipinos. Sinabi ko sa kanila na wala akong alam sa patayang naganap, nagtitinda lamang ako ng Filipino food. (I told them that I knew nothing about the killings as I was just selling Filipino food.) Then, they started beating me up and forced me to admit to the crime.”

Arcilla said in tears,“Yung interpreter pinagtututusok pa yung mata ko, napakasakit. Tapos ibinitin nila ako at binuhusan ng malamig na tubig. Ginawa po nila kaming hayop.” (The interpreter pierced my eyes, it was so painful. They hung me upside down and poured cold water on me. They treated us like animals.)

He said, “Ngayon yung pamilya ko wala ng makain”. (Now, my family has nothing to eat.)

On the same day, too, Edison received a call from his employer and instructed him to go to his company’s showroom the next morning. The following day, he arrived at around 9:30 a.m.. His employer instructed him to go with the man beside him. Edison obeyed even if he did not have any idea as to where they were going. To his surprise, the man brought him to the police station.

He said, “They asked my name and started beating me up. Magdamag, maghapon po akong pinaparusahan at pinagtatapat po nila ako. Sabi ko po sa kanila kahit patayin ninyo ako, wala akong ginawa, wala akong kinalaman sa pangyayari (I was punished day and night and they coerced me to make a confession. I told them, even if you kill me, I did nothing, I had nothing to do with the incident.). They lined us up and asked us to kneel one by one, then they started punishing us. Others could not bear the pain so they just told lies. Now, the three of us are on death row.”

Edison has been working in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for 24 years, leaving behind his wife and three children.

Joel Simbulan, one of the five co-accused and has been sentenced to eight years of imprisonment and 1,000 lashes, told the press, “Pinilit po kaming makagawa ng statement para madiin ang tatlo sa amin sa krimen na wala naman po kaming kinalaman. Ako po ay dinala nila sa disyerto at pilit pinatuturo yung bangkay nung isa na hinahanap nila. Dahil wala naman po akong kinalaman sa patayan, wala po akong maituro. Pinagapang po nila ako at pinagtututulak at pinagpapapalo. Pagdating sa presinto, tuloy pa rin po yung torture kaya nakagawa po ako ng maling statement dahil hindi ko na nakayanan yung torture sa akin.” (We were forced to make a statement implicating the three [Rolando, Eduardo and Edison] for the crime we knew nothing about. They took me to the desert and asked me to show them the body of one of the men they were looking for. Because I knew nothing about the murder, I could not provide any information to them. They made me crawl; they pushed me and beat me up. When we arrived at the police precinct, the torture continued; I was forced to write a false statement because I could no longer bear the torture.)

Abandonment?

Since their arrest in April 2006, they were given legal counsel only in April 2008, or exactly two years after. When they first met the Philippine Consulate General at the corridor of their building cell, they were told, “Hintayin na lang ninyo yung hustisya, basta magpakabait lang kayo d’yan” (Wait for justice to be served, you just have to behave.)

During the visit of a Philippine embassy representative, they asked about their case. They were advised to wait for the Saudi Arabia government process.

The consul-general then told them that they need to submit a letter of appeal but the one they presented was only a statement. Edison told him “Hindi po namin alam gumawa ng appeal wala naman po kaming abogado” (We do not know how to write a letter of appeal, we do not have a lawyer.) They were told that a lawyer will prepare their letter of appeal. “But two weeks ago, we are being called and asked to submit an appeal.”

Connie Bragas-Regalado, chairperson of Migrante International, informed them that the appeal has been filed last April 12 and that the case was already at the appellate court.

Norie Gonzales, sister of Rolando and Edison, appealed for help. She spoke with his two brothers and told them, “Andito ako sa harapan ng mga press at paulit-ulit ko itong gagawin para makarating sa mga taong maaaring makatulong sa atin, kay Vice President Noli de Castro, Sen. Manny Villar, Sen Jinggoy Estrada at President Arroyo.” (I am here in front of the press and I will never get tired of doing this until our appeal reaches Vice President Noli de Castro, Sen. Manny Villar, Sen. Jinggoy Estrada and President Arroyo.)

Regalado said that OFWs accused of any crime are entitled to due process and must not be tortured. “The Arroyo administration should address the plight of OFWs on death row. Blood money is not enough.”

She added, “Now that the Philippine government has been chosen as vice-chair to the United Nations Human Rights Commission despite the human rights violations in our country, Arroyo should live up to the position and give justice to the three OFWs who were tortured.(Bulatlat.com)

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