Tags
AFP/Manila
Activists slammed the Philippine government on Saturday for not doing more to save a Filipino who was beheaded for murder in Saudi Arabia.
Carletto Lana was executed in Riyadh on Friday for shooting a Saudi national before running him over with a car, the SPA news agency said.
Migrante International, an advocacy group for the millions of Filipinos working overseas, condemned the execution, saying the government of President Benigno Aquino had failed to adequately defend Lana.
"This shows migrant rights are not protected. There is not enough legal assistance given by the Aquino government to our expatriates abroad," said Mic Catuira, spokesman of the group.
"That is why our Filipinos abroad go through these travesties," he said, insisting that Lana had acted in self defence when he killed the Saudi man.
According to Migrante International, six Filipinos have been executed abroad since 2010.
Catuira conceded that the execution took his group by surprise.
Foreign Department spokesman Charles Jose likewise said that the government was not aware that Lana was due to be executed on Friday.
He said the Philippine embassy in Riyadh would assist Lana's family in repatriating his remains. But he gave no further details.
About 10% of Filipinos work overseas, attracted by the higher salaries than they can earn at home. Their remittances are a major pillar supporting the country's economy.
The welfare of Filipino overseas workers is a volatile issue at home and Manila has in the past lobbied foreign governments, including Saudi Arabia and China, to save the lives of Filipinos on death row in those countries.
There are no comments.
SPORT Saying goodbye is never easy, especially when you are saying farewell to those that have left a positive impression. That was the case earlier this month when Canada hosted Mexico in a friendly at BC Place stadium in Vancouver.
TECHNOLOGY Some 60mn primary-school-age children have no access to formal education
CULTURE Lekhwiya’s El Arabi scores the equaliser after Tresor is sent off; Tabata, al-Harazi score for QSL champions
ARABIA The Yemeni Minister of Tourism, Dr Mohamed Abdul Majid Qubati, yesterday expressed hope that the 48-hour ceasefire in Yemen declared by the Command of Coalition Forces on Saturday will be maintained in order to lift the siege imposed on Taz City and ease the entry of humanitarian aid to the besieged
ARABIA Some 200 teachers from schools across the country attended Qatar Museum’s (QM) first ever Teachers Council at the Museum of Islamic Art (MIA) yesterday.
ARABIA The Supreme Judiciary Council (SJC) of Qatar and the Indonesian Supreme Court (SCI) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on judicial co-operation, it was announced yesterday.
ECONOMY Sri Lanka is keen on importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar as part of government policy to shift to clean energy, Minister of City Planning and Water Supply Rauff Hakeem has said.
