Filipinos Are Safe Here, Kingdom Assures Manila
Rasheed Abou-Alsamh
Arab News
JEDDAH, 23 April 2006 — Following the recent arrest of 52 Filipinos as suspects in a gruesome murder case in which the mutilated remains of three Filipinos were found in the Industrial Area here on April 4, the Kingdom has reassured the Philippine government that the estimated 900,000 Filipinos working in the country are safe and being treated well.
This followed Philippine media reports that Saudi authorities had exaggerated the circumstances surrounding the arrest of the Filipinos in connection with the murders, allegedly carried out by a gang involved in illegal gambling operations.
Saudi Ambassador to Manila Muhammad Ameen Wali recently met with Philippine Foreign Minister Alberto Romulo to discuss bilateral relations and arrangements for the upcoming visit of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to the Kingdom. They also discussed the issue of detained Filipinos.
Wali reassured the Philippines that Saudi Arabia would take care of Filipino workers and provide them with protection and a good working atmosphere.
The envoy also visited Labor Minister Patricia Sto. Thomas and said measures had been taken to protect Filipinos. He said the arrests would not have any negative effect on Saudi families who have employed Filipinos.
Wali expressed his desire to end all problems related to Filipino workers as quickly as possible. “The crimes committed by a few Filipinos will not affect the situation of other Filipinos,” he stressed.
Only a small number of Filipinos are believed to be involved in crimes such as murder, robbery, smuggling, gambling and running brothels.
The arrests of the 52 Filipinos came following the discovery of human parts in a garbage bin in the Industrial City by an expatriate worker. The man showed the parts to other people living in the area.
Police cordoned off the area, and took samples of the body to conduct tests on as well as fingerprinting the cadavers. Jeddah police chief Brig. Safar Al-Zehami set up a special security team to track down the criminals.
Police later found that the parts belonged to more than one person and that they were Filipinos. A number of Filipinos and other nationals were detained in connection with the case, but most of them were released later.
After questioning some 20 Filipinos, police learned that the murders might have occurred as a result of a turf war related to gambling.
Although police had held people of some 10 different nationalities, they are now focusing their probe on seven Filipinos who are blaming each other for the murder of three of their compatriots.
Sources said the Philippine media should have commended the security forces for arresting the criminals behind the crime, instead of leveling false allegations.
According to security sources, some Filipino detainees, afraid of their compatriots, had requested police security for the protection of themselves and their families back home.
“Some members of these gangs do not want to leave jail fearing that they would be killed by their opponents,” a source pointed out.
The source urged Philippine authorities to enlighten their workers that they would be held and punished if involved in any crimes in the Kingdom, and noted that widespread criminal activity could affect the recruitment of Filipino workers.
The Philippine Consul General in Jeddah, Pendosina Lomondot, sent a message to the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila on Wednesday, saying that police had arrested two Filipinos in connection with the murder and that they had confessed to killing three Filipinos who were missing. He also said police had arrested two more Filipinos in connection with the case. Police allowed the consul to identify the slain Filipinos on Thursday.
What’s update of this case?