KABAYAN Partylist Rep. Ron Salo is urging the Philippine embassies in Muslim majority countries where there are overseas Filipinos incarcerated or facing the death penalty to intercede on their behalf.
He also called on the National Commission on Muslim Filipinos (NCMF) to assist however it can.
According to the report by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), there are a total of 83 Filipinos overseas on death row, with 56 in Malaysia; 6 in the UAE; 5 in Saudi Arabia; 1 in Indonesia, which is the case of Mary Jane Veloso; and 15 from other countries such as Bangladesh, China, Vietnam, USA, Japan, Brunei.
Further, there are a total of 1,267 overseas Filipinos currently detained, with 914 in Middle Eastern countries; 321 in the Asia Pacific; 23 in Europe; 5 in America; and 4 in Africa.
“Ramadan, which begins on March 22, is a time of mercy and compassion. It is an opportune time for Muslim majority countries to exercise these virtues by showing leniency to Filipinos who are incarcerated,” Salo said.
Salo, Chair of the House Committee on Overseas Workers Affairs, notes that historically, leaders of Muslim majority countries agree to pardon or commute the sentences of convicts during Ramadan.
In previous years, heads of state in both Saudi Arabia and Yemen have marked the Islamic holy month of Ramadan by extending clemency to prisoners under sentence of death by granting pardons or commuting their sentences through the intercession of our embassies.
In 2018, The Emir of Qatar has given a royal pardon to 25 Filipinos who were charged with various offences in his country in a gesture marking the end of the holy Muslim month of Ramadan.
