THE Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) confirmed on Tuesday that a Filipino national has been executed in Saudi Arabia for the murder of a Saudi citizen.
DFA Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said in a message that the department had exhausted all avenues to appeal the case, including sending a presidential letter of appeal. However, their efforts were unsuccessful as the victim’s family demanded the death penalty instead of accepting blood money.
“We did all we could: court appeal, presidential letter of appeal, trying to get the victim’s family to accept blood money,” de Vega said. “In the end, our efforts were not successful as the victim’s family wanted the death penalty instead of accepting blood money.”
De Vega also stated that the family of the executed Filipino has requested privacy and declined to have details of the case publicized. “Out of deference to their wishes, and out of respect to their privacy, we will withhold details on the case,” he said. “We appeal to the media and the public to understand and heed the wishes of the family.”
GMA News Online has reached out to Philippine Embassy in Riyadh Chargé d’affaires Rommel Romato for further information but has yet to receive a statement.
As of March 2023, the DFA reported that 83 Filipinos abroad are currently on death row in various countries for offenses ranging from drug-related crimes to theft. Of these, 56 are in Malaysia, with the remaining individuals facing execution in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Maldives, Sri Lanka, China, Vietnam, the United States, Japan, and Brunei.
