The new government will extend all possible assistance to the 102 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) on death row abroad and iscontinuously monitoring their cases to ensure that their rights are upheld, the presidential palace said Saturday. Herminio “Sonny” Coloma of the Presidential Communications Group said every government has to provide all possible help to its troubled citizens abroad to ensure they are given due process. “You can be assured that the government will continuously monitor their cases abroad, that we will ensure justice for our fellowmen,” Coloma said. Based from data provided by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), 102 OFWs have active death penalty cases worldwide as of July this year. In the Middle East, 16 OFWs are facing the death penalty murder or homicide charges, including rape/robbery with murder charges, the DFA's Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers' Affairs (OUMWA) said. It said that of the 16 pending death penalty cases in the Middle East, the DFA has already obtained four signed “tanazuls,” or letters of forgiveness from the families of the crime victims, and currently negotiating or commencing negotiations for 10 OFWs. Under Islamic law, a final death sentence generally could be reverted to executive clemency or royal pardon with payment of blood money if the victim's family accepts it. In China, 77 OFWs are on death row, 74 of them over drug-related cases while three are on non-drug related charges, the DFA said. Coloma said three government agencies – the DFA, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), and the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) – are tasked to extend the necessary assistance to the troubled Filipino workers. He said the DFA and DOLE coordinate with the proper authorities to ensure that the rights of the Filipinos on death row in other countries are respected while the DSWD attends to the needs of the OFWs' families. In a statement, the DFA said it is extending full legal and other assistance to Filipinos involved in death penalty cases. “All the accused OFWs are assisted by legal counsel and regular updates on the status of their cases are submitted by the concerned embassies or consulates general to the DFA,” the DFA said. It said the Philippine government has regularly interceded on behalf of numerous OFWs in death penalty cases, and will recommend further presidential intercessions as the need arises. The DFA said since January 2006, 35 death penalty cases have been commuted to life imprisonment. Of these, 15 accused were repatriated to the Philippines while 20 are serving commuted sentences. Six cases pending in China “without reprieve” are on appeal with the Chinese Supreme Court, the DFA statement said. The non-critical death penalty cases in China “with reprieve” allow a two-year suspension of sentence and possible commutation to life imprisonment for good behavior, the statement explained. The DFA reiterated its warning to OFWs to avoid becoming drug couriers given the extreme penalties imposed on these offenses in China and other places.
