RIYADH, 25 November 2006 — A Filipino martial arts instructor in Riyadh has been hospitalized for serious injuries inflicted by so-called “big brothers” incensed by his alleged enslavement of a runaway 19-year-old maid from the southern Philippines, witnesses have said.
Arab News gathered that the man, who belongs to a highly regarded federation of martial arts groups in the capital city, was beaten black and blue at Batha in downtown Riyadh when he tried to reclaim the woman who escaped from his home early this week.
The term “big brothers” is used loosely to refer to the hangers on (istambay) at Batha, mostly Filipinos from Mindanao, who keep watch over the affairs of compatriots.
The man, whose name Arab News will keep anonymous until he gives his side, was reportedly put up a fight even though he was surrounded by the big brothers.
“He was really fearless and strong. The big brothers swarmed on him from all directions but not one could get near him. But in the end he was overpowered after someone from behind hit his skull with an iron bar,” one of the witnesses said. The lopsided fight attracted a huge crowd, many of them salesmen who abandoned their shops.
When the man fell unconscious, his foes took turns manhandling him such that when the police finally came to his rescue, only his underwear remained, witnesses said. He was said to have also suffered eye injuries.
An Arabic language interpreter who witnessed the melee said police later released the man in the absence of a criminal complaint against him. The interpreter said some community leaders were trying to convince the woman to file sex slavery and kidnapping charges against her alleged tormentor in a Shariah court.
In an interview with Arab News, the maid, who is also from the southern Philippines, said she ran away from her employer because she could not get enough rest and sleep working in a big villa all by herself, in addition to attending to an old woman.
She sought refuge from the apartment of the family of a community leader, only to find herself under the clutches of the martial arts instructor, who allegedly took her as a “sex slave.” She said the man locked her up whenever he left for work and that even the community leader who gave her refuge could not do anything because the man was his “master.”
She claimed that the man often threatened to surrender her to the police station or take her to the Bahay Kalinga, a refuge for runaway Filipino women, if she refused to cooperate. The maid eventually escaped on Nov. 16 and went to Batha, where she was advised by someone to approach the “big brothers” for help. The “big brothers” then told her to ring the man to come and meet her at Batha, which he did.
Arab News learned that officials from the Philippine Embassy’s labor office have taken the maid into their custody and are investigating the case.
