The Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila, quoting a report from the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, said the pardoned Filipino prisoner was repatriated to the Philippines on Monday after his exit papers were completed.
The DFA did not identify the lucky inmate, but Migrante-Middle East named him as Jason Mallorca Pineda, 36, who was earlier sentenced to death for drug trafficking.
In its statement, the DFA said the Overseas Filipino Worker (OFW) was sentenced to death in November 2009 by a tribunal of three judges for involvement in smuggling the illegal drug methamphetamine hydrochloride(also called ) into Saudi Arabia, which treats the trafficking of drugs into the Kingdom as a capital crime.
"Through the embassy's efforts, an appeal was filed on the original decision. Based on the appeal prepared by the embassy with the assistance of counsel, two members of the tribunal reduced the death penalty to 15 years imprisonment, 1,500 lashes and a karama (fine) of SR100,000."
Subsequently, the embassy included the OFW's name in the list submitted to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah for the grant of royal clemency. The embassy's efforts was favorably acted upon, and the inmate was ordered released after serving three years in detention.
"Upon release, he tearfully thanked the embassy for its relentless efforts at working for his release from prison," the DFA statement said.
Migrante-Middle East said the release of Pineda is a welcome development and suggested that the embassy also exert more effort to get those who have already served their sentences released.
“The jailed OFWs, especially those who have served their respective jail terms and those who were victims of trumped-up charges by their employers, would be more than happy if they could also avail of the royal pardon just like OFW Jason M. Pineda,” Migrante-Middle East coordinator John Leonard Monterona said on the group's blog.
Monterona noted that there are at least 48 inmates in Malaz who claim to have already served their sentences but still remain behind bars.
He said that he had asked the embassy about them and was told that they were included in the list of 600 inmates recommended for royal pardon and it is up to the Saudi pardon committee to choose who should be pardoned.
Monterona said Filipino inmates have been calling him from the Malaz prison seeking for an update on the status of their requests for pardon.
“OFW Farouq Hadji Malik Bayabao, leader of the 48 OFW inmates who formed their own group — the Zalam Brotherhood International — requested me to follow their case and the status of the pardon since they are not certain if their names are included in the list that was submitted to the Saudi pardon committee,” said Monterona.
Monterona claimed that his group had been following the case of the jailed OFWs but got little cooperation from the embassy's Assistance to Nationals Section staff.
Monterona claimed that his group had been following the case of the jailed OFWs but got little cooperation from the embassy's assistance to nationals section staff.
“PH embassy is not giving us an update of the pardon much more on the status of the jailed OFWs cases,” Monterona complained.
