By EUNICE del ROSARIO
Published: 13th October 2006
FILIPINOS in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are being urged to obey the law – to cut the numbers being jailed.
Philippine Embassies in Riyadh and Bahrain sent out an advisory yesterday, which also urges Filipinos to be wary of con artists and to be more careful on the roads.
In Saudi Arabia, there are 147 male Filipinos in detention for various offences in 10 jails and 109 Filipinas, all at Al Nisa women’s jail, say embassy officials.
In Bahrain, four male Filipinos are serving time at Jaw prison and 14 Filipinas at the Isa Town Detention Centre.
By EUNICE del ROSARIO
Published: 13th October 2006
FILIPINOS in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia are being urged to obey the law – to cut the numbers being jailed.
Philippine Embassies in Riyadh and Bahrain sent out an advisory yesterday, which also urges Filipinos to be wary of con artists and to be more careful on the roads.
In Saudi Arabia, there are 147 male Filipinos in detention for various offences in 10 jails and 109 Filipinas, all at Al Nisa women’s jail, say embassy officials.
In Bahrain, four male Filipinos are serving time at Jaw prison and 14 Filipinas at the Isa Town Detention Centre.
The most common offences committed by Filipinos in Saudi Arabia are alcohol-related, immorality, gambling, drug-related, embezzlement and forgery, says the advisory.
“Here in Bahrain, the number of Filipinos in detention is significantly lower than in Saudi Arabia,” said an embassy spokesman.
“The four men in the central jail include one (Carlo Dayrit) who is serving life imprisonment for having murdered a Filipina, while the other three committed minor offences and we are fighting for their release.
“The three Filipinos’ sentences are for a maximum of six months.
“As for the women, the 14 – mostly arrested for immoral acts – are awaiting their court schedule and some will be deported.”
Mr Dayrit was sentenced to life in prison in April 2000 after being found guilty of murdering a Filipina housewife in her flat in Manama.
There are currently 71 Filipina housemaids being given shelter by the embassy in Riyadh and more than 50 at the embassy’s shelter in Zinj. Filipinos in Saudi Arabia were also reminded by their embassy to be more vigilant against people who are “out to take advantage of their ignorance or weakness and to deprive them of their money”.
“The embassy has been receiving some reports in this regard,” said an embassy spokesman in Riyadh. Both embassies urged extra caution while driving, noting the high number of accidents involving Filipinos and resulting in deaths in Saudi Arabia.
Last month alone, the embassy in Riyadh recorded 22 Filipino deaths, seven of which were due to road accidents.
There are no figures available for Filipinos involved in road accidents in Bahrain.
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