A death sentence by hanging was pronounced by the Kuwait Criminal Court on December 29 to a woman who was convicted for torturing her Filipino housemaid, Jeanelyn Padernal Villavende, on Dec 28, 2019, which resulted in her death.
Meanwhile, the woman’s husband was sentenced to four years in prison for covering up and not reporting the crime.
Woman Gets Death Sentence for Murder of Pinay Housemaid
According to Attorney Sheikha Fawzia Al-Sabah, the Philippine Embassy’s lead counsel said that the court’s ruling was fair and in compliance with the law of Sharia, the Kuwait Times reported.
Meanwhile, Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Mohd Noordin Pendosina Lomondot expressed his gratitude to the lawyer who represented the Philippine government and the victim. He also thanked the Kuwaiti government for the favorable ruling.
The Philippine Embassy, in a statement, said: “May the court’s decision on the Villavende murder case serves as a reminder to everyone that no Filipino is a slave to anyone, anywhere and everywhere, and that justice will always come to the defense of the weak and the oppressed.”
Villavende’s death certificate from Sabah Hospital indicated that she had died due to “acute failure of the heart and respiration as a result of shock and multiple injuries to the vascular nervous system.”
On January 3, 2020, the Philippines enforced a deployment ban on domestic workers following the death of Villavende. The ban was then lifted a month later after consultations had been made with the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA). The filing of appropriate charges has then been accomplished after Manila and Kuwait City agreed to fully implement a harmonized employment contract for Filipino domestic workers.
The agreement includes prohibiting employers from confiscating the passports of their housemaids. It also outlined that domestic helpers have the right to own a phone, work not more than 12 hours a day, and get enough rest as well as a weekly day-off. This also prevents the instances of them being transferred to other employers without written consent from the worker.
There are 230,000 Filipinos in Kuwait, of which 160,000 are engaged in domestic work.
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