A Kuwaiti court has handed out the death penalty to the employers of Joanna Demafelis, the overseas worker whose body was found stuffed in a freezer in February. Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said the sentence shows the sincerity and good faith of the Kuwaiti government.
It appears justice has been served. Demafelis’ death and its ignominy shocked a nation that was no stranger to the risks that workers face in foreign lands. Demafelis’ story was common indeed—she made the trip to act as breadwinner for her family. The manner in which she was killed, however, was revolting.
The operative word is “appears.” Beneath the surface, many issues remain unresolved.
Foremost, the employers—Lebanese Nader Essam Assaf and his Syrian wife Mouna Hassoun— were tried in absentia. The two fled Kuwait City and were arrested in Damascus. The husband has been turned over to Lebanese authorities where he reportedly confessed to the killing. The wife remains in Syria.
It is not known whether, when or how they would be made to face the consequences of their action— in Kuwait or anywhere else.
Here at home, Demafelis’ recruiter, the owner of the our Lady of Mount Carmel Global Solutions, remains in hiding. Again the story is common—unscrupulous recruiters only concern themselves with making the fees without ascertaining the actual risks they put the workers in. Sometimes, the effects are economic. In other cases, like Demafelis’, lives are lost.
Administration officials are also still weighing whether the total ban on the deployment of workers to Kuwait should be lifted after the Kuwaiti court’s show of good faith. The ban occasioned mixed reactions from the public: Some said it was an impractical, sweeping solution to a particular case —Kuwait is a destination to more than a quarter of a million workers—while others agreed it was a proportionate reaction to a grievous crime.
Finally, whatever the fate of the suspects, the case just goes to show the extent of the dangers faced by Filipinos who venture into other countries because of lack of opportunities in their home country.
The sooner we stop regarding our workers as “prime exports” and work instead to provide them with sustainable jobs they can keep while living with their families, the better. The choice to live abroad should be made out of one’s free will, not out of necessity.
Demafelis’ case is not the first heartbreaking OFW story. If authorities focus on this case but fail to consider the bigger picture and long-term situation, it will not be the last, either.