Duterte to seek better conditions for OFWs in Mideast visit

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte

MANILA- President Rodrigo Duterte is poised to seek deals that would guarantee better working conditions for overseas Filipino workers when he visits the Middle East this Holy Week, an analyst said Sunday.

University of the Philippines Political Science Assoc. Prof. Herman Kraft said he thinks Duterte would not question death penalty laws of countries in the Middle East given that he is an advocate of the policy himself.

“He is actually willing to respect the laws that they actually have and if that means we’re talking about death penalty, this is something that he is not going to question,” Kraft said in a phone interview on ANC’s “Dateline Philippines.”

Duterte will fly to 3 Middle Eastern countries in state visits to meet with the countries' leaders and the overseas Filipino workers there.

Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Hjayceelyn Quintana said the President will visit Saudi Arabia from April 10 to 12, Bahrain from 12 to 14, and Qatar from 14 to 16.

The trip aims to "strengthen efforts for the protection of the rights and promotion of the welfare of the more than 1 million of our people working in those countries, invite investors to the Philippines, and usher in progress here at home, and to forge stronger partnerships by elevating our political and economic cooperation with these countries to new heights."

Duterte will also meet with Saudi Arabia's King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, and Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

"He will discuss with these leaders matters relevant to the welfare and dignity of the Filipinos living in their countries as well as explore avenues for economic and political cooperation."

During the trip, Duterte will "explore partnerships" with these countries in tourism development, Halal food security, Islamic finance, and energy security as well as investments, according to Quintana.

Just like in the President’s previous foreign trips, Kraft thinks Duterte would most likely seek partnerships in addressing terrorism and international crime.

Kraft argued that Duterte may also invite foreign businessmen to invest in the Philippines.

There are about 760,000 Filipinos in Saudi Arabia, 60,000 in Bahrain, and 250,000 in Qatar, according to Quintana.

Source: ABS-CBN News, April 09 2017

Kuwaiti woman films housemaid falling from 7th floor

A woman has been detained by police in Kuwait for filming her Ethiopian maid falling from the seventh floor in an apparent suicide attempt without trying to rescue her (see video below).

The Kuwaiti woman filmed her maid land on a metal awning and survive, then posted the incident on social media, Al-Seyassah newspaper reported.

The 12-second video shows the maid hanging outside the building, with one hand tightly gripping the window frame, as she begged for help in an apparent last-minute change of mind.

The woman holding the camera is heard telling the hanging maid: 'Oh crazy, come back.'

The terrified maid is seen screaming 'hold me, hold me', just before her hand slipped and she fell down to hit the awning, which appears to soften the impact.

The employer made no reaction as she continued filming.

Later, paramedics rescued the maid and rushed her to hospital where she was found to have a broken arm as well as a bloody nose and ear.

The criminal investigation police referred the employer to the prosecution over failing to help the victim, the newspaper reported.

The reasons for the maid's attempted suicide were not revealed.

The Kuwait Society for Human Rights on Friday called on the authorities to investigate the case and refer it to court.

Source: Agence France-Presse, April 3, 2017

Warning: Graphic Content

Gabriela urges Duterte to save OFW on death row in UAE

MANILA, Philippines — Women's group Gabriela on Monday called on President Rodrigo Duterte to save Jennifer Dalquez from death row during his visit to the Middle East.

"We urge him to exhaust all measures to save OFW Jennifer Dalquez from the death row in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)," Gabriela said on a statement on Monday.

Dalquez was placed on death row in 2015 for the murder of her employer when he attempted to rape her in 2014.

The group also expressed hope that President Duterte will have enough time to visit UAE even if it is not included in his itinerary.

President Duterte is scheduled to leave for the Middle East on Monday for a state visit to Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Qatar, where he will meet with the heads of state as well as with the Filipino communities in those countries.

Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary Hjayceelyn Quintana said last week that the president's visit aims to strengthen efforts to protect the rights and promote the welfare of the Filipinos in the three countries.

Gabriela filed House Resolution 829 last month, calling on President Duterte to seek executive clemency for Dalquez.

Raul Dado, executive director of the Department of Foreign Affairs’ Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs said that the president is expected to appeal on the case.

"There is no black and white that the president is going to take up Dalquez’s case. But knowing his concern, we have prepared the legal papers in case he makes an appeal," Dado said in a statement.

Source: philstar.com, April 10, 2017

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China executes 11 members of gang who ran billion-dollar criminal empire in Myanmar

China has executed 11 members of the notorious Ming family criminal gang, who ran mafia-like scam centers in Myanmar and killed workers who tried to escape, Chinese state media reported on Thursday. The Ming family was one of the so-called 4 families of northern Myanmar — crime syndicates accused of running hundreds of compounds dealing in internet fraud, prostitution and drug production, and whose members held prominent positions in the local government and militia aligned with Myanmar’s ruling junta.

Florida | Man convicted of leaving girl to be eaten by gators avoids death penalty

After about 4 hours of deliberations, jurors on Friday recommended Harrel Braddy should be sentenced to life in prison for the 1998 killing of 5-year-old Quantisha Maycock. A South Florida man who dropped off a 5-year-old child in the Everglades to be eaten alive by gators nearly 3 decades ago was given a second chance at life as jurors recommended he should spend the rest of his life behind bars instead of being sent to death row. After about four hours of deliberations, jurors on Friday recommended Harrel Braddy should be sentenced to life in prison for the 1998 killing of 5-year-old Quantisha Maycock.

Federal Judge Rules Out Death Penalty for Luigi Mangione in UnitedHealth CEO Killing

NEW YORK — A federal judge has dismissed two charges against Luigi Mangione, the man accused of assassinating UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, effectively removing the possibility of the death penalty in the high-profile case. U.S. District Judge Margaret Garnett ruled Friday that the murder charge through use of a firearm — the only count that could have carried a capital sentence — was legally incompatible with the remaining interstate stalking charges against Mangione.

Georgia parole board suspends scheduled execution of Cobb County death row prisoner

The execution of a Georgia man scheduled for Wednesday has been suspended as the State Board of Pardons and Paroles considers a clemency application. Stacey Humphreys, 52, would have been the state's first execution in 2025. As of December 16, 2025, Georgia has carried out zero executions in 2025. The state last executed an inmate in January 2020, followed by a pause due to COVID-19. Executions resumed in 2024, but none have occurred this year until now. Humphreys had been sentenced to death for the 2003 killings of 33-year-old Cyndi Williams and 21-year-old Lori Brown, who were fatally shot at the real estate office where they worked.

Oklahoma board recommends clemency for inmate set to be executed next week

A voting board in Oklahoma decided Wednesday to recommend clemency for Tremane Wood, a death row inmate who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection next week at the state penitentiary in McAlester. Wood, 46, faces execution for his conviction in the 2001 murder of Ronnie Wipf, a migrant farmworker, at an Oklahoma City hotel on New Year's Eve, court records show. The recommendation was decided in a 3-2 vote by the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, consisting of five members appointed by either the governor or the state's top judicial official, according to CBS News affiliate KWTV. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Sitt will consider the recommendation as he weighs whether to grant or deny Wood's clemency request, which would mean sparing him from execution and reducing his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

California | Convicted killer Scott Peterson keeps swinging in court — but expert says he’s not going anywhere but his cell

More than two decades after Laci Peterson vanished from her Modesto, California, home, the murder case that captivated the nation continues to draw legal challenges, public debate and renewed attention. As the year comes to a close, Scott Peterson, convicted in 2004 of murdering his pregnant wife and their unborn son Conner, remains behind bars, serving life without the possibility of parole. His wife disappeared on Christmas Eve in 2002, and a few months later, the remains of Laci and Conner were found in the San Francisco Bay.

Death toll in Iran protests could exceed 30,000

In an exclusive report, the American magazine TIME cited two senior officials from the Iranian Ministry of Health, who stated that the scale of the crackdown against protesters on January 18 and 19 was so widespread that 18-wheeler trailers replaced ambulances. In its report, based on testimony from these two high-ranking officials, TIME revealed statistics that differ vastly from the official narrative of the Islamic Republic.

The US reporter who has witnessed 14 executions: ‘People need to know what it looks like’

South Carolina-based journalist Jeffrey Collins observed back-to-back executions in 2025 after the state revived the death penalty following a 13-year pause Jeffrey Collins has watched 14 men draw their final breaths. Over 25 years at the Associated Press, the South Carolina-based journalist has repeatedly served as an observer inside the state’s execution chamber, watching from feet away as prison officials kill men who were sentenced to capital punishment. South Carolina has recently kept him unusually busy, with seven back-to-back executions in 14 months.

Florida's second execution of 2026 scheduled for February

Florida’s second execution of 2026, a man convicted of killing a grocery story owner, will take place in February. Gov. Ron DeSantis signed the death warrant Jan. 23 for Melvin Trotter, 65, to die by lethal injection Feb. 24. Florida's first execution will take place just a few weeks earlier when Ronald Palmer Heath is set to die Feb. 10. Trotter was convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to death in 1987 for strangling and stabbing Virgie Langford a year earlier in Palmetto.

China executes another four members of powerful Myanmar-based crime family

China has executed another four members of a powerful Myanmar-based crime family that oversaw 41 pig butchering scam* compounds across Southeast Asia. The executed individuals were members of the Bai family, a particularly powerful gang that ruled the Laukkai district and helped transform it into a hub for casinos, trafficking, scam compounds, and prostitution. China’s Supreme People’s Court approved the executions after 21 members were charged with homicide, kidnapping, extortion, operating a fraudulent casino, organizing illegal border crossings, and forced prostitution. The court said the Bai family made over $4 billion across its enterprise and killed six Chinese citizens.

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