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MANILA, Philippines -- A migrant workers? group in the Middle East called on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) in Manila and the Philippine Embassy in Saudi Arabia on Sunday to investigate reports that an overseas Filipino worker who had been sentenced to death was beaten up in jail in the capital city of Riyadh.
Migrante-Middle East (ME) said the family of Joselito Zapanta had sought help from their Manila office after learning that Zapanta had experienced ?heavy beating? at the Malaz central jail.
?Zapanta?s family requested for his protection. They said he could hardly eat because of the heavy blows he sustained,? John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-ME regional coordinator based in Riyadh, said in a statement.
Monterona said the family had no information on who had beaten Zapanta.
?It could have been a fellow prisoner,? he said, adding that their group had yet to independently verify the report.
?He (Zapanta) used to call me from his cell. I have been calling his mobile phone since yesterday (Saturday), but there was no answer. In one instance, someone answered. When I asked to speak with Joselito, the line was cut,? Monterona said.
Monterona said that on behalf of Zapanta?s family, he spoke to an embassy official about the possibility of hiring a Shariah (Islamic law) defense lawyer since Zapanta?s case had been elevated to the Saudi appellate court for automatic review.
Monterona said the embassy should have hired a Shariah defense lawyer for Zapanta when his case was still in the lower court.
Zapanta, 30, of Mexico, Pampanga, was meted out the death penalty by the Saudi Court of First Instance on April 13 for stealing from and killing his Sudanese landlord.
?He was brutally beaten by his Sudanese landlord when he refused to pay his rent as his payment was not yet due. He fought back and accidentally killed the Sudanese [in] June 2009,? Monterona in an statement earlier.
Zapanta worked in Riyadh as a tile setter since October 2008, and has been in jail since June 2009.
