Pinoy on death row in Kuwait gets pardon from murder victim's family

MANILA, Philippines - An overseas Filipino worker who has been sentenced by a Kuwaiti court to die for killing a compatriot may yet get a new lease of life, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said on Wednesday.

In a statement, the DFA said Bienvenido Espino’s chance of being spared the death penalty has improved after the victim’s family agreed to forgive him.

Espino was convicted for killing fellow OFW Jhiyas Gumapac in Kuwait in 2007.

To save Espino, the DFA facilitated the grant of a tanazul or an affidavit of forgiveness under Shariah law from Gumapac’s legal heirs as required by Kuwait’s Court of Cassation (equivalent to the Philippine Supreme Court).

The statement quoted Gumapac’s father, Joel, as saying that the persistent representations made by the DFA’s Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs and Philippine Ambassador to Kuwait Ricardo Endaya led to the decision for them to forgive Espino and sign the tanazul.

“In Kuwait, the tanazul will allow the offender to be freed form his private obligation to the victim. Only the Amir (King) of Kuwait can grant a pardon which will free a convicted offender from his public obligation," the DFA said.

Kuwait’s Shariah court hears the case on two aspects – private and public – in cases of death or injury to a victim.

The private aspect surrounding Espino’s case can be addressed with the signing of a tanazul by the heirs of the victim or the victim himself, while the public aspect may be influenced by the signing of a tanazul although circumstances surrounding the case may have a bearing on the final judgment of the court.

Apart from Espino, another Filipino named Kakapi Pawa is appealing a death sentence imposed by a Kuwaiti court in April 2008 for allegedly killing the 22-year-old daughter of her employer.

Last year, Kuwait’s ruler, Emir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, commuted the death sentences of Filipino domestic helpers Marilou Ranario and May Vecina, who were sentenced separately on murder charges. - GMANews.TV

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