Pinay rape victim dies while in Riyadh hospital

The Filipina rape victim who suffered a stroke after seeing her alleged rapist at the hospital where she was confined has died, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said Friday.
In a text message to GMA News Online, DFA spokesperson Charles Jose identified the victim as Irma Edloy.
"Death of Ms. Edloy is confirmed," Jose said. "The DFA will continue to do whatever is necessary for Ms. Irma Edloy and her family, including the repatriation of her remains and legal action against the perpetrator, esp. if the legal report indicates that Ms. Edloy passed due to her wounds from any maltreatment."
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello, who is in Saudi Arabia, said he was informed that the Filipina died Thursday night.
"I was informed early this morning by our attorney Francis Caladraba that the victim died at 11:45 last night. Hindi pa nya masabi kung ano ang cause of death but I can only presume that the death was caused by the physical assault on her whether it is sexual or otherwise we have to wait for the findings of the medico legal that I already ordered to be conducted," he said.
ACTS OFW party-list Rep. Aniceto "John" Bertiz, who is also currently in Saudi Arabia, said Edloy died while undergoing treatment at King Salman Hospital.
Bertiz, a member of the Bello-led government crisis team sent to Saudi Arabia to assist stranded OFWs there, said Edloy's death should lead to intensified efforts on the part of the Philippine Embassy to obtain justice in her behalf.
"She may be gone, but every effort must be made to make sure that her case will not be buried and forgotten," Bertiz said.
"The OFW had a heart attack immediately after seeing her Saudi employer at the hospital," Bertiz said. "We cannot discount the possibility that her employer may be involved."
Filipino nurses who attended to the raped domestic worker said they saw blood in her underwear and bruises on her face and body.
The Blas F. Ople Policy Center, a non-profit organization that assists distressed OFWs, is calling for a "full-scale investigation" on the case of the raped OFW.
"She has been there for less than a month, and now she's coming home in a coffin," policy center president Susan Ople said in a statement. "We cannot just brush her death aside, as just another news report, or an added number in an endless string of welfare cases."
Ople urged the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to make sure that the Saudi police will not set aside their investigation because the victim has died.
The OFW advocate also urged both Houses of Congress to look into rape cases involving overseas domestic workers particularly in the Middle East.
"How many have resulted in convictions? Is the number of such cases increasing? Do we have an after-care program to care for these rape victims once they come home?" Ople asked. —with Rie Takumi and Ronald Concha/KBK, GMA News

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