Spain's leader to save Pinay on death row

MANILA, Philippines - Spanish King Juan Carlos I will intercede on behalf of the Philippines to save a 33-year-old Filipina domestic worker from execution in Kuwait after being convicted for the murder of her employer’s 22-year-old daughter in 2007, Malacañang said yesterday.

A Palace statement issued shortly after President Arroyo’s arrival from a two-day official visit to Spain said she requested the King’s intercession with the Kuwaiti Emir, Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber Al Sabah, on the case of Jakatia Pawa.

“King Juan Carlos conveyed his willingness to intercede on this matter. It can be recalled that His Majesty was instrumental in the commutation of the death sentence in Kuwait of Marilou Ranario and May Vecina, both of whom are now back in the Philippines,” the Palace said.

The April 13, 2008 death sentence of Pawa was upheld by Kuwait’s Court of Cassation on Jan. 19.

Throughout her trial, Pawa – a mother of two children from Zamboanga del Norte – maintained she was innocent. Her lawyer stated there was no evidence in the case filed proving that his client had indeed committed the murder. During a court hearing in January 2009 she stated that one of the victim’s family members might have committed the murder because the victim was having an affair with a neighbor.  – Paolo Romero