Two Indonesian migrant workers spared from beheading in Saudi Arabia

JAKARTA (BNO NEWS) — Two Indonesian female migrant workers have been spared from beheading in Saudi Arabia, the Jakarta Globe reported on Tuesday.

The head of the Indonesian Migrant Workers Union, Jejen Nurjanah, announced the news on Monday night, adding that the two workers originally from West Java are still imprisoned in the Middle East kingdom. “Both of them were freed from beheading and we will report the good news to the president,” Jejen said.

One of the workers was convicted of the murder of her employer’s child, while the other one was sentenced to death after being found guilty of using black magic to inflict pain on her employer.

In 2009, a 36-year-old maid was also accused by her employer of using black magic after his son left their house and never returned. She admitted her guilt after undergoing torture and was pronounced guilty.

The Indonesian government called for clemency for 23 nationals facing death penalty in Saudi Arabia in late June, following the execution of a migrant worker on June 18. Ruyati binti Satubi was executed after a court found her guilty of murdering the wife of a Saudi businessman.

The government also announced that it would halt the sending of migrant workers to Saudi Arabia starting from August 1, until an agreement on their protection is reached. Indonesia may lose 3 trillion rupiah ($354 million) in remittances per year after applying the moratorium, according to the Jakarta Globe.

There are around five million Indonesians working abroad, with two million in Malaysia, one million in Saudi Arabia and the remainder in other Asian nations, Europe and the United States.

Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011

Source: WireUpdate.
Link: http://wireupdate.com/wires/19223/two-indonesian-migrant-workers-spared-from-beheading-in-saudi-arabia/.