OFWs jailed in Saudi set to rejoin families

After years of mental torture and uncertainty over the fate of their loved ones jailed in Saudi Arabia, four women are now assured of their homecoming.

Florencia Bunye, Hilda Gare, Rosalinda Jorge and Lourdes Yncierto could not produce the "blood money" demanded by the families of people allegedly killed by their loved ones in Saudi Arabia.

When First Gentleman Mike Arroyo learned about this, he lost no time in giving P1.5 million for the "blood money."

Bunye, Gare and Rosalinda’s husbands and Yncierto’s son have been jailed in Saudi Arabia for years.

The First Gentleman gave P400,000 to Yncierto and Gare. Yncierto’s son, Sabeniano had killed fellow Filipino Arnold Mengit. Gare’s husband, Mariano, was tagged as an accessory to the killing.

The P400,000 blood money was turned over to Arnold’s widow Mercedes who now lives with their children in Concepcion, Tarlac.

Mercedes said the money would help her children’s education and would be used as an additional capital to her sari-sari store.

Jorge’s husband Carlos, a forklift operator who killed a Bangladeshi national during an accident in 2000, received $14,175 from Mr. Arroyo.

The money will be sent by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to the Technical Contracting Co. in Saudi Arabia which has been holding Carlos after it advanced the blood money.

Bunye’s husband, Ernesto, has been in jail since 1999 for the death of fellow Filipino worker Renato de Castro. Mrs. Bunye received P400,000 from Mr. Arroyo for the "blood money" demanded by De Castro’s widow, Elsa.

The De Castro children were likewise assured of scholarship from the First Gentleman.

The women were assisted by Robert Chuan of the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration and Gil Salceda of the Department of Foreign Affairs Office of the Undersecretary of Migrant Workers Affairs.