RIZANA UPDATE 082107

No Sri Lankan legal aid for young maid facing death sentence in Saudi Arabia

This turn of events is unfortunate. It's one thing for countries to honor the laws of others, but to give no legal aid to a citizen condemed to death by the barbaric country of Saudi Arabia is beyond understanding.

For those wishing to make a respectful comment here is the e-mail address to President of Sri Lanka: Mahinda Rajapaksa, His Excellency the President of Sri Lanka
gosl@presidentsl.org

For more general information on Sri Lanka here is the URL to the English version of the Sri Likan web portal
http://www.gov.lk/index.asp?xl=3

FROM ASIAN TRIBUNE:
Wed, 2007-08-22 01:40
By Vilani Peiris - World Socialist Web Site
Although an appeal has been filed in the Saudi Arabian Supreme Court, the fate of Sri Lankan maid Rizana Nafeek hangs in the balance. She was sentenced to death in June for the murder of her employer’s child. The case exposes not only the reactionary character of the Saudi legal system but the failure of the Sri Lankan government to defend hundreds of thousands of contract workers in the Middle East.
Nafeek, 19, arrived in Saudi Arabia two years ago to work as a house maid in Dawadami, but was compelled to look after a baby along with her many other tasks. She had no experience or training in child care. The infant died in May 2005, while Nafeek was bottle-feeding him.
According to Nafeek, she was left alone to feed the child who began to choke. She shouted for help, but before the mother arrived, the infant was dead. The parents accused Nafeek of strangling the child and handed her over to the Dawadami police. Siding with the family, the police pressured the maid into signing a statement confessing to murder.
Nafeek renounced the confession in court in February, declaring that police had threatened her. The Dawadami court ignored her statements and on June 16 sentenced her to death. In Saudi Arabia, executions are carried out by public beheading. The deadline for an appeal was set for July 16.
The Sri Lankan government was completely indifferent to the fate of a young contract worker, leaving her isolated without any legal assistance. It claimed that any aid would amount to contravening the sovereignty of another country.
Foreign employment minister Keheliya Rambukwella told the media that his staff educated potential contract workers in the culture, behaviour and law of the country where they were to work. “But when they get in trouble, the law of the land will apply,” he declared.
Government made no contribution toward the legal fees needed to make an appeal. Riyadh-based attorney at law, Kateb Fahad Al-Shammari, charged 250,000 Saudi Riyals ($US67,000)—an impossible amount for Nafeek’s family. The Asian Human Rights Commission paid an initial sum of 50,000 Saudi Riyals and other donors contributed the remainder.
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