Embassy secures release of Pinoy couple facing libel complaint in Saudi Arabia

The Philippine Embassy in Saudi Arabia has secured the temporary release from the police of a Filipino couple after a Philippine labor attachè they accused of sexual harassment and corruption filed a libel complaint against them.

In a statement, the embassy said the couple, who it did not identify, requested assistance following the filing of the libel complaint against them by the labor attachè.

"As one of the Embassy's mandate is to deliver assistance to Filipino nationals who become distressed due to, among others, criminal cases filed against them, a case officer and interpreter from the Embassy accompanied the couple to the concerned police station during the preliminary investigation," the Embassy said.

"Since the libel case was filed by another Philippine government official and in order to prevent the couple from being detained or imprisoned, the Embassy secured the temporary release of the couple while the case remains pending," it added.

In a October 14 complaint-affidavit filed in the Philippines, Herbert Mayores, a Filipino welfare officer for a Saudi Arabian recruitment agency, claimed that Nasser Mustafa of the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Riyadh asked for bribes from agencies and harassed his wife

The accusation prompted Mustafa to file a libel complaint against the couple in Saudi Arabia. He told GMA News Online in October that he has submitted a counter-affidavit to the Department of Labor and Employment's International Labor Affairs Bureau (DOLE-ILAB).

Interviewed on Hello Philippines World, Vice Consul Von Ferrera said the couple were held at the police station for five to six hours.

"Ang mangyayari po niyan kapag naipasa na ng police sa prosecutor, magsi-set ng hearing yung prosecutor para tuloy-tuloy yung trial ng kaso," he said.

Ferrera, a lawyer, said the Embassy had no hand in the filing of the complaint against the couple, but added that it is within Mustafa's right to file a case even to a fellow Filipino.

"Kahit sino na nagawan ng mali or iligal, puwede naman po talagang mag-file ng kaso kasi karapatan po iyan ng bawat tao, hindi lang ng Pilipino," he said.

Ferrera assured the couple of the Embassy's help. "Hopefully po maresolba natin 'tong kasong ito sa lalong madaling panahon," he said. —KBK, GMA News