Rizana Nafeek executed
Rizana Nafeek, a Sri Lankan domestic worker convicted of killing a baby in her care in 2005 when she was 17 has been executed, the Sri Lankan Foreign Employment Bureau said a short while ago.
It was earlier reported that the Saudi Arabia’s Interior Ministry under Prince Mohammed bin Nayef bin Abdul Aziz has issued instructions for Nafeek’s execution.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa also sent an appeal to King Abdullah on January 6, 2013, requesting a stay of the execution until a settlement can be reached between the baby’s family and a Saudi reconciliation committee.
Nafeek had been working in Saudi Arabia for two weeks in 2005 when the Utaibi family’s 4-month-old baby died in her care. Nafeek retracted a confession that she said was made under duress, and says that the baby died in a choking accident while drinking from a bottle. Authorities have incarcerated Nafeek in Dawadmi prison since 2005.
Human Rights Watch interviews with Sri Lankan embassy officials and reporting from Arab News found serious problems with Nafeek’s access to lawyers and competent interpreters during her interrogation and trial. Nafeek had no access to legal counsel until after a court in Dawadmi sentenced her to death by beheading in 2007.
In 2010, Saudi Arabia’s Supreme Court upheld Nafeek’s conviction and death sentence, exhausting all judicial remedies unless new evidence emerges.
International law prohibits the death penalty for crimes committed before the age of 18. A recruitment agency in Sri Lanka altered the birthdate on Nafeek’s passport to present her as 23 so she could migrate for work, but her birth certificate shows she was 17 at the time. The High Court in Colombo, Sri Lanka later sentenced two recruitment agents to two years in prison for the falsification of Nafeek’s travel documents.
Courtesy: Ada Derana
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We in Sri Lanka should stop diplomatic relationships with Saudi Arabia for killing this girl brutally.
I condemn this cruelty.
We should halt sending our women to Saudi Arabia….
When even the President’s appeal has been rejected… what compromises with these people….
They think petrodollars will last forever….
please stop deal with sudi arabaia
my dear friend……………
we can help rizana’s family
The pardon requests made by the Sri Lankan Government were all said to be political properganda as nothing happened and now this innocent child is no more in the world. Now it is useless crying on behald of her as the Government leaders in Sri Lanka should sit back and think about this pathatic family and no amount of compensation paid to this family members in Sri Lanka could bring back life to Rizana. May she rest in peace.
This brutal demons have lost their sense of judge to realize the right from the wrong.Highly condemn this cruelty.Sri Lanka politicians must firm about to stop, sending women abroad,Particularly,Middle East. Dearest Rizana, May Gods granted you the rebirth on our motherland!
As said in Blog 2, it is time to review our policy on supply of unqualified/unskilled labour to middle eastern countries.
I can understand the rejection of the Presidential appeal as all avenues of appeal had been exhausted. It is Saudi Arabia’s internal affairs anyway and we do not have any rights to interfere in internal affairs.
This is similar to NGO’s and other international jurist bodies and even other political leaders interfering in the internal affairs relating to the CJ’s case.
We must stop sending maids to these brutal countries.It is better to beg and die with respect and honour in Sri lanka, than going to these brutal Arab countries, where our SL women work for nothing, get raped and in many cases beaten to death. I was told that about 260 bodies of SL women were sent back to Sri Lanka in 2012.
Saudi Govt has committed murder of this innocent maid who was sent to SA with little or no experience in child care by evil agents. This Minister of Internal Affairs, prince someone-or-other, should be hauled before the International Human Rights Court for gross violation of international law in imposing and carrying out a death sentence on a minor for a dubious offence, which no civilised nation would have done. Where is the outcry by USA and imperial West, who were so vociferous in defence of LTTE terrorists in SL? Unfortunately, SA cares not a hoot because the imperial West dares not to rail against SA brutality and human rights abuse since they depend on SA oil. Saudi regime is an evil, brutal regime who should be wiped off the face of the earth just as other evil Arab dictators had been removed. What a great pity that imperial West indulges every whim and fancy of Saudi royals because of their oil!
We cannot condemn the Saudi Government for this act.
Condemnation would mean interference in their internal affairs.
When we (fraudulently) export our mothers and sisters to an alien land to serve as servants to Oil sheiks, we fail to educate them that they will be subject to the laws of those lands.
If our mothers and sisters commit any act which is “illegal” in terms of the laws of the land where the offensive act was committed, the law of that land will apply.
It is a SHAME on the fathers and brothers of our to subject the mothers and sisters to unconscionable risks in the employ of aliens.
Chumpa’s views on this matter invoke passion in me as a breadwinner and as a conventional male in Sri Lankan society.
We (as males in Sri Lanka) have been subjecting our womenfolk to untold and unquantifiable risks by failing to be true breadwinners.
We enjoy life earning “commis”, alcohol (and song and women for some) and that elusive dream of becoming “rich and powerful” whilst failing to dinner on the table for the family everyday.
We pursue “white elephant” projects for self glorification bringing no real time benefits to society.
Our mothers and sisters are thus compelled to put themselves out in the streets to ensure that daily bread.
We indulge in that eternal “LTTE” jingoism which is the cause for all our social ails (just as Nicholas does) whilst neglecting true and fundamental issues related to survival and groth.
I agree with Chumpa that menfolk in in our land are a SHAMEFUL lot.
We have failed our mothers and sisters.
yes…this is a sin…but this is Sharia law and muslims are very much like of this
“brutal law”…..so what to do even we (Sinhalese and others) worry about her…but muslims say….thats the will of Allah…..
then what about the Sinhala man who sentenced to death only because of worshiping Buddha…….our government intervention is NIL to release this poor SINAHLA fellowman……
thats the real concern…..and I am totally disagree with this kind of actions by Sri Lankan government……though i vote….i really shame about the GVT…of ours….they dont care about Sinhalese and Buddhism……..
Chula,
Why balme the Governmant? Why can’t you look after your family so that there is no need for your mother, sister and daughter to go and work for these idiots in Saudi?
If one doesn’t have an idea of any scriptures…then avoid talking about it….
Just dont bother blaming everyone the way your head goes…
Who says ‘ it is the will of Allah ‘ ?….perhaps few block heads whom you are aware of…not the majority of Muslims.
When we discuss an issue…just dont exagerate these issues into communal or religious interpretations as you wish…
Yours and our undivided support to this innocent life which was taken away by some silly ideolistic laws of few countries should not hinder our unity in a blog like this.
I’ve often seen many debate on issues and express their views beyond the ‘point’ they’d like to make.
Let us be careful when we write…and elaborate sensitive issues such as refering to ‘Allah’ as such…
Being a Muslim who’d studied Christianity, Buddism and Islam alike, I’ve never wanted to express anything that would harm the sentiments of another fellow Sri-Lankan.
Let us all be United as ‘Sri-Lankans’.