MIGRANT workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac yesterday said the 17 Filipinos who were arrested and detained in Qatar for illegal assembly have been granted provisional release.
Cacdac, in a briefing in Malacañang, said the Filipinos were temporarily released while authorities investigate their liability for violating Qatari laws.
He said the 17 were released in two batches – the males at around 2:30 a.m. Qatari time, and the females at around 4 a.m. Qatari time.
“Pending investigation, they are able to all go home to their respective homes in Qatar, in Doha and able to spend time for themselves and their loved ones,” Cacdac said.
He refused to give details about the conditions imposed by the Qatari government for the temporary release of the Filipinos, but said the Philippine government will continue to provide legal and welfare assistance to them.
Cacdac said President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. had directed the DMW, in partnership with the One Country Team, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), and the Philippine Embassy in Doha, to provide legal and welfare assistance to the 20 Filipinos who were arrested last March 28 in Qatar.
The Filipinos were apprehended for illegal assembly after they gathered to celebrate the 80th birthday of former president Rodrigo Duterte.
During the gathering, which was supposed to be a picnic, the Duterte supporters called for the release and return of the former president to the Philippines as they protested his March 11 arrest on the basis of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC).
The international court issued the warrant of arrest in relation to the crimes against humanity complaint filed by the families and relatives of Duterte’s brutal drug war.
Three minors who were arrested with the 17 were immediately released by the Qatari government.
Cacdac, in the same briefing, reiterated his reminder to all overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to always follow the laws and regulations of their host countries.
