08 August 2005 – Pursuant to the instructions of Foreign Affairs Secretary Alberto G. Romulo, Philippine Ambassador to Pakistan Jorge V. Arizabal reported that he recently met with the family of the late Khan Basha Noor to seek their forgiveness for the death of the Pakistani national caused by Mr. Reynaldo “Fahad” M. Cortez, an OFW who was meted the  death penalty by a court in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

 Ambassador Arizabal informed Secretary Romulo that on 16 July 2005 he, accompanied by   Consul Maria Agnes M. Cervantes and the Philippine Embassy’s assistance-to-nationals officer Mr. Jose Viloria, traveled from Islamabad to the Northwestern Frontier Province of Chakdara to meet with Mr. Noor’s family.    Ambassador Arizabal said that Mr. Noor’s family agreed to receive the Philippine Embassy team at their home upon the representation by Mr. Syed Mohamad Javed, District Coordination Officer (DCO) of the area.

Ambassador Arizabal and the Embassy team met the father of the late Mr. Noor accompanied by two of the victim’s uncles, a brother-in-law and a cousin who also works in Saudi Arabia but was on vacation at the time.  The Embassy team was accompanied by DCO Mr. Javed, and two individuals who are from the Pashtun tribe, Mr. Tariq Khan, who is a graduate of engineering from the Adamson University in Manila, and Mr. Hamsah Ali the Embassy local hire.  Mr. Noor’s family is also from the Pashtun tribe.  (Please refer to the separate photo release on the meeting of Ambassador Arizabal and the Embassy team with the Noor family.)

During the meeting with the family, Ambassador Arizabal “expressed the Philippine Government’s sincere apology for the sad demise of Mr. Noor and conveyed the apologies of Mr. Cortez for what happened.”  Ambassador Arizabal also said that he “expressed the willingness of the family of Mr. Cortez to come to Pakistan to personally express their apologies on the incident and indicate their seriousness in asking for forgiveness from the late Mr. Noor’s family for what happened in the past, which led to the family having lost one of its members.”

Mr. Noor’s family has made no commitment yet on the Philippine Government’s appeal for them to forgive Mr. Cortez, but Ambassador Arizabal promised that the Philippine Embassy will pursue negotiations and follow up the case with the family for however long it takes.  Ambassador Arizabal also said that DCO Javed promised that his own team, composed of the area police superintendent and the district jail warden would do what they can to follow up the matter with the Noor family.

On 30 May 2005, after a hearing on the private rights aspect of the case, the Riyadh Grand court sentenced OFW Cortez to death for the murder of Mr. Noor, who worked in the Kingdom as a taxi driver.  This decision, though not yet final and executory, came after an earlier decision sentencing the Filipino to 15 years imprisonment, which had in fact been later reduced to 10 years in April 2004.  The Philippine Embassy in Riyadh from the onset of the case had been extending all possible assistance to the Filipino and has appealed the court’s latest decision through the assistance an Embassy-hired a Saudi lawyer. (Please refer to press release SFA-AGR-333-05 dated 01 June 2005 for background information.)  END