The hunger strike of sixteen members of the Kapatiran ng mga Migranteng Istranded sa Riyadh (KAMI-SR, the Brotherhood or Organization of Filipino Migrants Stranded in Riyadh) was launched on December 14.

Eight days later, on December 21, at around 8:00 p.m., the 'KAMI-SR 16' was handcuffed by Saudi Police and marched out of the Embassy premises, obviously an assault orchestrated by Philippine Embassy officials to terminate the protest.

The following is a chronological account of the events that led to the hunger strike described as 'eye-opener' by Embassy officials.

Initial Dialogues

19 November 2003. After the planned visit of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo fizzled out, the ranks of the 'stranded' overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were restive.

They were thinking of submitting to the President a documentation hoping for an immediate resolution of their plight.

In response, the Kapatiran sa Gitnang Silangan (KGS, or Brotherhood or Organization in the Middle East) and the newly-organized MIGRANTE Sectoral Party Saudi Arabia Chapter (MSP-KSA) offered to organize a dialogue between the POLO and the KAMI-SR on November 15th.

Labor Attaches Manuel Roldan and Albert Abalayan attended the dialogue at a place offered by KGS.

The dialogue was able to set the tone between the two groups (POLO and the 'stranded' OFWs) and complaints were made against the apathetic attitude of the case officers, including cases of petty-corruption.

The issue of 'waraga' or certification for OFWs with various Labor cases was discussed but in the end, the POLO never acceded, only promised to prepare the document if KAMI-SR can submit pictures and a list of names.

Labatt Roldan also detailed his vision - that POLO should be very accessible to the sector in
wants to serve - in this case, the OFWs in various distress situation who normally cannot go back and forth to the government offices inside the Diplomatic Quarters.

Roldan believes that case officers should be able to consult with OFWs in distress wherever they may be, a program very well appreciated by KGS and MSP-KSA.

(An assessment on the 15 November 2003 dialogue is available for reference.)

21 November 2003. A few KAMI-SR members went to the POLO to follow-up their cases and noticed the very accommodating atmosphere in the office.

That night in Batha, two members of KAMI-SR and the Chairperson of the MSP-KSA accidentally met LabAtt Abalayan who even obliged to discuss their cases right there and then.

Restive

29 November 2003. Ambassador Bahnarim Guinomla announced the efforts to request the Saudi government for amnesty to detained OFWs.

One KAMI-SR Coordinator discussed the possibility that 'stranded' OFWs may be included in the clemency request, after all even LabAtt Roldan mentioned the possibility that a 'mass repatriation' program may be undertaken.

But the MSP-KSA Chairperson insisted that this will only hamper efforts to resolve labor cases filed to uphold the rights of OFWs and tends to cover-up cases of exploitation and abuse by the employers.

There was an agreement though, that whatever the Ambassador does, 'stranded' OFWs or the Filipino community organizations should be consulted in the process.

03 December 2003. The restiveness of the group remained mainly due to the general feeling of 'homesickness' because of the coming holidays and the temperature getting colder.

Add to this the fact that most do not have a place to stay anymore, some of them having left the room where they temporarily stay and usually hold their meetings because it was once flooded by the rains.

Generally, the group was clamoring for some ' drastic action' claiming that other individuals were sent home immediately by 'doing dramatic moves' inside the POLO, like throwing garbage cans and barging inside POLO staff meetings.

To all these, the generic MSP-KSA response was: "Huwag muna, makipag-dialogue muna tayo, marami pa tayong kailangang ihanda..." (Not yet, we should have dialogue with them instead, we still have a lot to prepare…).

An organizational meeting was made, tackling the need for another series of dialogue in response to the ideas of staging a 'drastic action' floated by some individuals.

A delegation to the POLO was scheduled but only four arrived to address their concerns.

The group was able to talk to their case officers concerning updates about their
situation.

10 December 2003. Again, a mass delegation to the POLO was scheduled but only five persons attended.

As a result, KAMI-SR members Danilo Mondragon, Jose Danny Ladiana and Froilan de Guzman were able to talk to their employer about their final settlement, accompanied by the case officer.

Meanwhile, KAMI-SR Spokesperson Domingo Yalung was arrested by Saudi Police after a brief spat with a taxi driver over an additional SR5 transport fare.

LabAtt Roldan immediately sent one staffer to follow on Yalung, who was released after a few hours.

However, the idea of 'staging a hunger strike' took a major turn after this.

12 December 2003. A KAMI-SR planning-meeting was immediately held, the group deciding to stage the hunger strike as a plan secondary to the dialogue with Ambassador Bahnarim Guinomla.

Preparations were made hurriedly and as requested by the group, the press statement "KAMI-SR threatens to go on hunger strike" was sent to local media the next day.

Dialogue then Hunger Strike

14 December 2003. The press statement caught on. Some 21 KAMI-SR members entered the Philippine Embassy by batch starting at 10:00 AM.

The group demanded a meeting with Ambassador Bahnarim Guinomla but he never showed up.

Soon, the Embassy personnel got alerted and by 1:30 p.m. security has been tightened shutting out a lot of Filipinos, including members of KAMI-SR, MSP-KSA and KGS.

The Chief Security Officer gave the group until 10:00 P.M. to leave the premises.

By 5 P.M., five members, including one driver who brought them, left the Embassy and promised to come back the next morning in order to arrange their things.

All day, the POLO officers led by LabAtt Roldan scurried to review the groups' cases and demands, especially for a male shelter.

In a meeting at around 9:00 P.M., LabAtt Abalayan relayed the information that three from the group can be repatriated immediately by requesting the Central Province Governor for reprieve (although it was not entirely clear if this was part of the 'clemency' appeal).

In turn, LabAtt Manuel Roldan promised to take care of the 'stranded OFWs' concerns the soonest possible time and offered to take the remaining 'KAMI-SR 16' to the POLO staff house.

But the group flatly rejected the offer, after learning that they will be divided into several
groups and there was no assurance that the Ambassador will talk to them.

Divisive Tactics

15 December 2003. The next day, a meeting was held between the good Ambassador and the 'KAMI-SR 16'.

On the said meeting, Ambassador Guinomla promised to send a letter requesting the Saudi Arabian government for clemency and for the immediate repatriation of the 'stranded OFWs' and offered to provide a shelter for stranded male OFWs.

The Ambassador asked the 'KAMI-SR 16' to sign a letter requesting him to assist in the
resolution of their cases.

The group refused in behalf of the other KAMI-SR members who were also demanding immediate repatriation and were already shut out of the Embassy premises.

Eventually, however, the 'KAMI-SR 16' did sign the letter because the Ambassador assured them that their signatures would be attached to the request for clemency to be sent to the Saudi Arabian government and that it would be useless to add names in the list without the presence of the others.

When they arrived at the POLO after the meeting, the case officers immediately eagerly that the 16 would be home immediately, much to the dismay of the other KAMI-SR members who trooped to the POLO office instead after they were shut out of the Embassy grounds.

(Further inquiry with reliable sources later on has proven that there was no such letter submitted to the Saudi Arabian government.)

Enraged, the other KAMI-SR members demanding repatriation confronted LabAtt Roldan but he allegedly remarked: "Sige, gayahin ninyo 'yung mga nag-'hunger strike' sa Embassy at ipapupulis ko kayo?" or something to that effect.

Dismayed, the other 'stranded' OFWs left POLO thinking the 'KAMI-SR 16' left them out.

Later that afternoon, at around 2:00 P.M., KGS President Richard Bautista was prevented from entering the Embassy grounds.

Bautista was requested by the group to bring fresh supply of water and prepaid cards for their telephones.

The next day, ARABNews Correspondent Bien Custodio, a relative of a certain Philippine Embassy official reported that the 'hunger strike' has "effectively ended" after the 'KAMI-SR 16' allegedly "sipped coffee" with the good Ambassador, an allegation vehemently denied by the protesters.

16 December 2003. A meeting was called by Minister Dumia supposedly to discuss their situation.

Knowing it will be just another review of their individual cases, the group simply shut their
mouth and walked out of the room, one by one.

KGS President Bautista declined the offer by LabAtt Roldan to sponsor the 'shelter' for male OFWs.

A day before, LabAtt Roldan asked Bautista to look for a possible place to serve as a 'shelter' for 'stranded' male OFWs.

Because Bautista was not able to find a place, Roldan instead suggested that he sign the rental documents because according to him "POLO staff are not allowed to do it."

17 December 2003. During lunch, a group went inside the Chancery and started to argue with the 'KAMI-SR 16' on their demand for the expulsion of POLO case officers.

The group was apparently friendly to a certain case officer - the subject of frequent complaints from the 'stranded OFWs' due to his 'slow' processing.

The argument became heated prompting them to call the attention of LabAtt Roldan and other community leaders for intervention.

After the argument that ensued, another POLO official aired out their idea of dismissing the protest by 'KAMI-SR' as 'political.'

18 December 2003. The group saw the paper they signed on December 15 requesting the Ambassador for assistance, lying around one of the offices inside the Embassy.

They made a copy of the document and decided the Ambassador was never really intent on submitting it to the Saudi authorities in order to assist them.

19 December 2003. Fearing the breakdown of their health due to lack of food and after consultations over the telephone with the 'KAMI-SR 16', KGS and MSP-KSA suggested down-rating the protest from a hunger strike to a simple sit-in in consideration of their health but the group decided otherwise.

By then, Yalung was already complaining of blood in his bowels, while the rest were already showing signs of failing health.

Based on the consultations with Labor Attache Manuel Roldan, a request for a dialogue was sent to the office of the Ambassador, preferring to discuss the matter on December 22.

20 December 2003. At around 8:00 P.M., a meeting was held at the Embassy attended by a handful of community leaders who discussed the various possibilities of ending (not resolving) the hunger strike.

The said meeting, looking more like a discussion between Rashid Fabricante and Minister Dumia while the rest played audience, ended shortly.

21 December 2003. A shouting match ensued between Yalung and one from the group over leftover food, scattered in the Chancery.

Maintaining cleanliness in the lobby was part of the groups do's and don'ts and somebody was apparently accusing somebody else of mulching food when they are supposed to be on 'hunger strike.'

Seeing an opportunity, Minister Dumia called Yalung into his office.

The group made frantic calls to MSP-KSA who advised to resolve the issue between them and to elect a replacement should Yalung capitulate.

After a few minutes discussing with Dumia inside the office, Yalung bluntly asked the Embassy official: "Kung iiwan ko ba ang grupo pauuwiin ninyo ako?" ("Will you send me home, if I leave the group?")

Dumia allegedly replied in Filipino: "No..."

With that, Yalung turned his back, returned to the group, and apologized for shouting at his
fellow 'stranded.'

Arrested, Handcuffed and Marched Out

Later that night, the group was again worried because of what they see from the Embassy officials the whole day.

Minister Dumia was shouting "One for all, all for one, huh!" in a very sarcastic manner and they were prevented from going outside of the Chancery,.

The Head of Security was very cordial to them for the first time in eight days but they saw
erstwhile community leader Rashid Fabricante signaling 8 with his hands before he left the Embassy premises.

Although, after the last telephone conversation between Bautista and Yalung, the group prepared to go sleep, hopeful that the press conference and the scheduled dialogue between KGS and the Ambassador would bore fruit.

At around 8:00 P.M., a group of Saudi police from the Diplomatic Quarters Security Force entered the Embassy and approached the group who were already lying down.

The 'KAMI-SR 16' was asked to lie face down with guns poked in their heads and were all
hand-cuffed by pairs.

Yalung, who was brushing his teeth at the time, was dragged from the toilet.

For each OFW in hunger strike, there were two Saudi police.

Aside from that, another group of Saudi police authorities escorted them.

The group asked the Philippine Embassy officials then present but they offered them no
explanation.

Vice Consuls Adrian Cruz and Romulo Victor Israel Jr. passed by from their offices without any word while Minister Dumia simply watched the whole proceedings.

Fearing their cellular phones will be confiscated, Yalung instructed everyone to shut it down.

Dumia, Case Officer Abdullah Umpa and Staff Benjie Bujanaid later went with them to the Semaisy Hospital.

In Semaisy Hospital, the group was divided into four.

Still in handcuffs, all were escorted to the counter, group by group as the Filipina nurses
watched.

The Hospital asked for SR100 each for the medical check-up, the Embassy personnel reported they do not have any money, so the DQ Security Force brought them to their Headquarters.

Not one Embassy personnel followed them to the Security Force Headquarters inside the Diplomatic

Quarters were the handcuffs were finally removed from them.

Once there, they were asked to sign a document, which loosely translated by one from the group who can read Arabic, states that they: "accept that the problem is between them and their employers and not the Philippine Embassy; and, that they will not 'disturb' the Philippine Embassy again."

They were then given 'kabsa' (a local meal of yellow rice and roasted chicken) by the security personnel, their first after eight days.

The Security personnel released the group at around 12:00 midnight asking them to go back to the Headquarters the next day.

Since they cannot go back to the Embassy, they decided to call Bautista for assistance.

A meeting was held to cope up with the new situation, statements were made and new security and housing arrangements were done.

No Remorse

22 December 2003. Early morning, MSP-KSA issued a statement calling for the "recall" of the Embassy officials responsible for the arrest of the 'stranded OFWs'.

In response to the previous request for dialogue, Ambassador Guinomla informed KGS President Bautista and MSP-KSA Chairperson Mangampo-Ociones through an email received on December 22 that:

"... As you are very much aware, the "hunger strikers" in the Embassy were escorted by the diplomatic police last night to the hospital for check-up and were shortly later, released, not to a more spacious police station or the Immigration Center, as suggested, but to a place of their own choice.

Let me take this opportunity to assure you that the Embassy remains committed to assisting them as well as others who may be similarly-situated. I have already given instructions to the concerned case officers to expedite the resolution of their respective problems..."