Jullebee Ranara’s remains are flown home to the Philippines last January 2023 (MANILA BULLETIN)

OFW Party-list Rep. Marissa "Del Mar" Magsino has hailed the Kuwait juvenile justice court's conviction of the late Jullebee Ranara's killer, but at the same time insisted that overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) still face the same issue. 

"We laud the speedy resolution of the case and the decision of the juvenile justice court in Kuwait, which sentenced the perpetrator to 15 years of imprisonment for murder and a one-year imprisonment for driving without a license," Magsino said in a statement late Thursday night, Sept. 14. 

According to the minority lawmaker, "The long arm of the law has given justice to Jullebee Ranara and her bereaved family". 

"Though her family still has to contend with the deep loss of their loved one, it is our hope that the justice achieved through the court’s decision will somehow lessen the sting of the wounds they carry," she said. 

"But the overarching issue still remains — there must be a fundamental transformation of the conditions under which Filipino migrant domestic workers can work and live in their host countries," Magsino noted. 

She stressed the need for key reforms through stronger bilateral agreements with other countries that should include a standard contract, a system for rescuing workers in distress, and investigating worker abuses and deaths. 

Ranara, a domestic helper working in Kuwait, was found dead in a desert way back in January 2023. The details of Ranara's murder shocked Filipinos back home. 

"Siya po ay ni-rape, siya po ay nabuntis, siya'y sinagasaan at sinunog po ng alleged na anak ng kanyang employer. Masyado pong nakakaawa, karumal-dumal (She was raped, impregnated, she was run over and her body burned by the alleged son of her employer. It's very pitiful, brutal)," Magsino said in a privilege speech at the House of Representatives following the discovery of Ranara's body. 

"Walang habag-habag ang taong gumawa nito sa ating kababayan na gusto lamang maghanapbuhay. Hindi po makatao, hindi po tao. Animal po (The person who did this to our countryman who merely wanted to work has no mercy. It's not humane, he's not human. He is an animal)," she added.

According to Ranara’s death certificate, the OFW suffered from a fractured skull, face, and lower jaw. The causes of death were several traumatic injuries, brain degradation, and the discontinuation of high vital centers.