Marylene Chavez, 49 years old and former domestic helper, was meted a suspended sentence of six days in jail for breach of condition of stay.
But since Magistrate David Chum suspended the sentence for the
next 12 months, Chavez would not see the inside of a prison cell if she does
not commit any offense during the period.
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| DETALYE |
Her duty lawyer said Chavez, who is separated and has three children in the Philippines, had worked in Hong Kong as a domestic helper for nine years before she was terminated because she had become sickly.
She tried to find a new employer but ran out the two
weeks allowed her after being terminated.
Having overstayed, she applied for asylum and sought to
prevent the Hong Kong government from forcibly sending her home.
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| PINDUTIN PARA SA DETALYE |
However, she eventually decided to drop her asylum claim and pleaded
guilty so she can go home.
This was not what another Filipina, Marina Irene Benamer, 54 years old, chose to do.
Her lawyer asked Magistrate Chum for an adjournment to await
the result of her appeal for the High Court to reverse the decision of the Torture
Claims Appeal Board (TCAB) that rejected her application for asylum.
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| Pindutin para sa detalye |
Chum scheduled the next hearing for April 16 next year, and
released her on a bail of $500.
Benamer is charged with breach of condition of stay for
having overstayed in Hong Kong for almost four years.
She arrived in Hong Kong as a tourist and was allowed to
stay until March 15, 2017 but she did not leave as required, until she was
arrested on Jan. 5, 2021.
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| Pindutin para sa detalye |
She has since applied for asylum, but has been rejected by
the Immigration Department and then the (TCAB) and is pinning her hopes on the
High Court.
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| PADALA NA! |
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| PRESS FOR DETAILS |
