Filipino maid ‘raped by boss’ in Saudi Arabia dies in hospital

IRMA Edloy’s injuries from a suspected rape were so serious she died in a Saudi Arabian hospital.But not before she identified her alleged attacker.

A WOMAN from the Philippines working as a maid in Saudi Arabia has died in hospital after a suspected rape. But not before she identified the alleged attacker — her boss.

Irma Edloy’s injuries were so bad she went into a cardiac arrest several times since she was admitted into hospital on August 17. Doctors were able to revive her, until she died on August 18.

Before passing away, the 35-year-old was asked by a nurse who had abused her. She pointed at her employer, ABS CBN News reports.

Nurses said that the young woman’s underwear was full of blood when she was first treated at the hospital.

Saudi authorities are currently investigating whether she was raped.

The death of the maid is the latest in a series of troubling cases involving foreign workers in Saudi Arabia.

“The DFA will continue to do whatever is necessary for Ms Irma Edloy and her family,” Charles Jose, a spokesman for the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs, told GMA News Online, “including the repatriation of her remains and legal action against the perpetrator, especially if the legal report indicates that Ms Edloy passed due to her wounds from any maltreatment.”

The case is the latest to highlight the abuse of foreign workers in the oil-rich Gulf state.

In January, the Ugandan government banned maids working in Saudi Arabia, after the local media reported cases of mistreatment.

It came after an audio recording widely circulated in January on social media featured Ugandans in Saudi Arabia who said they were being tortured and imprisoned.

Indonesia, Ethiopia and the Philippines also banned the flow of migrant workers to Saudi Arabia until they could be assured the workers were given basic labour rights.