At least 30 Filipinos are on death row in various countries around the world, but Philippine authorities are helping appeal the sentences, the government said Sunday.
According to the Department of Foreign Affairs, it was monitoring 30 active death penalty cases involving overseas Filipino workers that are now in various stages of appeal.
The department said it was also closely monitoring and assisting in an additional eight potential death penalty cases, the dpa reported.
Esteban Conejos, foreign undersecretary for migrant workers, said that since January 2006, the department has saved 24 overseas Filipino workers from death sentences.
Eleven of the workers have already been repatriated to the Philippines, he added. They included two Filipino women pardoned by the Emir of Kuwait and one pardoned by the King of Saudi Arabia.
There are more than 8 million Filipinos working overseas. They help boost the Philippine economy by sending in much-needed dollar remittances, which totaled 14.44 billion dollars last year.