Kin of OFW slain in Oman seek justice

A candle will stay lit for Pinky Pamittan until her family gets justice. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

LUPAO, NUEVA ECIJA—Candles have been lit near a plastic Christmas tree on a small table in the house here of overseas Filipino worker Pinky Pamittan, who was murdered in Oman on Oct. 28.

The body of Pamittan, 32, a restaurant supervisor in a hotel in Oman, has yet to be repatriated, according to her sister, Precy.

“We keep the candles lit every day until the family gets answers about the death of Pinky,” an aunt, Rebecca Bautista, 62, said on Friday.

Pamittan’s mother, Alicia, works in Jordan and has yet to return home for her daughter’s burial that has yet to be scheduled pending the repatriation. Precy was in Manila coordinating with the Department of Foreign Affairs.

In their home in Barangay Parista here, family members like Bautista and her 86-year-old grandmother, Candida Bautista, have been praying for her soul.

They learned about her murder on Oct. 29, and offered a Mass in their parish church here, Bautista said.

Pamittan’s body was found behind a mosque in Oman, after a hotel staff reported to the police that she failed to report for work on Oct. 27.

Authorities in Oman said she took a day off on Oct. 26.

According to The Times of Oman, an Asian had admitted committing the crime and is now in the custody of the Oman police.

Pamittan obtained a degree in hotel and restaurant management through the help of an aunt in the Science City of Muñoz.

She flew to Oman in February this year and was employed at a hotel there where she was soon promoted to supervisor of its restaurant, Bautista said.

Pamittan’s grandmother said she could not eat and sleep after she learned about the murder. “I pray the government could help us punish her killer,” Bautista said. —ARMAND GALANG