T

he family of Satinah, a female Indonesian migrant worker from Semarang regency, Central Java, who is facing death by beheading in Saudi Arabia after being convicted of murdering her employer, is praying for her to be shown mercy.

'Every day we can only pray for the family of the victim to forgive my sister Satinah so she can be spared from the death penalty,' Satinah's brother Paeri, who lives in Mrunten hamlet, Kalisidi village, West Ungaran district, Semarang regency, said on Monday.

According to Paeri, Satinah will face execution on April 3, 2014, if the Indonesian government fails to meet the diya (financial compensation paid to a victim's kin) set by the family of Satinah's former employer, Nura Al Gharib.

Satinah was named a suspect in relation to the murder of her female employer in Gaseem, Saudi Arabia, and the theft of 37,970 riyals (US$10,125), in June 2007.

Satinah reportedly admitted her wrongdoings and was jailed in Gaseem in 2009 until her appeal in 2010, after which she was sentenced to death. Satinah should have faced execution in August 2011, but the date was extended three times, first to December 2011 and then to December 2012 and June 2013.

Members of the victim's family have said they would accept an apology if the Indonesian government paid compensation of 10 million riyals. After negotiations, the diya was reduced to 7 million riyals. Currently, 4 million riyals have been collected.

'It is impossible for us to make up the deficit,' said Paeri.

According to Paeri, Satinah's family has made various efforts to allay the situation, including communicating with the victim's family. Satinah's daughter, Nur Afriana, 20, wrote a letter that was sent to Saudi Arabia in February 2014, in which she explained how she deeply missed her mother.

'She wrote about her childhood days, when she never received loving care from her mother and father, who had to migrate. Hopefully, with the letter, God will open the hearts of Nura Al Gharib's family [and encourage them] to accept the diya that the government has prepared,' said Paeri.

Meanwhile, the Semarang chapter of Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Indonesia's largest Muslim organization, has called on its members to recite the Al Fatihah verse of the Koran for Satinah.

Semarang Regent Mundjirin lamented the fate faced by Satinah and her family. 'We all hope that Ibu Satinah will be acquitted from the death penalty,' said Mundjirin.

If the death penalty is carried out, it will add to a growing number of Indonesian workers who have been beheaded in Saudi Arabia.

In 2011, two Indonesians, Ruyati and Tuti Tursilawati, were both beheaded for murder in Saudi Arabia. Fellow Indonesians Warni and Yanti Irianti were also sentenced to death for murder, in 2000 and 2008 respectively.