The News UpFront: (TOP STORY) as of Saturday, June 19, 2010 

S he could now manage a smile. Godeliva Dulnuan, the petite mother of Jocelyn Dulnuan -- the 27-year-old Filipina housekeeper who was murdered by two Ecuadorian immigrants in 2007 -- found time to relax with townmates from Ifugao province who are in Toronto, now that her killers are in prison for life. She politely refused a formal interview with this reporter but still, she answered a few questions while partaking of lunch at a community picnic celebrating Philippine Independence Day and Rizal Day, which fell on Saturday, June 19, 2010.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Mother of Filipino Murder Victim Says Her Family Is Now at Peace After Guilty Verdict

By ROMEO P. MARQUEZ

Member, Investigative Reporters and Editors (IRE)

and Asian-American Journalists Association (AAJA)

T ORONTO -- The mother of Filipino murder victim Jocelyn Dulnuan said her family is now at peace knowing that after more than two years, she finally got justice with the conviction and sentencing of her killers.

"Tapos na yan. Sarado na" (it's over and the case closed), Mrs. Godeliva Dulnuan told this reporter as she sat quietly with her townmates at the community picnic in northern Toronto's Earl Bales park where at least 2,000 Filipinos gathered for a joint independence day-Jose Rizal day celebration on Saturday (June 19, 2010).

It was the first time she talked about her daughter, the 27-year-old Jocelyn, the second to the youngest of her 10 children. Since her arrival in Toronto from Hong Kong about three weeks ago, she had been shielded by police and court authorities while the trial went on.

"Nagpapasalamat ako sa mga tao na tumulong sa amin, lalo na yung Crown attorneys (prosecutors) at saka sa media" (I thank all those who help us, specially the Crown lawyers and the press), Mrs. Dulnuan said, managing a smile and appearing less tense than when she was in court in the days leading to the jury's decision.

The jury of 11 (minus one who did not participate) found Cristian Figueroa and Fabian Loayza-Penaloza, both immigrants from Ecuador,  guilty of first degree murder for the brutal slaying of Jocelyn, who was strangled to death with a copper wire. The two were sentenced to life imprisonment.

The sentence on Figueroa and Loayza-Penaloza was the maximum punishment that could be imposed since the death penalty was abolished in Canada in 1976. Mrs. Dulnuan said she was happy with it.

For more news and photos, visit: http://currentsbreakingnews.blogspot.com/ and: http://gotchajournalist.blogspot.com/

M rs. Dulnuan also expressed satisfaction at the gesture of her late daughter's employers who, she said, promised to sponsor one of her children to come to Canada in the near future.

She said she's going back to Hong Kong next week to resume her work as a nanny. Her round-trip fare was paid for by the government.

Jocelyn's death has highlighted the dangers routinely faced by hundreds of Filipino women who work in the community of care-givers. Significant improvements have been made in the laws on care-giving since 2007 when Jocelyn was murdered.

The verdict against the convicted killers brought relief to the Filipino community in Toronto.

"It's a vindication of somebody who gave herself unselfishly," Philippine Consul-General Minerva Falcon earlier said when reached for comment by the Philippine Village Voice. "I always believe in Canada's justice system," she added. # # #