Philippa Daniels maps the conclusion of a repatriation struggle
On 26 January 2012, Philippine Congressman Ignacio (Iggy) Arroyo died in a London hospital. At the date of his death he was domiciled in the Philippines where he was a congressman of the Negros Occidental Region. He was resident in both the Philippines and California. Present at his side, and named by him as his next of kin was his partner, Grace Ibuna. He was still married to his second wife, Mrs Aleli Arroyo, although annulment proceedings had been in train for the six years since they had separated and she had obtained a restraining order excluding him from the matrimonial home.
Elaborate send-off
As a congressman, and a public figure in the Philippines, the funeral arrangements were elaborate—it was expected that his body would lie in state in Congress, in his constituency and then in his ancestral home before burial in Manila. In the immediate aftermath of the Congressman’s death, the hospital transferred his remains to a London funeral parlour while Ms Ibuna began to make arrangements for repatriation to the Philippines, including making
