A batch of 37 female overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) repatriated from Syria, arrive at 4 p.m. Friday (March 7) via EK 332. OWWA personnel and from Office of the Vice President (center photo) assist the returning OFWs upon their arrival at the Gate 3 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 1. (MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – A representative of the Department of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday said there are 1,288 Filipinos in jail abroad for drug-related cases.
At a House hearing, Francisco Noel Fernandez III, special assistant to the DFA’s Office of the Undersecretary for Overseas Workers Affairs, said these include 41 who are on death row.
Aside from Mary Jane Veloso, who was granted temporary reprieve from death via firing squad, there are 18 Filipinos facing death sentence in Malaysia, 21 in China, and one in The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Fernandez added.
The 21 Filipinos on death row in China were all granted a two-year reprieve, which will likely turn into a commutation to life sentence if they exhibit good behavior in prison, he also said. (MNS)