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Communist Vietnam's secret death penalty conveyor belt: How country trails only China and Iran for 'astonishing' number of executions

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Prisoners are dragged from their cells at 4am without warning to be given a lethal injection Vietnam's use of the death penalty has been thrust into the spotlight after a real estate tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to be executed in one of the biggest corruption cases in the country's history. Truong My Lan, a businesswoman who chaired a sprawling company that developed luxury apartments, hotels, offices and shopping malls, was arrested in 2022.

Manny Pacquiao wants to meet Jokowi to thank him for sparing Mary Jane Veloso's life (for now)

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superstar boxer Manny Pacquiao
Superstar boxer Manny Pacquiao
As we told you yesterday, superstar boxer Manny Pacquiao is currently in Indonesia. Part of the reason for his visit (his first to Indonesia) is to shoot a commercial for Tolak Angin which he is currently filming in Semarang:

But another reason is to visit Mary Jane Veloso, the Filipina mother of 3 who got a last-minute stay of execution in April but remains on death row.

Pacquiao had promised to meet her after his title fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr in May and is set to meet her at the women's prison she is currently incarcerated at in Yogyakarta after he finished filming his commercial.

Pacquiao told reporters another goal for this trip was to meet President Joko Widodo, to thank him for sparing Veloso's life (for now).

"If given the opportunity to meet, I would like to thank President Joko Widodo," Pacquiao told reporters yesterday, as quoted by Liputano.

Hopefully Pacquiao is being polite and not mentioning the real reason he wants to talk to Jokowi, which is to persuade him to get Veloso off of death row.

Veloso's execution was delayed after after Kristina "Tintin" Sergio, the woman suspected of recruiting her and tricking her into carrying drugs to Indonesia, turned herself in to authorities in the Philippines. Veloso is still set to testify in Sergio's case. If Sergio is indeed found guilty of human trafficking it may be cause for Indonesian authorities to lift the death sentence on Veloso.

But even that is not a guarantee that Jokowi will show mercy to Mary Jane - the president has shown a stubborn refusal to even consider any death penalty clemency requests in the past.

Hopefully Pac-Man will be able to meet with him and use his humble charms to help move the president.

Source: Coconuts news, July 10, 2015

Related article:
- Philippines: Veloso's recruiters indicted for trafficking, estafa, July 10, 2015

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