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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.

Indonesian worker escapes death penalty in Malaysia

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Walfrida Soik
Walfrida Soik
An Indonesian migrant working in Malaysia, Walfrida Soik from East Nusa Tenggara, has narrowly avoided the death sentence.

The Kota Bharu High Court in Malaysia ruled on Tuesday to acquit Walfrida of murder charges, sparing her from the death penalty, because she suffers from a mental illness.

The court ordered Walfrida to be treated at Permai Johor Bharu Mental Hospital until she was deemed eligible for a complete pardon from the Sultan of Kelantan.

Indonesian ambassador to Malaysia, Herman Prayitno, welcomed the verdict and lauded the involvement of different parties that assisted with Walfrida’s defense.

To speed up the legal process, Herman said that he would send a request for remission to the Sultan of Kelantan.

“This case is a reminder to us of the importance of monitoring the practice of sending illegal migrant workers [overseas],” Herman said in a press release, as quoted by tribunnew.com on Tuesday.

Walfrida faced the death penalty for murdering her employer’s relative in December 2010.

She was an undocumented migrant worker as she was still underage when she was sent to Malaysia.

Source: The Jakarta Post, August 25, 2015

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Location: Malaysia
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