PH embassy in Hanoi seeks permission to visit Filipina drug mule

DFA spokesperson Raul Hernandez. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Monday said that embassy officials in Vietnam had requested Hanoi to allow them to visit the 61-year-old Filipina who was sentenced to death after she was caught smuggling methamphetamine (shabu) into the country.

A report from the Agence France Presse had noted that Amodia Teresita Palacio was arrested for possession of more than five kilograms of the drug in April at a Hanoi airport. AFP had also said that Palacio was found guilty of repeatedly entering Hanoi from Thailand to smuggle drugs.

Foreign Affairs spokesman Assistant Secretary Raul Hernandez told reporters that the Philippine embassy in Hanoi, headed by Ambassador Jerril Santos, had filed the request to visit Palacio, who was in detention cell no.1.

“Hopefully they will be granted visitation within the week. We will also know by this week [the status of the appeal on the case],” Hernandez said.

Hernandez said that a court-appointed Vietnamese lawyer and another from Hanoi lawyers association have been helping Palacio appeal her case.

“This is provided by the Hanoi government and what we do is we just monitor and see if the way it is being handled is up to par,” Hernandez said. Hernandez added that they would know the status of the appeal after the embassy officials’ visit.

The DFA had earlier noted that Palacio had 15 days to appeal her case and the DFA would “do everything necessary to save her from death penalty.” He said that while they wanted to have immediate results, they have to contend with the process of the host government and work with their judicial system.

“What we’ll do is we’ll take the appeals process one step at a time. And if in one step, the sentence is reduced, then that will be good. But if the sentence is not reduced, then we will have to elevate it to higher authorities,” Hernandez said.

Hernandez added that they remained in contact with Palacio’s family. He also noted that though they did not have the exact details, reports said that Palacio’s nieces had asserted that Palacio was tricked by a Filipina recruiter, who was said to be a right hand of an African-American recruiter.

“If for example there’s enough evidence to pin her down, then they could file a case against her with the help of PDEA and the DFA,” Hernandez said.

AFP had noted that Vietnam’s drug laws were among the harshest in the world. It said that since the start of the year, 43 people have received death sentences mainly for murder and drug charges.

“At present, there are more than 400 prisoners on death row in the country, mostly for cases involving drugs or murder, but executions have declined in recent years,” it said in its report.