Indonesian Grandmother Freed from Death Sentence After 15 Years in Malaysian Prison
Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia - An Indonesian grandmother has been freed from the death penalty after spending around 15 years in prison due to a narcotics case. This case highlights the practices of exploitation against migrant workers, particularly women in cross-border trafficking networks.
The woman is known as Asih (66), although during the legal process she used the name Ani Anggraeni, a name listed by the drug traffickers on her passport without her knowledge.
Asih was repatriated to Indonesia after the Governor of Penang, Malaysia, granted her a pardon on 19 March, just before Eid al-Fitr.
Citing the South China Morning Post, Asih claimed she had never travelled abroad before being tricked into carrying drugs across the border in 2011.
“It feels unreal, but it’s real. I can only be grateful to return to Indonesia and meet my family,” Asih told the South China Morning Post, quoted on Sunday (5/4/2026).
Asih left Indonesia in 2011 after a woman named Duwi offered her a job as a caregiver in Malaysia, promising high wages and covering accommodation and travel.
However, without her knowledge, Duwi falsified Asih’s name on her passport and instructed her not to use her real name while travelling.
This is a tactic used by human traffickers to deceive immigration authorities.
Upon arriving in Malaysia, Asih was directed to go to Vietnam to pick up a suitcase and send it to Duwi’s relatives in Penang. She was arrested at Penang Airport on 21 June 2011 after authorities found 3.87 kg of methamphetamine in the bag. A Malaysian court sentenced her to death under the Dangerous Drugs Act in 2012.
During her imprisonment, Asih survived endometrial cancer, underwent a hysterectomy, and experienced several incidents of violence, according to news reports.
In a joint statement, Hayat and the Jakarta Community Legal Aid Institute said Asih’s case is more than just a conventional drug charge.
“This is a profound narrative of deception, exploitation, and systemic vulnerability,” they stated.
“The cunning ways in which women are trapped by human trafficking syndicates, manipulated into illegal operations without ever fully understanding the reality of their situation,” both parties emphasised.
These groups stated that Asih and women in similar situations are not masterminds, but “victims of a flawed system that fails to protect them”, and described Asih’s repatriation as an important legal and humanitarian precedent.
At least eight Indonesian women remain imprisoned in Malaysia after their death sentences were commuted, according to the groups, adding that they generally come from poor families, recruited with job offers or romantic lures, and forced to carry bags containing drugs without their knowledge.
Asih’s release comes as Malaysia continues to address the consequences of its 2023 decision to abolish mandatory death penalties, giving judges discretion in 11 offences and allowing resentencing for those already on death row.
The number of people on death row for drug offences dropped from 705 in 2024 to 40 in 2025, according to Hayat. A moratorium on executions has been in place since 2018, with the last known execution carried out in 2017.