President Aquino on Wednesday expressed his “deepest sympathies” to the families left behind by the three Filipino convicts, calling the latter not only victims of drug rings, but also “victims” of a society that could not give them gainful employment in their own country.

In a statement, the President said his administration would work toward creating a situation where Filipinos do not have to leave the country to find good jobs.

“As fellow Filipinos, we offer our deepest sympathies to the families that they have left behind,” he said.

He said consistent with the laws and values of our country, we pleaded with the Chinese government to commute their death sentences to life imprisonment” but the Chinese government thumbed down the request.

“We must respect their legal processes. I ask the public not to allow this situation to affect our historic friendship with the Chinese people,” he said.

The President said Ramon Credo, Sally Ordinario-Villanueva and Elizabeth Batain “can also be considered victims—victims of unscrupulous recruiters and drug traffickers, and victims of a society that could not provide for them enough gainful employment in their home country.”

He noted that his administration has been running after drug rings since it assumed office, and that in the first quarter of the year alone, police authorities have seized P1.4 billion worth of shabu, shut down two shabu laboratories, and arrested 23 foreign nationals involved in the drug trade.

“In the case of Ms. Ordinario, we have identified the recruiter and filed charges before the Department of Justice. Operations are still ongoing to capture the rest of these drug traffickers,” he said. The President said, however, that the fate of the three is “part of a bigger problem.”

“All over the world, particularly in the Middle East, there are other Filipinos languishing in jails. Our ultimate goal is to create a situation where people are not pressured to resort to these things, where they can find enough gainful employment in the Philippines. Let us remain steadfast and focused on this goal, for it is the ultimate means to bringing a better life for all,” he said. --M. Gonzalez