Ex-leader Arroyo: 'I was persecuted'
By Agence France-Presse in Manila | China Daily | Updated: 2016-07-26 07:53
Former Philippine president Gloria Arroyo has declared herself a victim of political persecution, following her release from nearly five years in detention over a corruption case.
In her first public comments since being freed from a military hospital on Thursday after the Supreme Court dismissed plunder charges against her, Arroyo insisted her detention was "unjust".
The court found "insufficient evidence" to accuse her of stealing $8.8 million in state lottery funds meant for charity programs while she was in office between 2001 and 2010.
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