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| Lawyer to visit pregnant prisoner | |
| (about 2 hours later) | |
| A UK human rights lawyer has flown to Laos to assist a pregnant Briton who faces death by firing squad if convicted of drug smuggling. | A UK human rights lawyer has flown to Laos to assist a pregnant Briton who faces death by firing squad if convicted of drug smuggling. |
| Prosecutors say Samantha Orobator, 20, of London, was in possession of 1.5lb (680g) of heroin when she was arrested at Wattay airport, Laos, last August. | Prosecutors say Samantha Orobator, 20, of London, was in possession of 1.5lb (680g) of heroin when she was arrested at Wattay airport, Laos, last August. |
| Her trial has been brought forward and is due to start this week. | Her trial has been brought forward and is due to start this week. |
| Legal charity Reprieve said its lawyer, Anna Morris, has been given permission to see Miss Orabator on Tuesday. | Legal charity Reprieve said its lawyer, Anna Morris, has been given permission to see Miss Orabator on Tuesday. |
| Miss Orobator has been held at Phonthong prison in the east Asian country since last August. British authorities only learned of her arrest after she had spent months in jail. | Miss Orobator has been held at Phonthong prison in the east Asian country since last August. British authorities only learned of her arrest after she had spent months in jail. |
| She became pregnant in the prison in December and is due to give birth in September. | She became pregnant in the prison in December and is due to give birth in September. |
| Reprieve says authorities in Laos have brought the trial forward a year to avoid her having proper legal representation. | Reprieve says authorities in Laos have brought the trial forward a year to avoid her having proper legal representation. |
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| Reprieve says the decision to reschedule the trial was only taken after arrangements were made for her to see a lawyer for the first time. | Reprieve says the decision to reschedule the trial was only taken after arrangements were made for her to see a lawyer for the first time. |
| The charity said she managed to make contact with their London office on Sunday and said she had been told the trial would start on Monday morning. | The charity said she managed to make contact with their London office on Sunday and said she had been told the trial would start on Monday morning. |
| Ms Morris flew into the country on Sunday after permission was granted to meet Miss Orobator on Tuesday. | |
| Ms Morris told the BBC: "Things are moving quickly. We found out only this morning that the trial wasn't going to take place today [Monday], but we still have no more information as to when it will take place. | |
| "We're very keen to receive confirmation from the Lao authorities as to what is going to happen this week and when. | |
| "We are of course concerned, given that the prison conditions are well documented, we are concerned for her welfare, and we are concerned for the sort of nutrition she's receiving, but we'll know more once we've seen her. | |
| She is five months pregnant, without ever having met a lawyer, facing a show trial for her life Clive Stafford Smith | She is five months pregnant, without ever having met a lawyer, facing a show trial for her life Clive Stafford Smith |
| "But at this point we can certainly say that we're very concerned." | |
| In Laos, anyone caught with more than 1lb (500g) of heroin faces a mandatory death sentence. | |
| At least 39 people have been sentenced to death in Laos since 2003. | |
| Reprieve director Clive Stafford Smith said of the pregnant Briton: "There can hardly be a circumstance where scheduling a capital trial is less appropriate. | |
| "She is five months pregnant, without ever having met a lawyer, facing a show trial for her life." | |
| Mr Stafford Smith said on Friday: "We're dealing with a woman who has clearly become pregnant in prison. Nothing that happens in that prison is voluntary." | |
| British officials had only been able to visit her for a period of around 20 minutes once a month. | British officials had only been able to visit her for a period of around 20 minutes once a month. |
| There is no British Embassy in Laos and the nearest is in the Thai capital, Bangkok. The Foreign Office only learned of her arrest when Australian authorities passed on information from another prison inmate. | There is no British Embassy in Laos and the nearest is in the Thai capital, Bangkok. The Foreign Office only learned of her arrest when Australian authorities passed on information from another prison inmate. |
| 'So scared' | |
| Miss Orobator was born in Nigeria and lived in south London from the age of eight. Her father lives in Nigeria and her mother and three sisters live in the Irish Republic. | Miss Orobator was born in Nigeria and lived in south London from the age of eight. Her father lives in Nigeria and her mother and three sisters live in the Irish Republic. |
| Jane Orobator says she is scared about her daughter's situation | |
| She had been on holiday in Thailand and the Netherlands before travelling to Laos. | She had been on holiday in Thailand and the Netherlands before travelling to Laos. |
| Her mother Jane Orobator said she was "so scared" about her daughter's situation. | Her mother Jane Orobator said she was "so scared" about her daughter's situation. |
| "I'm just appealing to the British government, to the Laos authorities, to just please release her. They should just bring her back to me." | "I'm just appealing to the British government, to the Laos authorities, to just please release her. They should just bring her back to me." |
| Mrs Orobator added that she has no idea why her daughter was in Laos. | Mrs Orobator added that she has no idea why her daughter was in Laos. |
| Mrs Orobator last heard from her daughter in July, when she was on holiday in Holland. | Mrs Orobator last heard from her daughter in July, when she was on holiday in Holland. |