In Pesaro, the parents of Marco Mancini have appealed for their son to be brought home. They say the 32-year-old has been in prison in Vietnam for 11 months and is not a criminal.
Emanuela Paoletti last saw her son on 31 August. She said he was very demoralised and exhausted, with pustules on several parts of his body and fungal infections under his feet. The Pesaro engineer, who holds two degrees, has been in custody since 15 November and was moved from the prison in Da Nang to the prison in Ho Chi Minh City.
His father, Giorgio Mancini, described a very harsh regime after an earlier visit. He said his son was treated like a war criminal, bound from head to foot, handcuffed and barefoot, and that physical contact was impossible. The family hopes the next step will be a flight back to Italy.
Mancini was sentenced to six years. Family lawyer Eleonora Barbieri said someone misled him through questionable chats on Telegram by promising a gift, and that he was handed a package containing substances. At the moment of delivery he was in Cambodia, not Vietnam. She said that as soon as he received it he took it to the police, that he did not consume the substance inside, and that he tested negative on every test.
The Chamber of Deputies has approved ratification of an Italy-Vietnam agreement that would let prisoners serve their sentences in their country of origin. The next step is the signature of the President of the Republic, followed by publication in the Official Gazette. Barbieri said formal transfer papers from Vietnam to Italy could then be filed, and she hopes Mancini can return within a few months to finish his sentence in clearly less severe conditions. She has dealt with the relevant bodies, including the embassy and consulate.
At a press conference on the previous day at the Trust Multiservizi centre, Paoletti became emotional and said that human rights exist in Italy, while insisting she will not give up. Aunt Francesca Mancini asked for an urgent meeting with the justice minister to clarify the path and the procedures, and for the process to start so Marco can serve his sentence in Italy. She asked for concrete answers, fixed timings and a clear route, and described him as a son, a brother, a nephew and a person with a story, dignity and a future.
Barbieri called a transfer by Christmas the most optimistic target and said it would be a miracle. She said Easter is the more realistic aim.
Elia Rossi, provincial commissioner of Forza Italia, said he had linked the family with the foreign ministry and put Minister Tajani in touch with them, using every useful chance for the mother to convey her feelings. He described Tajani as a grandfather and a father who looks beyond the institutional role, and said the minister immediately made himself available. The aim is a meeting with the Ministry of Justice within 10 days so the transfer request can be submitted when the head of state signs.