Ismira Lutfia – The highest concentration of Indonesians facing the death penalty or who are on death row abroad are in Malaysia, the foreign ministry said.

"The majority of Indonesians punishable by death abroad are in Malaysia, at 76.9 percent or 233 cases," Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said.

Speaking in a hearing session with House of Representatives Commission I, Marty said 177 Indonesians are now being tried on death sentence charges in Malaysia, 32 others have had their death sentences reduced to imprisonment sentences, while 24 have been freed.

Marty added that during the 12 years from 1999 to 2011, a total of 303 Indonesians mired in criminal offenses abroad faced the death penalty. The number has now reduced to 300 since three of them have been executed.

Two were executed in Saudi Arabia, including Ruyati, an Indonesian maid who was beheaded by sword in Saudi Arabia on Saturday after she was convicted of stabbing her female employer with a kitchen knife on Saturday. The third was executed in Egypt for a murder conviction.

The ministry's data also shows that the second highest concentration of Indonesians involved in legal offenses abroad is in China, where all 29 cases are drug-related. Marty said 20 them are still facing trials while nine have had their sentences reduced or were freed.