The government is planning to sell the remaining jewels, estimated at about US$300 million — including a diamond-ringed 150.01-carat ruby pendant bigger than a thumb. But Marcos wants them back, not for herself but to be kept as a national treasure, she said.
Outgoing Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez indicated last week the sequestered jewels should be returned if there is no evidence they are part of ill-gotten Marcos wealth. However, his replacement shot down the idea, saying they will remain in the central bank vault until all cases against Marcos are resolved.
Imelda is keen to keep defending the family name.
The Marcos legacy, as she sees it, adorns her apartment walls.
There are photographs of the Marcoses with world leaders of the 20th century, among them former US president Ronald Reagan and Mao Zedong (毛澤東) — pictured kissing Imelda on the hand during a visit to Beijing.
In her apartment — a temporary residence while her house is renovated — court documents were neatly arranged on tables in the living room, including from a 1990 New York jury ruling that acquitted her of embezzling US$140 million from the Philippine treasury, which she saw as a vindication.
“I won on my birthday,” Marcos said. “I was alone, widowed, helpless, penniless, countryless. But even the Bible says there is a special place in hell for those who oppress widows and orphans.”
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