The family of an Australian woman jailed in Taiwan has revealed grim new details about the strict regime of her prison life, where she sleeps on the floor of a tiny cell shared with 16 others.

Debbie Voulgaris, 58, is serving 15 years for drug smuggling after being caught with $1.9million-worth of Class A drugs at Taoyuan International Airport in 2023.

The mother of five, who had never previously been in trouble with the law, denied any knowledge of the drugs, but later pleaded guilty to avoid the death penalty.

But Ms Voulgaris still insists she is innocent and believes she was set up by African scammers who claimed to be doing a deal with her ex-husband John Kyriacou.

Her heartbroken children told the Daily Mail they had now cancelled all their festive celebrations in sympathy for their mother who sobs inconsolably.

Her daughter Maria, 26, said she cannot enjoy the holidays while her mother remains locked away in a foreign prison where she is brutally punished for every rule breach.

'It doesn't feel right us having Christmas or celebrating anything while she is suffering like this,' she told the Daily Mail.

'My poor mother woke up one day and walked across her cell without putting her slippers on and was made to write out her name 2,000 times in Taiwanese.

Debbie Voulgaris, 58, is serving a 15 year jail sentence for drug smuggling

Ms Voulgaris continues to insist she is innocent

Her daughter Maria says she cannot bring herself to enjoy the holidays

'Another time she was rushing to get dressed after her shower, because you are only allowed a few minutes, and she accidentally put her shirt on inside out. 

'That was another punishment.'

Maria says her mother now lives in constant fear of breaking the bizarre rules. 

'She tells me it is scary. She says she does not know why she is still there. She just cries and cries and begs us for help,' she said.

Since her mother's arrest, Maria has fought tirelessly to clear her name, but navigating a foreign legal system has proven difficult, with hope repeatedly slipping away.

'I am just a grieving daughter and sometimes I get really overwhelmed,' she said.

'After my mum's second failed appeal I just thought, what is the point? They are never going to listen to me or take anything I say into consideration.'

Her mother's lawyer urged her not to give up. 

Maria says her mother now lives in constant fear of doing something wrong

Maria said delivering bad news to her mother is one of the most painful parts of the ordeal