PRESIDENT Ferdinand Marcos Jr. announced on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, Mary Jane Veloso’s upcoming return to the Philippines.
“Mary Jane Veloso is coming home,” Marcos said in a statement.
“After over a decade of diplomacy and consultations with the Indonesian government, we managed to delay her execution long enough to reach an agreement to finally bring her back to the Philippines,” he added.
Marcos expressed his heartfelt gratitude to Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and the Indonesian government for their goodwill.
“I extend my heartfelt gratitude to President Prabowo Subianto and the Indonesian government for their goodwill. This outcome is a reflection of the depth [of] our nation’s partnership with Indonesia — united in a shared commitment to justice and compassion…Thank you Indonesia,” he said.
Veloso was arrested and detained in Indonesia since 2010 after airport authorities discovered illegal drugs concealed in her luggage.
She was sentenced to death in 2015 but was granted temporary reprieve following the surrender of her recruiter, who was charged with illegal recruitment, human trafficking and estafa in relation to Veloso’s case.
Over the past years, the Philippine government has repeatedly appealed for grant of executive clemency, pardon, commutation of sentence, or even extradition to serve her sentence in the Philippines for Veloso.
The Department of Foreign Affairs earlier said the Philippine and Indonesian governments were in talks for the return of Veloso in the country where she will continue serving her sentence.
In a radio interview, Veloso’s mother Cecilia expressed concern over her daughter’s safety on her transfer of detention in the Philippines.
“Para po sa akin, sa amin pong pamilya, kung iuuwi si Mary Jane at ikukulong din po, gugustuhin ko po sa Indonesia siya nakakulong,” she said.
(For me, for our family, if Mary Jane is brought home and imprisoned, I would like her to be imprisoned in Indonesia.)
“Dahil mas safe po ang kalooban namin dahil nakikita namin ang trato kay Mary Jane, talagang mahal na mahal nila. Eh dito sa Pilipinas, hindi po kami nakakasiguro dahil international na sindikato po ang kalaban namin,” she added.
(Because we feel safer because we see how they treat Mary Jane; they really love her. Here in the Philippines, we cannot be sure because our opponent is an international syndicate.)
On the onset of Veloso’s case, her mother said they experienced being harassed by armed men in their own home.
She said a group helped their family and brought them to a safer place in Manila. (TPM/SunStar Philippines)
