PRODUCTIVE IN PRISON In this Dec. 13 photo, Mary Jane Veloso, a Filipino drug convict on death row in Indonesia, shows a batik design she created during her time at Yogyakarta Women Correctional Institution. Veloso describes her impending custody transfer to Manila as a “miracle.” —Agence France-Presse
MANILA, Philippines — At last, Mary Jane Veloso is returning to the Philippines after 14 years behind bars in Indonesia, nine of which she spent on death row for a drug trafficking conviction, an Indonesian official and Malacañang announced on Monday.
“The day of her homecoming was not [on] the horizon before, but now we see it breaking at dawn,” the National Union of Peoples’ Lawyers (NUPL) said, after Indonesia’s deputy coordinator of immigration and corrections, Nyoman Gede Surya Mataram, confirmed the Filipino domestic helper’s imminent repatriation.
Veloso, 39, will be flown to the Philippines in the early hours of Dec. 18, Mataram told a press conference in Jakarta on Monday afternoon.
READ: Mary Jane Veloso says ‘miracle’ repatriation God’s answer to prayer
Officials from the Philippine Embassy were to pick her up from her detention facility in the Indonesian capital.
Malacañang on Monday vowed to abide by its commitment to honor the conditions under the prisoner-transfer agreement between Jakarta and Manila.
“Duty-bound as we are to honor the conditions for her transfer to Philippine jurisdiction, we are truly elated to welcome Mary Jane back to her homeland and family, from whom she has been distanced for too long,” Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said in a statement.
Bersamin described Veloso’s homecoming as a “fruit of more than a decade of persistent discussions, consultations and diplomacy.”
Jakarta agreed last month to transfer Veloso to her home country after commuting her death sentence. She is to serve the rest of her unspecified prison term in the Philippines, which does not impose the death penalty.
Veloso, a mother of two, was arrested in Yogyakarta in 2010 after 2.6 kilos of heroin was discovered concealed in her suitcase. She claimed the illegal drugs were put there by her recruiters.
Last-minute reprieve
Veloso’s case caused a domestic outcry in the Philippines. She received a last-minute reprieve from execution in 2015 after the late former President Benigno Aquino III appealed to the government of then Indonesian President Joko Widodo to let her testify against her alleged traffickers. The executions of eight other drug convicts proceeded, while Veloso’s reprieve was described by Widodo as a postponement.
Veloso’s family has been informed of her scheduled return, lawyer Edre Olalia, NUPL chair, told the Inquirer.
“We are waiting with excitement and anticipation to see and hug her, as well as confer with her in person right here in our homeland when she sets foot here,” Olalia, who served as Veloso’s private lawyer, said in a statement.
“We expect the Philippine government in this regard to give immediate, full, and unhindered access to her family and accord her the right to privately confer with her Philippine lawyers forthwith,” he added.
Citing information from Foreign Undersecretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro, a Palace official said Veloso was arriving on Dec. 18 at 6 a.m. Manila time. Her flight is expected to leave Jakarta at 12:50 a.m.
‘Respect court decision’
When asked about the possibility of the Philippines granting clemency to Veloso and releasing her, Ahmad Usmarwi Kaffah, special staff for international relations, said his country’s primary concern was ensuring her safe transfer.
“After that, the Philippine government must respect our sovereignty by way of respecting our court decision … After that, it depends on the decision taken by the Philippine government,” he said.
The announcement of Veloso’s return followed the cancellation of a compassionate visit her family had planned for Monday after Indonesian authorities ordered Veloso to be brought from her prison cell in Yogyakarta to Jakarta on Sunday.
President Marcos first announced Veloso’s return on Nov. 19, following years of negotiations between Manila and Jakarta across three administrations, beginning with Aquino, who died in June 2021.
Several groups, including NUPL, Gabriela and Migrante International have urged the President to grant Veloso immediate clemency upon her return on humanitarian grounds.
Principle of reciprocity
But officials cautioned that the Philippines must first honor its commitments to Indonesia before making such a move.
Over the weekend, Indonesia also repatriated five remaining members of the “Bali Nine” Australian drug ring to serve their sentences in their home country, at the request of Canberra.
Indonesian officials previously said they were also considering France’s request for the repatriation of death row prisoner Serge Atlaoui, who was convicted of drug offenses.
Britain, Saudi Arabia and Iran plan to make similar prisoner transfer requests, Indonesian government official Ahmad Kaffah said, adding: “It must be underlined that the transfers of prisoners are done with the principle of reciprocity, so that in time, we expect the same treatment from those countries.”
Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez earlier explained that there was no formal agreement between Manila and Jakarta for the transfer of sentenced persons.
“There is no treaty, but Indonesia granted our appeal to have her (Veloso) return to the Philippines because of the good relations between the two countries,” Vasquez said.
Veloso will initially be brought to the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City for a monthlong medical assessment, the Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) said.
She will later be given a choice of where she wished to be detained, including prison facilities in Metro Manila, Palawan, or Davao, BuCor Director General Gregorio Catapang Jr. said. —with reports from Melvin Gascon