Veloso return to PH a win for victims, supporters – Migrante

Filipino drug convict on death row in Indonesia, Mary Jane Veloso, shows a batik design she created during her time at Yogyakarta Women’s Correctional Institution Class IIB in Wonosari, Yogyakarta on December 13, 2024. Veloso told Agence France-Presse from prison on December 13 that her planned transfer was a “miracle”, in her first interview since Manila and Jakarta signed an agreement last week to repatriate her. —Photo by Devi Rahman/Agence France-Presse

MANILA, Philippines — Filipino death row convict Mary Jane Veloso’s prison transfer to the Philippines from an Indonesian jail marks a triumph for victims of human trafficking and their support groups, migrant workers group Migrante International said on Tuesday.

“The world has been witness to Mary Jane’s case as a victim of human trafficking. Her case has drawn attention to the plight of Filipino migrant workers who fall prey to traffickers, a stark reality for many (overseas Filipino workers),” Migrante chair Joanna Concepcion said.

READ: 14 years on death row: Timeline of Mary Jane Veloso’s fight for justice

“This is a crucial step in demonstrating compassion for Veloso’s plight and acknowledging her victimization that led to her imprisonment,” she added.

READ: Probe into Filipino women trafficking as surrogates sought

“Mary Jane Veloso’s story is the victory of solidarity among Indonesian migrant groups and Filipinos who tirelessly campaigned alongside the Veloso family to save her from death row and now her return to the Philippines,” Concepcion said.

Veloso was set to arrive in Manila at 6 a.m. on Wednesday after 14 years of serving her sentence in an Indonesian jail, including narrowly escaping the firing squad in 2015. She will undergo the protocol five-day quarantine at the Correctional Institution for Women (CIW) in Mandaluyong City for newly committed person deprived of liberty.

Veloso’s family is expected to visit her after the quarantine period, which falls on Dec. 24.

The quarantine will be followed by the 55-day orientation, diagnostic evaluation, and initial security classification.

Veloso, now 39, earlier called her repatriation a “miracle.” This also fulfills her family’s hope for Veloso to spend Christmas in the country after years of incarceration in a foreign land.

Request from family

Migrante said Veloso’s family had earlier requested to greet her upon her arrival at Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

“After her grueling years in jail, it is but humane that she sees her mother, father and children when she arrives on Philippine soil. It has been a long ordeal for her, and the least we can do is allow her to embrace her family in her homeland,” Concepcion said.

Foreign Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Eduardo Jose de Vega earlier said Veloso’s reunion with her family would probably happen at the airport or at the CIW.

Years of negotiation

Veloso’s prison transfer is the result of years of negotiation between Manila and Jakarta.

Migrante and other international and local human rights groups have campaigned for Veloso to be given clemency by President Marcos since she was a victim of human trafficking.

On April 25, 2010, Veloso was apprehended at Adisucipto International Airport in Yogyakarta after 2.6 kilograms of heroin was found concealed in the lining of her suitcase.

In October 2010, she was sentenced to death by firing squad which made international headlines.

In August 2011, then President Benigno Aquino III requested clemency for Veloso. Then Indonesian President Joko Widodo rejected said request in December 2014 but the Aquino administration issued more letters appealing for her clemency.

The Philippine government did not receive a positive response until April 29, 2015, when Veloso—who was then scheduled to be executed by firing squad—was granted a last-minute reprieve. This was after Cristina Sergio, her alleged recruiter, surrendered to the Philippine police. She, however, remained on Indonesia’s death row.

In September 2016, then President Rodrigo Duterte was reported to have told the Indonesian government to follow its laws and that he will “not interfere” leading to fears that Veloso’s execution would go ahead.

In September 2019, Veloso’s lawyers expressed hope that the Philippine Supreme Court would allow Veloso to testify against her recruiters, Sergio and Julius Lacanilao, to strengthen the argument that she was a victim of drug trafficking rather than a perpetrator.

In August 2020, the Supreme Court allowed Veloso to testify against her alleged recruiters.

In September 2022, the Department of Foreign Affairs sought executive clemency for Veloso.

Last November, Marcos announced that Indonesia had agreed to transfer Veloso to the Philippines.

Too early for discussions

Malacañang on Tuesday said it was still too early to discuss the possibility of an executive clemency for Veloso.

“We will not talk about that yet. Let’s wait for her repatriation because it’s premature to speculate what we will do,” Executive Secretary Lucas Bersamin said on Tuesday afternoon.

He also said he was not aware if the President would meet Veloso upon her arrival in Manila. “I’m not really sure. But maybe, that’s one of the possibilities,” he said.

Under the prisoner transfer agreement between the Philippines and Indonesia, Veloso will be detained in a Philippine prison to serve her sentence. Details of the agreement have yet to be officially released in full.

Veloso’s family and lawyers have repeatedly appealed to the President to grant her executive clemency, which may result in the commutation of her sentence or a full or conditional pardon of her crime. —with a report from Julie M. Aurelio