THE FAMILY of Mary Jane F. Veloso, a Filipina convicted of drug charges in Indonesia, has appealed to Philippine President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. to grant her clemency on humanitarian grounds, Migrante International said on Wednesday.
Ms. Veloso’s parents, together with Migrante International and their legal counsel from the National Union of People’s Lawyers, delivered the letter for clemency through the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Tuesday.
In a meeting with DFA Undersecretary Eduardo Jose A. de Vega, her parents also appealed for Ms. Veloso’s return to the Philippines by Christmas.
“When Mary Jane returns here to the Philippines, we hope that she is returned directly to our home so that we can be together with our daughter. We are very eager to be together with our daughter once again after suffering for so long without having done anything wrong,” wrote Cesar Veloso, the father of Mary Jane, in Filipino. Mr. De Vega agreed to forward the letter to Mr. Marcos during the same meeting.
Also on Wednesday, a resolution urging Mr. Marcos to grant clemency to Ms. Veloso was filed at the House of Representatives.
“Mr. Marcos must urgently grant clemency to Mary Jane F. Veloso,” Party-list Rep. Arlene D. Brosas said in a statement. Ms. Veloso has been incarcerated in Indonesia for over a decade due to drug smuggling.
House Resolution (HR) No. 2128 stated Ms. Veloso’s clemency is “long time coming considering that she is a victim of human trafficking, and not drug trafficking.”
The Filipino overseas worker was sentenced to death in Oct. 2010 and was granted a stay of execution in April 2015. Ms. Veloso, who was caught smuggling 2.6 kilograms of heroin hidden in the lining of a suitcase, was a victim of human trafficking, according to her lawyers.
On Nov. 19, Mr. Marcos and the DFA said the government reached an agreement with its Indonesian counterparts on Ms. Veloso’s return to the Philippines to serve her remaining sentence.
Philippine and Indonesian authorities last week signed an agreement on the repatriation of Ms. Veloso, with Jakarta’s human rights minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra hoping she will be returned to Manila before Dec. 25, Reuters reported.
However, Ms. Veloso “will not be immediately released” once she is returned to the Philippines, Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Eduardo A. de Vega earlier said.
Ms. Brosas said the government should industrialize local enterprises and develop the agriculture sector to create “decent jobs,” preventing Filipinos from going overseas for employment opportunities.
“Ms. Veloso’s case starkly illustrates how the government’s labor export policy continues to endanger Filipino women,” she said. “Desperately seeking work abroad due to the lack of decent jobs at home, our women become vulnerable to trafficking syndicates and exploitation.” — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio
