MANILA and Jakarta are discussing a possible transfer of Mary Jane Veloso, who is languishing on death row, to serve her sentence in a Philippine detention facility, the Department of Foreign Affairs said yesterday.
The DFA issued the statement after news reports in Indonesia quoted that country’s Coordinating Ministry for Legal, Human Rights, Immigration and Correction as saying it is considering the option of a prisoner transfer for foreign inmates, including Veloso.
This came after Philippine Ambassador to Jakarta Gina Jamoralin met with Coordinating Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra, during which the possible transfer was discussed.
“The Department of Foreign Affairs wishes to confirm that the governments of the Philippines and Indonesia have been engaged in discussions regarding the possible transfer of Mary Jane Veloso to the Philippines to serve her sentence in a Philippine facility,” the DFA said.
The DFA expressed hope the case of Veloso, in jail in Indonesia for 14 years now for a drug-related case, will finally be resolved.
“The DFA joins the Filipino nation in the hope and prayers for a successful resolution of this issue, one which shall do justice to Ms. Veloso and her family while strengthening the deep bonds of friendship between the Philippines and Indonesia,” it said.
Veloso was convicted of drug trafficking after she was caught with 2.6 kilos of heroin in an airport in Yogyakarta. She has repeatedly asserted her innocence, saying she was a victim of human trafficking.
Veloso had been scheduled for execution in 2015 but the Indonesian government cancelled it on the intercession of then-President Benigno Aquino III in relation to alleged human trafficking.
The Department of Justice later filed cases of human trafficking and large-scale illegal recruitment against Veloso’s recruiters, Julius Lacanilao and Cristina Sergio, before the Nueva Ecija regional trial court.
In 2020, the court rendered a guilty verdict on Lacanilao and Sergio on the illegal recruitment case but the human trafficking case is still pending.
In January this year, Malacañang said Indonesian President Joko Widodo promised to review Veloso’s case.
