JAKARTA, NOV 21 – A Filipina woman sentenced to death in Indonesia on drug charges said today that she is ‘excited’ to return home, after an agreement was reached between the two countries.
Mary Jane Veloso was arrested in Indonesia in 2010 for carrying a bag that concealed 2.6 kilograms of heroin and was later sentenced to death by firing squad.
The mother-of-two’s case has sparked outrage in the Philippines, with her family and supporters saying she is innocent and has been ensnared by an international drug syndicate.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos yesterday said Veloso would be handed over to Manila after years of long and difficult negotiations.
“I am very excited to hear that there is a chance for me to hopefully return home and be with my family,” Veloso said in a written statement read by the prison warden, Evi Loliancy, today.
“I am grateful and want to thank everyone who continues to work so that I can return to my country,” he said.
The 39-year-old woman said she will use the skills she has learned in prison, including local cloth dyeing techniques, to earn a living for herself and her family.
Veloso’s family insists that she was duped into signing a non-existent work contract as a maid abroad and was unaware that the suitcases given to her by the recruiter contained hidden drugs.
The Philippine government managed to secure a last-minute reprieve for Veloso in 2015 after a woman suspected of recruiting him was arrested and charged with human trafficking, in a case in which Veloso was named as a prosecution witness.
Indonesia’s Minister of Law and Human Rights, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, said President Prabowo Subianto had approved the transfer, which is expected to take place next month.
The leader of the Philippines, Marcos, yesterday uploaded a message thanking his counterpart in Indonesia.
He said Veloso’s story “has an impact on many people: a mother trapped by the grip of poverty, who made a desperate choice that changed the course of her life”. – AFP