Philippine woman accused of transporting drugs is pardoned and released for the first time in 16 years

Sentenced to death for drug trafficking but repatriated to Philippines upon request for leniency

(Hanoi = Yonhap News) Correspondent Park Jin-hyung = A Filipino woman who was sentenced to death for drug trafficking in Indonesia and was on the verge of being executed by firing squad, survived, and was repatriated to her home country. She was pardoned and released, becoming free for the first time in 16 years.

According to AFP news agency on the 26th (local time), Mary Jane Veloso (41) was released from prison in Manila the night before following Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos' decision to pardon her.

Veloso, who walked out of the prison gate with a smile holding in his hand a document granting a pardon signed by President Marcos, told reporters, "I want to express my gratitude to the honorable president for clearing me of the charges and allowing me to reunite with my family."

He also said of his two sons, whom he had been separated from for about 10 years, that he was looking forward to being reunited with them, saying, "I wasn't able to take care of them while they were growing up, but I believe it's not too late."

Veloso was arrested on charges of smuggling 2.6 kilograms of heroin hidden in a suitcase upon entering Indonesia in 2010, found guilty, and sentenced to death.

However, her family and human rights groups have been campaigning to save her life, claiming that she was tricked by a drug gang while trying to get a job as a housekeeper in Indonesia.

Veloso told Indonesian investigative authorities that an acquaintance introduced her to a job as a maid in Indonesia and had her deliver the bag to the local area, transporting it without knowing that it contained drugs.

As the story of Veloso, who came from a poor family and was raising two sons, ages 12 and 6, alone at the time of his arrest, became a topic of national interest in the Philippines, the Philippine government continued to request leniency from Indonesia.

Indonesia was scheduled to execute Veloso by firing squad in April 2015, but the execution was dramatically postponed just before Philippine authorities arrested a recruiter who tricked Veloso into transporting a bag of drugs.

After years of negotiations between the two countries, Veloso was repatriated to the Philippines in December 2024, 14 years after his arrest in Indonesia, and has been imprisoned since then.

Mother Celia Veloso, who heard the news of her daughter's pardon, told AFP that her two grandchildren were very happy, saying, "They can finally stay with their mother."