Urgent plea for mercy: Filipina on death row sparks renewed clemency appeal

This news has been read 814 times!

MANILA, Jan 10: A desperate plea emerged on Wednesday from the mother of a Filipino woman, Mary Jane Veloso, who is currently on death row in Indonesia for drug trafficking. This plea followed a recent appeal for clemency made by the Philippines for Veloso, who was apprehended in Indonesia in 2010 carrying 2.6 kilograms (5.7 pounds) of heroin, subsequently receiving a death sentence.

In 2015, Veloso was granted a last-minute reprieve from the firing squad when a woman suspected of recruiting her was arrested in the Philippines. On Wednesday, as Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos met with Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Veloso’s family and supporters staged a small protest near the presidential palace in Manila.

Veloso’s mother, Celia, hand-delivered a letter addressed to President Widodo, pleading for her daughter’s release. The letter, seen by AFP, implored, “I am begging and pleading you to help free my daughter who has been suffering innocently for fourteen years. Today is the (39th) birthday of my daughter… I am hoping that she would be released.”

Supporters of Veloso contend that she traveled to Indonesia for a job as a maid and was deceived by an international drug syndicate into transporting heroin. A separate letter from the family, directed to President Marcos, stressed, “You are our only hope.”

The statements made by Presidents Marcos and Widodo following their meeting did not reference Veloso’s case. It remains unclear whether her situation was discussed during their talks or if President Widodo received the letter. President Widodo is set to leave office in October due to the conclusion of his two-term limit.

On Tuesday, Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo disclosed that he had renewed the appeal for clemency during a meeting with his Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi. Notably, Manalo had previously sought clemency for Veloso in 2022.

This news has been read 814 times!