DOJ on clemency for Mary Jane Veloso: 鈥榃hy not?鈥�
TURNOVER | Mary Jane Veloso officially becomes an inmate at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City, after the media frenzy that marked her transfer from an Indonesian jail after more than 14 years. —Photo from the Bureau of Corrections
MANILA, Philippines — The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Thursday said it sees no issue in granting clemency to Mary Jane Veloso, who spent almost 15 years on death row in Indonesia, but that the decision rests solely on President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr.
Justice Undersecretary Raul Vasquez said the DOJ is among the bodies that can recommend to Marcos what to do next in Veloso’s case.
“Everybody is clamoring for it, and there are other people who are equally entitled; why not? If you ask me personally, but that depends on the president),” Vasquez said, speaking in a mix of English and Filipino, when asked if the DOJ will recommend to Marcos that Veloso be granted clemency.
That will be discussed thoroughly, and as our president said, everything is on the table,” he added.
Apart from Veloso, there are other persons deprived of liberty (PDLs) already set to be granted clemency, he went on.
Article continues after this advertisementWhen asked if it would send the wrong message to Indonesia if Veloso were to be granted executive clemency, Vasquez responded in the negative.
Article continues after this advertisement“Probably not, because they put her here themselves. So the moment she is here, Mary Jane Veloso being a PDL, will be subjected to all rights and privileges in accordance with Philippine laws,” he said.
Meanwhile, Vasquez said that Veloso, while detained at the Correctional Institution for Women, would get no special treatment. But he assured the public that the Bureau of Corrections has been ordered to ensure her safety and welfare.<
Veloso was arrested in 2010 at the Adisucipto International Airport in Yogyakarta after she was found in possession of more than 2.6 kilograms of heroin.
She was sentenced to death but was spared in 2015 after Philippine officials asked then-Indonesian President Joko Widodo to allow her to testify against members of a human and drug-smuggling syndicate in Manila.
