Filipina woman on Indonesian death row to return home after serving nearly 15 years

YOGYAKA, Indonesia (AP) — A Filipino woman who was nearly executed by a firing squad on Indonesia’s death row was transferred Sunday night to a women’s prison in the Indonesian capital, where she will be flown back to her home country.

Mary Jane Veloso spent nearly 15 years in an Indonesian jail for drug trafficking, after Indonesia and the Philippines signed a “practical arrangements” agreement on Dec. 6 after a decade of pleas from Manila. She was allowed to return home.

Veloso broke down in tears during an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday, calling the decision “like a miracle when I lost all hope.”

“I was separated from my children and my parents for almost 15 years and I couldn’t see them grow up,” she said. “I wanted the opportunity to take care of my children and be close to my parents.”

Veloso, who turns 40 next month, was arrested in 2010 at an airport in the Indonesian city of Yogyakarta, where officials found about 2.6 kilograms (5.7 pounds) of heroin in her luggage. A single mother of two sons was convicted and sentenced to death.

Veloso maintained his innocence throughout his 14 years in prison. She spent much of her time in prison designing Indonesian batik clothing, painting, tailoring and learning other skills.

Just before midnight on Sunday, she was escorted through a large crowd of reporters outside a women’s prison in Yogyakarta and boarded a waiting van to take her to Jakarta, about 460 kilometers (285 miles) away.

Wearing a black T-shirt and dark trousers, she made only brief comments to reporters, saying: “I’m very happy… thank you very much, Merry Christmas!” from behind the car window.

Veloso’s case sparked a public outcry in the Philippines. In 2010, she traveled to Indonesia and was reportedly told by her recruiter, Maria Kristina Sergio, that a job as a domestic worker was waiting for her. Sergio also allegedly provided the suitcase in which the drugs were found.

In 2015, Indonesia transferred Veloso to an island prison where she and eight other drug convicts were scheduled to be executed by firing squad despite objections from Australia, Brazil, France, Ghana and Nigeria.

Indonesia executed eight other prisoners, and Veloso was granted a stay of execution because Sergio was captured in the Philippines just two days before his scheduled execution.

Probation provides an opportunity for Veloso’s testimony to reveal how the criminal group deceived her into becoming an unknowing co-conspirator and courier in drug trafficking.

Evi Loliancy, chief warden of Yogyakarta Women’s Prison, said Veloso participated in various prison activities arranged by prison guards, including organizing fashion shows designed by inmates and learning to dance.

“Mary Jane loved helping her fellow inmates and she was able to inspire them to be creative,” Lolisi said. “She will be missed terribly and we will be missed terribly.”

Veloso was happy when she learned she would be reunited with her family, but also a little nervous and sad about leaving, she said. “But we’re all rooting for her and wishing her the best,” Lori Lancey said.

Sohibur Rachman, an official with the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections, said Veloso would need to spend a few days at Pondok Bambu Women’s Prison in Jakarta while she waited for a ticket and travel documents.

Rahman said his department was coordinating the repatriation of Veloso with the Philippine Embassy in Jakarta. He did not say when she would return, but unconfirmed reports said she was due to fly to Manila early Wednesday.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said that although Indonesia has some of the strictest anti-drug laws in the world, it remains a major drug trafficking hub, in part because international drug cartels target its young population.

The last execution in Indonesia was in July 2016, when an Indonesian and three foreigners were shot dead by a firing squad.

Figures from the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections last month showed about 530 people, including 96 foreigners, were on death row in Indonesia, mostly for drug-related offences.

Five Australians who spent nearly 20 years in Indonesian jails for heroin trafficking returned to Australia on Sunday under a deal struck between the Indonesian and Australian governments.

Indonesia recently agreed in principle to repatriate a French national to his home country.

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Kamini reported from Jakarta, Indonesia. Associated Press writer Dita Arangkara contributed to this report.