The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is seeking executive clemency for Mary Jane Veloso, the migrant Filipino worker in prison in Indonesia convicted of drug trafficking in 2015.
DFA said Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo met with Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi to request for executive clemency of Veloso.
The meeting, according to DFA, was held at the sidelines of the state visit of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. to Indonesia on Sept. 4 to 6.
“Foreign Minister Marsudi said she would consult the Ministry of Justice on the matter,” DFA said in a statement Tuesday, Sept. 6.
The Department said it has been providing consular assistance to Veloso since the time of arrest in 2010.
“The Philippine Embassy in Jakarta has retained the services of an Indonesian law firm to serve as legal counsel of Ms. Veloso in accordance with Indonesian laws and procedure. It is also in regular contact with Ms. Veloso in coordination with Indonesian authorities,” it added.
DFA also assured that Veloso “was in relatively good health” at the Wonosari Women’s Penitentiary in Yogyakarta, where she is currently detained. –KC/gb
