The mother of Mary Jane Veloso, the Filipino domestic helper who spent almost 15 years on death row in Indonesia, has urged President Ferdinand Marcosto grant her daughter a pardon as she arrived back in the Philippines on Wednesday, ending a long battle by her supporters to bring her home.
“We cannot explain the joy of my husband and her children,” Veloso’s mother, Celia Veloso, 65, told the Guardian late on Tuesday. “We have been praying for my child to come home for a long time, and now she will be home.” She hopes her family can be reunited for Christmas.
Mary Jane Veloso, who was almost executed in 2015 after being sentenced to death in 2010 for drug trafficking, arrived in Manila on Wednesday morning, accompanied by heavy security, and was taken straight to a prison facility for women, where her family was able to meet and hug her.
The 39-year-old was handed over to Philippine officials in Jakarta on Tuesday, after the Indonesian and Philippine governments reached a deal to allow her to return.
Veloso has always denied the charges, saying she was tricked into carrying drugs by a woman who had recruited her for a job abroad. Her case drew sympathy across the Philippines and Indonesia, where many identified with the story of a single mother who had gone abroad seeking better opportunities to provide for her two children.
“The public knows that Mary Jane is just a victim,” her mother said.
“Dear president, I just ask you – since you have helped my daughter to come home, I hope you will do it completely. When she gets off the plane, give her clemency, pardon her. So that she can be with us for Christmas. It has been a long time without Mary Jane with us,” Celia Veloso said.
She added she was grateful to the Indonesian president, Prabowo Subianto, and his government for handling her daughter’s case so soon after taking office in October, and to the Philippine government for bringing her home.
She said she had hardly been able to sleep in recent days. The family had cooked pork adobo – a popular Filipino dish – to give to her daughter, and prepared her room, she said.
“When she was imprisoned for 15 years, I was frustrated and tired. But now, it’s just a matter of hours of waiting, and I can’t deal with the boredom and waiting any longer. I’m so eager to hug and see my daughter.
“The first thing I will say to my daughter is: child, I want you to be with me. Come with me, let’s go home.”
They had not yet made plans for Christmas, but she just wanted her daughter to be happy. “We will make her happy. We need to make her happy, she needs to be really happy for Christmas,” she said.
Mary Jane’s sons, who were young children when she was arrested, are now 16 and 22. They were able to visit their mother in prison eight times, but both feel a long time has been wasted, Celia Veloso said.
“Now, they say they won’t waste time, they say they’ll make their mom happy, they’ll take care of her, they’ll make their mom a baby, even when their mom was not able to take care of them,” she said. The eldest wants to go back to study and graduate now his mother is home, she added. Both sons were in Manila to welcome their mother.
The family, and Mary Jane’s supporters, have fought for years to free her from death row, a journey that has involved drawn-out court battles, diplomatic efforts by three different Philippine administrations, celebrity support and online campaigns.
She was almost executed by firing squad in 2015, but was saved at the 11th hour after the Philippines then president, Benigno Aquino, appealed to the Indonesian government, saying she would be needed as a witness in the case against her alleged recruiter.
Under the deal to repatriate her, it was agreed that the Philippines would respect the Indonesian court’s sentencing of Veloso and her status as a prisoner in Indonesia. However, Indonesia would also respect any decision made by the Philippines, including if she was given clemency.
Marcos thanked the Indonesian government in a statement on Wednesday, adding: “We assure the Filipino people that Ms Veloso’s safety and welfare is paramount and our agencies in the justice and law enforcement sector shall continue to ensure it, as our Indonesian counterparts have safeguarded it for so long.”
Lucas Bersamin, the executive secretary of the Philippines, told local media on Tuesday that it was “premature” to discuss clemency.
Her story has resonated with many across the Philippines and Indonesia, where many people seek jobs abroad and can be vulnerable to mistreatment.
Veloso, from the northern city of Cabanatuan, was born into an impoverished family and did not finish school. She married at 17 but later separated from her husband with whom she has two sons. She moved to Dubai in 2009 to work as a domestic helper but said she was forced to flee after she was the victim of an attempted rape.
After returning home, Veloso said Maria Kristina Sergio, the daughter of one of her godparents, offered her a different role as a domestic worker and told her to fly to Indonesia. Veloso alleges that the woman provided her with new clothes and a bag, which had 2.6kg (5.73lb) of heroin sewn into it. Sergio has disputed this account.
Veloso’s legal team had previously launched two appeals in Indonesia, arguing she did not have a competent translator, and that she was scammed, but both failed.
