By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora
MANILA – Former death row convict Mary Jane Veloso is set to receive full integration assistance from the Philippine government after President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s granted her absolute pardon, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said.
DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac has already ordered a DMW team to coordinate directly with Veloso’s family in Nueva Ecija to support her after her release past midnight Saturday
“Our instructions are clear: The DMW must stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Mary Jane, her children and her parents as they rebuild their lives,” Cacdac said in a news release.
“Our team heading to Nueva Ecija will work directly with the family and local stakeholders to develop a tailored reintegration program.”
In a statement Friday, the DMW said the mission will lay the groundwork for immediate family- and community-level interventions, ensuring that Veloso’s return is anchored in long-term productivity and self-sufficiency.
“The DMW warmly welcomed the President’s decision, noting that executive clemency brings a definitive, triumphant end to a grueling, decades-long ordeal to reclaim her freedom and liberty,” it said.
The DMW and Overseas Workers Welfare Administration are currently mobilizing psychosocial counseling, livelihood starter kits, enterprise capital, and skills training.
The initiative will also link her ventures directly to local cooperatives and municipal economic opportunities in Nueva Ecija, transforming her return into an avenue for active community participation.
“Reintegration is not merely about coming home — it is about restoring dignity, ensuring financial self-sufficiency, and enabling Mary Jane to contribute to her local community and economy,” Cacdac said.
Veloso and her family held a press conference at Siena College in Quezon City on Saturday, where he thanked President Marcos for granting her clemency.
She shared that she intends to bond with her family, take a rest and visit a church in her hometown.
“Bonding po muna talaga, kakain po kaming buong pamilya sa (We’re just having some family bonding time first, then we’ll all eat together in) Nueva Ecija,” she said.
In a message to her recruiters, Veloso conveyed hopes that they would finally clear her name following her pardon.
“Sabihin niyo na po ang katotohanan na wala talaga akong kasalanan. ‘Yung isang kagustuhan ko naman makasama ko pamilya ko, nakasama ko na (Please just tell the truth that I am truly innocent. My other wish is to be with my family, I have already been reunited with them),” she said.
“’Yun na lang po (ang gusto ko), marinig mismo sa bibig nila na wala akong kasalanan (That is the only thing left that I want — to hear it straight from them that I am innocent),” she added.
Veloso was arrested in 2010 in Yogyakarta, Indonesia and was sentenced to death in the same year after authorities found 2.6 kg of heroin in her luggage.
She consistently maintained her innocence, saying she was a victim of human trafficking and that her recruiters tricked her into carrying the suitcase without her knowledge.
She received a last-minute reprieve in 2015 after the Philippine government asked Indonesia to spare her so she could testify against her alleged human traffickers.
Following diplomatic engagements between the Philippines and Indonesia regarding prisoner transfer arrangements, Veloso was repatriated to Manila in December 2024 and was transferred to the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City to serve the remainder of her legal sentence under Philippine jurisdiction.
Marcos signed Veloso’s absolute pardon on Sept. 24. (PNA)
