A question from a party-list lawmaker on the House floor has produced the clearest signal yet that Mary Jane Veloso, the former overseas Filipino worker who spent close to 15 years behind bars in Indonesia, may soon be freed.
During plenary deliberations on the proposed 2027 budget of the Office of the President, Gabriela party-list Rep. Sarah Elago asked what steps the Palace was taking to secure Veloso’s immediate release. Bataan 2nd District Rep. Albert Raymond Garcia, who is shepherding the OP budget through the chamber, answered on behalf of Malacañang.
“The Office of the President is seriously considering granting an absolute pardon to Mary Jane Veloso on humanitarian grounds in support of the government’s commitment to protecting Filipino migrant workers,” Garcia said.
When Elago asked when a decision could be expected, he replied: “There will be an announcement in a few days.”
Philstar.com reported that Executive Secretary Ralph Recto was seen walking up to Garcia at the podium shortly before the lawmaker gave his answer.
Malacañang later backed the lawmaker’s account. At a Palace briefing, Press Officer Claire Castro confirmed that the Office of the President is weighing an absolute pardon on humanitarian grounds, though she gave no timeline or further details. According to BusinessMirror, when asked whether the pardon could come before Christmas, Castro said it might be granted sooner but declined to commit to a date, deferring to President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to make the announcement.
Elago welcomed the statement, pointing out that Veloso has already lost years with her children and aging parents while in prison. She also noted that Veloso’s case has been recognized as one of human trafficking and forced drug mule exploitation.
Veloso, a native of Nueva Ecija, was arrested in Yogyakarta in April 2010 after authorities found 2.6 kilograms of heroin in a suitcase she has said her recruiter handed her as a present. An Indonesian court convicted her of drug trafficking that same year and sentenced her to death by firing squad. She has consistently maintained that she was duped into carrying the drugs.
Her execution was halted at the eleventh hour. In April 2015, Indonesia granted a last-minute reprieve after the Philippine government informed Jakarta that her alleged recruiters had surrendered to Philippine authorities. Charges of illegal recruitment, human trafficking and estafa were later filed in connection with her case.
Jakarta handed her over in late 2024. Veloso landed in the Philippines on December 18, 2024, and was taken directly to the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City. The Manila Bulletin reported that under the arrangement between the two countries, she would serve the rest of her sentence in the Philippines, with any decision on clemency left to the Philippine President. Marcos had earlier said Indonesia attached no conditions to the transfer, and BusinessMirror reported that the Department of Foreign Affairs said there was no written deal covering it.
Pleas for her release have come repeatedly since. A resolution urging the President to grant her executive clemency was filed in the House after her return. Relatives and supporters appealed to Marcos for clemency in June 2025, without result. In February this year, Veloso wrote an open letter describing how hard it had become for her elderly parents to visit her in detention and how much she wished to spend more time with her children.
Recto had said earlier that the Palace was going over the legal provisions tied to Veloso’s case, giving considerable weight to Manila’s dealings with Jakarta.
