Philippines and Indonesia reach deal to return Filipina death row convict

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. says Mary Jane Veloso to travel location aft ‘long and difficult journey’.

The Philippines and Indonesia person reached a woody to return a Filipina who was sentenced to decease for supplier trafficking pursuing years of negotiated efforts by Manila, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has announced.

Marcos said connected Wednesday that erstwhile decease statement inmate Mary Jane Veloso would beryllium brought location aft a “long and difficult journey”.

“This result is simply a reflection of nan extent of our nation’s business pinch Indonesia – agreed successful a shared committedness to justness and compassion,” Marcos said successful a statement.

It was not instantly clear erstwhile Veloso would return to nan Philippines, but Marcos said he looked guardant to welcoming her home.

Veloso, a home helper, was arrested successful Yogyakarta successful 2010 for attempting to smuggle 2.6kg of heroin concealed successful a suitcase.

The 39-year-old mother of 2 maintained her innocence, saying she had been duped into carrying narcotics by a recruiter.

In 2015, she won a last-minute reprieve from execution aft her recruiter turned herself successful to constabulary and then-Philippine President Benigno Aquino III projected to Indonesian officials that she beryllium turned into a witnesser successful a lawsuit against a supplier trafficking syndicate.

Veloso’s lawsuit had agelong been a root of outrage successful nan Philippines, wherever her supporters based on that she was a unfortunate of exploitation.

“Mary Jane’s communicative resonates pinch many: a mother trapped by nan grip of poverty, who made 1 hopeless prime that altered nan people of her life,” Marcos said. “While she was held accountable nether Indonesian law, she remains a unfortunate of her circumstances.”

Indonesia has terrible penalties for supplier trafficking and has executed overseas nationals successful nan past, including Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, 2 members of nan Bali Nine smuggling ring, successful 2015.

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Al Jazeera and news agencies