Marcos asks Indonesian President Widodo to reexamine Veloso’s case

President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has asked Indonesian President Joko Widodo to take a second look on the case of convicted overseas Filipino worker Mary Jane Veloso on the sidelines of the 42nd ASEAN Summit and Related Summits in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia.

“Sabi ko, the best that we can do I suppose is for the Indonesian authorities to reexamine the case para naman as a favor to the Philippines. ‘Yun lang ang napag-usapan namin. Not much more than that,” Marcos told reporters when asked if he was able to discuss Veloso’s case with Widodo.

Marcos said he mentioned Veloso’s case when he was walking along Widodo in one of the events during the recently concluded ASEAN Summit. The Indonesian leader is the host of the ASEAN gathering.

The President also mentioned to Widodo that the Philippine government is working hard on Veloso’s case as he emphasized the respect on the laws in Indonesia as far as illegal drug charges are concerned.

Marcos earlier said the Philippine government is not giving up on Veloso’s case as they are utilizing all legal remedies including her pardon, commutation of her sentence, or even extradition to serve her sentence in the Philippines.

“But the Indonesian answered us that this is the law. Ito ‘yung batas dito sa Indonesia kaya’t kailangan natin ipagpatupad ‘yan. And they have already given us postponement … but that doesn’t mean it’s done,” Marcos said in one of his interviews.

In September last year, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) had asked Indonesia to pardon Veloso who was arrested in Yogyakarta in 2010 after she allegedly brought a suitcase packed with more than 2.6 kilograms of heroin and was sentenced to death in the same year.