Kin, Supporters Hold Vigil for Mary Jane Veloso
The family and supporters of a Filipina on death row in Indonesia held a vigil at Plaza Miranda, Manila on Thursday night to pray and appeal that her life be spared.
“Limang taon na pong nakakulong ang anak ko, halos dalawang taon po kami lumapit sa gobyerno. Marami po kaming nilapitan. Pero wala po, puro sila pangako nang pangako. Wala naman pong natupad… ‘Di ko matatanggap na hindi ko makikita ang anak ko,” said Mary Jane Veloso’s mother Celia in a report on GMA-7’s “24 Oras.”
A mother of two, Veloso was sentenced to death via firing squad after she was caught with 2.6 kilograms of heroin at the Yogyakarta airport in 2010.
She was promised a job as a domestic helper in Malaysia after leaving her job in Dubai in 2009 when her employer supposedly tried to rape her. Veloso found that the Malaysia job was no longer available, but she was told another one was available in Indonesia. Her family repeatedly insists that Veloso was only framed.
Her father Cesar said that Veloso’s current situation is difficult to accept.
“Talaga hong masakit kasi ang anak ko po na ‘yun sobra pong bait. At binuhay ko po sila na may takot sa Diyos kaya masakit talaga sa loob ko na bibitayi nila ang anak ko na walang kasalanan,” he said.
Veloso is grateful to those who never stopped supporting her and praying for her, she told her parents during a phone call on Thursday afternoon.
Meanwhile, the Department of Foreign Affairs quoted Indonesia’s attorney general as saying that Veloso won’t be executed until all legal procedures have been exhausted.
Case against recruiter
Veloso’s family also said that they are planning to file a case against the recruiter, Maria Cristina Sergio. They believe that it was Cerio who made Mary Jane carry the luggage where the drugs were found.
The recruiter denied all the accusations in an exclusive interview with GMA News.
“Wala naman po silang ebidensya [laban] sa akin. ‘Di po galing sa akin ang maleta. Hindi ko po alam kung ano po ang laman noon,” she said.