Mary Jane Veloso’s family visit to Indonesia canceled

The scheduled visit of Mary Jane Veloso’s family to Indonesia on Sunday has been canceled in light of her pending transfer to another facility in preparation for her repatriation to the Philippines.

In a statement, Veloso’s family said they received an advisory from the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) - Office of the Undersecretary for Migration Affairs on Sunday morning that their planned travel will not push through.

“Kami, mga magulang at anak ni Mary Jane ay nanghihinayang na hindi kami matutuloy sa pagbisita kay Mary Jane dahil napaghandaan po namin ito at nasasabik namin siyang makasama makalipas ng isang taon mula ng huli naming bisita sa kanya,” Veloso’s said in a statement.

“Gayunpaman, kami ay masayang masaya dahil malapit na ang pag uwi ni Mary Jane sa ating bansa,” the statement further read.

(We, Mary Jane's parents and children, are dismayed that our visit will not push through because we have prepared for this and we are excited to be with her after a year since our last visit. Despite that, we are happy that she will be able to go home to our country.)

Veloso's family, her lawyer and some government officials were set to travel to Indonesia on toay, December 15, to visit her ahead of her transfer to the Philippines.

DFA Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs Eduardo de Vega confirmed this to GMA News Online.

He said the trip was canceled because there would be no jail visit since Veloso is being transferred from Yogjakarta to Jakarta for her repatriation to the Philippines.

“Wala nang jail visit dahil nililipat na ng kulungan si Mary Jane: from Yogjakarta to Jakarta the capital, to prepare for her transfer,” De Vega said.

“So, malapit ng umuwi si Mary Jane at sasalubungin na lang dito ng pamilya. Wala pang date. We will update all,” he added.

(There will be no jail visit since Mary Jane is being transferred from Yogjakarta to Jakarta to prepare for her repatriation. So, Mary Jane will be coming home soon and her family will welcome her here. There’s no final date yet. We will update all.)

According to a report by Agence France Presse, Mary Jane could be transferred to the Philippines on December 20.

In 2010, Veloso was arrested and sentenced to death after the suitcase she was carrying was found to be lined with 2.6 kilograms of heroin. The resulting case  sparked an uproar in the Philippines.

Both she and her supporters maintained her innocence, claiming she was duped by an international drug syndicate, and in 2015, she narrowly escaped execution after her suspected recruiter was arrested.—Mariel Celine Serquiña/RF. GMA Integrated News