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February 8, 2026 | 5:23pm
Mary Jane Veloso on Dec. 18, 2024.
Bureau of Corrections / Released
MANILA, Philippines — Mary Jane Veloso asks to be freed from detention after more than one year returning to the Philippines and being in detention.
According to a report by ABS-CBN News on Sunday, February 8, Veloso wrote a letter from prison, pleading for her freedom.
In her letter, she said she wanted to be given the chance to care for her parents while they are still alive and to make up for lost time with her children.
She also expressed her deep emotional struggle over seeing her elderly parents travel eight to 10 hours from Nueva Ecija just to visit her, noting that they still have to find ways to afford their fare and food despite their age and physical ailments, all for the sake of easing their mutual longing for one another.
“Kaya muli po ako nabuhayan ng loob at patuloy na nananalig sa Diyos at umaasa na hindi magtatagal ay makakapiling ko nang muli ang aking mga mahal sa buhay,” Veloso’s letter read.
(Thus, my spirit has been renewed once more, and I continue to trust in God and hope that it won't be long before I am reunited with my loved ones.)
“Ngunit sa di maipaliwanag na dahilan heto po ako isang taon na ang nakalipas nandito pa rin nakakulong kahit wala akoneg kasalanan at wala din po akong nagawang masama sa ating bansa,” she added.
(Ngunit sa di maipaliwanag na dahilan heto po ako isang taon na ang nakalipas nandito pa rin nakakulong kahit wala akoneg kasalanan at wala din po akong nagawang masama sa ating bansa.)
After 14 years of imprisonment in Indonesia, Veloso was finally returned to the Philippines on Dec. 18, 2024. Since her return, she has been asking the government for clemency.
RELATED: Clemency for Mary Jane Veloso ‘not impossible’ — SolGen | What is executive clemency?
"Sana mabigyan na niya (President Marcos) ako ng clemency."
LOOK: Mary Jane Veloso along with her family inside the reception and diagnostic center at Correctional Institute for Women in Mandaluyong City. | @PhilstarNews pic.twitter.com/475f1Wwsu4
Originally arrested for drug trafficking in Indonesia in 2010, she was saved from execution in 2015 after her recruiter turned themselves in. Her return follows recent discussions by Indonesian authorities regarding a prisoner transfer.
In October 2025, the family of Veloso asked the Supreme Court to expedite the resolution of the cases against her traffickers.
