Marcos got commitment from Jokowi that Veloso's case will be reexamined — PCO By ANNA FELICIA BAJO, GMA Integrated News

President Ferdinand ''Bongbong'' Marcos Jr. got a commitment from Indonesia that the case of convicted Filipino drug mule Mary Jane Veloso would be reexamined, the Presidential Communications Office said Thursday. ''Yes, with the decision of the Indonesian government to look into the case filed by Mary Jane Veloso in the Philippines,'' PCO Secretary Cheloy Garafil told Palace reporters when asked if Marcos obtained a commitment from Indonesian President Joko Widodo. ''In fact, the Indonesian government is waiting for the decision of the Philippine court on the case she filed," Garafil said. Jokowi had an official visit to Manila where he had a bilateral meeting with Marcos. The Department of Foreign Affairs said Veloso's case would be taken up during the meeting of Philippine officials and their Indonesian counterparts. Marcos is hopeful that the progress on the case of Veloso would merit her clemency. In 2010, Veloso was convicted of drug trafficking after she was caught with 2.6 kilos of heroin in Yogyakarta. She was given the death penalty. In 2015, Jokowi said their government gave Veloso a ”temporary reprieve” from her scheduled execution, as reported by The Jakarta Post. Jokowi was quoted as saying that the action was a response to a request made by the Philippine government in relation to the case. A case of human trafficking and a separate large scale illegal recruitment case were already filed against Veloso’s traffickers Julius Lacanilao and Cristina Sergio in the Regional Trial Court of Nueva Ecjia. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News

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