‘A living hero’: Philippines welcomes back death row convict Mary Jane Veloso | The Philippines

ONEAfter 14 years on death row in Indonesia, Mary Jane Veloso arrived in Manila on Wednesday to the tight embrace of her family. Their eyes were swollen with tears of joy, yet their faces lit up with big smiles.

It was a homecoming and family reunion that has brought early Christmas cheer to a country that has stood by her and her fight for justice. Convicted of drug trafficking in 2010, she narrowly escaped death by firing in April 2015. She has always maintained her innocence, saying she was tricked into carrying a suitcase of drugs when she left for a new job abroad.

“I’m so happy! I’m finally back in our country,” she told reporters behind the gates of the Correctional Facility for Women, where she will serve her life sentence and be able to receive family visits every day. “I humbly ask the president to give me grace.”

On Wednesday, groups gathered outside the correctional facility to support her call. They carried Christmas lights and gifts marked “grace”.

Social media was also flooded with messages of support. Veloso owes her life to a massive social media campaign to save her life in 2015 and the diplomatic efforts of two governments that responded to the public outcry.

The Philippines sends millions of workers abroad every year. Veloso’s conviction embodies the deepest fears of Filipino families about what could happen to their loved ones abroad.

“I don’t want to carry a bag that’s not mine. I might not know what’s inside. It’s too risky. I have a family,” said Lino Repato, a Filipino who used to work in Saudi Arabia. “Mary Jane is pitiful; she was made to carry the baggage. It was just sent by a friend.”

Veloso’s bravery and determination is an inspiration and a source of hope for other Filipinos and their families who are also fighting injustice abroad, said Joanna Concepcion, president of Migrante International. “She is now a living hero for countless other migrants in the larger fight to end human trafficking,” she says.

The saga underscores the need for policy reforms to protect Filipinos, said Liza Maza, a former lawmaker and lead author of the 2003 Anti-Trafficking in Person Act. “She is a victim from a poor country that has turned labor export into an industry. That is why she went abroad – to look for a means of livelihood,” said Maza.

‘One day a miracle will happen’

The last few years have been difficult for the Veloso family. Her mother, Celia, recalled difficult phone calls with Veloso when she could report no progress in her case. Celia said Veloso had always stuck to his faith. “Don’t worry, Nanay. Even if no one helps me, someone will. God is there. One day a miracle will happen,” Celia recalled Veloso telling her.

After Celia’s Count, Wednesday’s homecoming is the fourth in a series of miracles in their long search for justice.

The first miracle was the last-minute postponement that saved her life in 2015. In the years that followed, Celia recounted how Veloso survived an operation to remove an ovarian cyst, and then how the fear of its recurrence turned out to be a false alarm.

Now she asks for a fifth miracle – grace.

Her son Darren was just two years old when his mother left the Philippines in 2010. “I wish we could just stay at home. I want to go around and visit places with her,” he told the Guardian.

Daniel, her second son, said: “We are so excited and eager to spend time with her.”

If she can have it her way, Celia said none of her children would leave the country again to work. “As long as we’re together, even if we face difficulties, it’s okay. As long as neither of them leave again.”