TODAY IN MISSION YEARBOOK
Mission Yearbook: Minute for Mission: World Day Against Trafficking in Persons
Mary Jane Veloso, a human trafficking victim who was imprisoned unjustly for 14 years in Indonesia for unwittingly carrying 2.6 kilos of heroin into that country in luggage provided to her by individuals who had recruited her to work in Malaysia, has been freed from Indonesian custody and returned home to the Philippines.
In December, PC(USA) Mission Co-Worker the Rev. Cathy Chang, who is now a Global Ecumenical Liaison with the PC(USA)’s Interim Unified Agency, was at the Manila airport to help welcome Veloso home in a terminal crowded with reporters and well-wishers.
Once Veloso approached the arrivals area, “everybody started chanting her name,” Chang said. “We were quite a distance away. She was flanked by security personnel, and her parents and family could not hug or touch her.”
Chang and others then accompanied Veloso to the Correctional Institute for Women, where she was held for a quarantine protocol. “That is routine for everyone,” Chang said. “Thankfully, there was an initial family reunion after her arrival at the CIW.”
Now 40, Veloso, a domestic worker, was arrested in 2010 in Indonesia. She denied knowing about the drugs in the luggage she’d been given by those who’d recruited her to work in Malaysia — two Filipinos who were convicted in 2020 of large-scale illegal recruitment. In 2015, she’d been sentenced to be executed in Indonesia, but at the 11th hour was granted a stay thanks in part to pleas from then-Philippine President Benigno Aquino because of the recent arrest of one of her recruiters.
Chang said Veloso’s release was the result of a high-level diplomatic agreement between the Ministry of Justice in Indonesia and counterparts in the Philippines. Under diplomatic agreements signed by members of ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, the custody of a prisoner can be transferred. Chang credited both Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and new Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto.
“From what I could see during the live feed [of Veloso’s arrival in Manila], she obviously has aged. But the joy showed in her eyes,” Chang said. “Even at the press conference, I could see how she radiated joy, relief and gratitude.”
The question on the minds of Veloso’s many supporters is whether Marcos will grant her clemency. They’re circulating this petition, which states, “Mary Jane is among many women migrant workers, from impoverished backgrounds, who have been preyed upon by illegal recruiters and human traffickers.” Her safe return “will shine as a beacon of hope for migrant workers around the world, especially for those who feel abandoned and neglected and who face unjust detention, the harsh realities of exploitation and injustice.” Everyone is invited to join international supporters through this online signature campaign.
Clemency for Veloso “is long overdue,” Chang said. “I think she has already suffered so much.” Chang credited Migrante International and the Church Task Force to Save Mary Jane, in addition to Veloso’s lawyers and Indonesian migrant advocates, for their tireless advocacy.
Several hours before leaving for the Manila airport, Chang stopped by a neighborhood florist to purchase some flowers for Veloso’s family to give to her. “Not knowing which colors to choose, I chose pink because that seemed the best choice,” Chang said. “I told the florist that they would be preparing ‘history-making flowers’ because they would later be given to Mary Jane Veloso.”
“Later, while waiting at the airport,” Chang said, “I learned that pink is Mary Jane’s favorite color.”
Join the letter writing campaign for Veloso’s release. Go here for a template for a letter your church or mid council can send on her behalf.
Read additional Presbyterian News Service reporting about Veloso’s ordeal and how Presbyterians have supported her over the years here, here, here and here.
Since 2015, the Rev. Cathy Chang has served as a mission co-worker in the Philippines. In 2025, she began serving as a Global Ecumenical Liaison – International with the Interim Unified Agency.
Mike Ferguson, Editor, Presbyterian News Service (Click here to read original PNS Story)
Let us join in prayer for:
Andrea Stevens, Charitable Gift Advisor, Presbyterian Foundation
Angie Stevens, Manager, Communication Specialist, Interim Unified Agency
Let us pray:
In the name of Jesus Christ, who proclaims good news to the poor, liberty to the captives, and justice to the oppressed, may our prayers and actions lead to Mary Jane Veloso’s clemency. Amen.