DAVAO CITY – A lawyers group who serves as the legal counsel for overseas Filipino worker Mary Jane Veloso welcomes the “moratorium” on Indonesian executions which will benefit, not only Veloso, but all inmates in Indonesia.
Reports said the moratorium will allow the country to focus on economic issues.
“If the reports on the general “moratorium” on Indonesian executions is officially and formally validated, that decision is certainly welcome not only for Mary Jane Veloso but for all concerned,” said Atty. Edre Olalia, secretary general of National Union of Peoples Lawyers.
“We hope in time it leads to a permanent abolition as we have serious reservations about the death penalty’s real value in effectively deterring crime and it precludes rehabilitation and reformation while not giving weight to humanitarian considerations. Worse, it may victimize innocent individuals who are wrongly convicted for different reasons or factors and bring them irretrievably to the afterlife,” said Olalia in a statement to the press Friday.
“We pray Mary Jane’s own temporary reprieve will be made permanent or that she be granted clemency and be brought home soon to the waiting arms of her little boys this coming holiday season,” Olalia added.
Veloso was sentenced to die in Indonesia on April 26 this year after being victimized in human trafficking as a drug courier. She was granted reprieve by the Indonesian government prior to the case hearing of her alleged recruiter who also surrendered to the authorities. (davaotoday.com)
