Philippine labor unions stand behind Veloso

Members of associated labor unions in the Philippines stand vigil for Mary Jane Veloso on International Workers's Memorial Day on Tuesday, April 28. Analy Labor / GMA News

Labor groups to hold prayer, candle vigils for Mary Jane Veloso on Tuesday

Mary Jane Veloso (Photograph: Jefta Images/Barcroft Media)

Various labor organizations will hold prayer and indoor candle-lighting vigils for Mary Jane Veloso, the 30-year-old Filipino scheduled to be executed in Indonesia on Tuesday.

The vigils will be held at the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) compound and Occupational Safety and Health Center in Quezon City at 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., respectively, on April 28.

Veloso, arrested in an Indonesian airport for carrying 2.6 kilos of heroin in 2010, is scheduled to be executed by firing squad on Tuesday afternoon.

The TUCP-Nagkaisa is still hoping that the Indonesian government will reconsider the sentence imposed on Veloso.

“While we fervently hope for the Indonesian government to stay her execution,” the group said in a statement Monday.

“We also hope that the painful process will translate into real, immediate reforms in job-creation and wage policies so that Filipinos will no longer aspire to work abroad,” it added.

Incidentally, the group will be celebrating the International Workers Memorial Day (IWMD) and the launching of Workers' Rights on Wheels on the same day, to commemorate victims of construction accident and intensify calls for safe, decent work for all in Diliman, Quezon City.

Members of the Global union federation Building and Woodworkers International (BWI) together with affiliates Associated Labor Unions (ALU-TUCP) and National Union of Building and Construction Workers (NUBCW) will be joining the event.

Monday activities

For Monday, the Church Task Force to Save the Life of Mary Jane Veloso will be holding a candle-lighting and "prayer action" gathering in front of the Indonesian Embassy in Makati City at 6 p.m.

The group previously started an online petition calling on Indonesian President Joko Widodo and President Benigno Aquino III to save Veloso via clemency and pardon.

As of this posting, the petition has gathered more than 31,600 supporters.

The group invited signatories to the online petition, as well as supporters on Twitter using the hashtag #SaveMaryJane, "to offer a prayer and light a candle for Mary Jane."

"Bring your family, friends, classmates, or officemates. The bigger we are, the stronger our message will be," their invite said. "If you are living outside the Philippines, we encourage you to do the same. Please light a candle in front of the Embassy of Indonesia in your country and say a prayer."

For its part, the Asia Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development called on Widodo to halt Veloso's execution and grant her "a full re-trial."

In a statement, the group pointed out that Veloso was not granted a fair trial because she wasn't given the free assistance of an able interpreter as well as the denial for review of the case.

It added that Veloso's case should instead instigate a look into the plight of Indonesian women and migrant workers.

Veloso, a mother of two, vehemently denied that she's a drug smuggler, saying she was tricked into carrying the suitcase by a Filipino friend who also acted as her recruiter.

Veloso, who was transferred to Indonesia's execution island last Friday, is set to be executed by firing squad.

The Philippine government has already filed its second appeal for judicial review on Veloso's case, hoping to commute her sentence to life imprisonment

Manila first sought an appeal last March, questioning the competence of the translator provided to Veloso during the trial. It was rejected by Indonesia's Supreme Court, but its laws allow death penalty cases to be appealed and reviewed despite a final ruling.

The second appeal includes proof that Veloso is not a drug smuggler based on the findings of a Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency team who visited her in prison last month. — with Rose-An Jessica Dioquino/KBK/RSJ, GMA News