Mary Jane Veloso, family get P50,000, livelihood support – Palace

MANILA, Philippines — The government has provided financial and livelihood assistance to Mary Jane Veloso and her family after President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. granted her an absolute pardon, according to Malacañang.

In a briefing on Monday, Palace press officer Claire Castro said personnel from the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) field office in Central Luzon visited Veloso and her family in the municipality of Gen. Mamerto Natividad, Nueva Ecija, to provide P50,000 in cash relief assistance and assess the family’s livelihood needs following her release.

During the visit on Sunday, DSWD personnel provided P30,000 in cash relief assistance to Veloso and her parents, with each receiving P10,000.

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The DSWD will also give P10,000 in aid to each of her two sons on Monday.

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Veloso also underwent an assessment for the DSWD’s Sustainable Livelihood Program, which could provide support as she starts rebuilding her livelihood.

The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) is also providing assistance to ensure the reintegration of Veloso and her family as they enter a new chapter in their lives, according to Castro.

READ: Back home, Mary Jane Veloso begins rebuilding family ties

Its interventions include livelihood starter kits, enterprise capital and skills training, as well as psychosocial counseling.

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“These measures are aimed at restoring dignity and bringing hope to Mary Jane and her entire family as they begin a new chapter in their lives,” Castro said.

“Through these actions by the President, the life of a mother, a worker, and a Filipino was saved,” she added.

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On Sept. 25, Marcos signed an absolute pardon for Veloso, allowing her to finally walk free less than two years from her supposed 20- to 40-year imprisonment at the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong City.

READ: Mary Jane Veloso is finally free

Veloso was arrested in Indonesia in 2010 after authorities found 2.6 kilograms of heroin in a suitcase she was carrying. She was sentenced to death and was scheduled to be executed in 2015 but was granted a last-minute reprieve.

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She was repatriated on Dec. 18, 2024, following talks between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and then-Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto. /mcm