'Non-punishment' principles applied to Mary Jane Veloso — DOJ

Mary Jane Veloso sheds tears as she speaks during a press conference inside a school campus in Quezon City suburban Manila on September 26, 2026, a day after she was released from the correctional institution for women after authorities granted her pardon.

AFP / Ted Aljibe

MANILA, Philippines — The "non-punishment principle" for victims of human trafficking has been applied to Mary Joy Veloso.

In a press conference on Thursday, October 1, Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Ty said that the non-punishment principle in the country's anti-trafficking law has been applied to Veloso as a victim of human trafficking.

In the case of Veloso, this principle directly addresses her 2010 arrest for carrying 2.6 kilograms of heroin concealed in her luggage — an act she consistently maintained she was unaware of, having been deceived by her recruiters.

"Doon sa non-punishment principle ang mga biktima ng human trafficking tulad ni Mary Jane ay dapat hindi panagutin ng criminal sa mga bagay na nagawa nila kahit ilegal mga ito bilang isang human trafficking victim," Ty said.

(Under the non-punishment principle, victims of human trafficking like Mary Jane should not be held criminally liable for illegal acts they committed as a direct result of being trafficked.)

Under Section 17 of the Expanded Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2012, "trafficked persons" are to be recognized as victims and "shall not be penalized for unlawful acts committed as a direct result of, or as an incident or in relation to, being trafficked based on the acts of trafficking enumerated" in the law.

It also protects the victims from acts of "obedience to the order made by the trafficker."

However, Ty warned Filipinos not to let Veloso's case encourage them or give them a false sense of confidence to be deceived abroad under the assumption that they will automatically be saved as human trafficking victims.

He emphasized that Veloso went through an immense struggle and that bringing her home and securing a pardon was a highly difficult process.

"'Wag nating kalimutan bago tayo umabot sa araw na 'to napakaraming pinagdaanan ni Mary Jane. At hindi hindi din ganun kadali. Hindi din ganun kadali na mapauwi siya at ma-pardon siya," Ty said.

(Let us not forget that before reaching this day, Mary Jane went through so much. And it was by no means easy. Bringing her home and securing a pardon for her was far from easy as well.)

After more than a year in a Philippine prison without charges, Mary Jane Veloso, who was previously put on death row in Indonesia, is already free after being pardoned by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in September.

Her recruiters, meanwhile, are currently facing charges of human trafficking, large-scale illegal recruitment and estafa before a Nueva Ecija court.