Marcos says Indonesia has agreed to send Filipino death-row drug convict back to the Philippines

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said Wednesday that a deal has been reached for Indonesia to send back a Filipino death-row drug convict, who was nearly executed by firing squad but got a reprieve due to years of pleadings from Manila.

Marcos thanked Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto and his government for granting a longstanding Philippine request for Mary Jane Veloso to be brought back home to serve her sentence in her country.

“Mary Jane Veloso is coming home,” Marcos said in a statement. “Arrested in 2010 on drug trafficking charges and sentenced to death, Mary Jane’s case has been a long and difficult journey.”

It was not immediately clear when Veloso would be flown back to the Philippines, but Marcos said he looked forward to welcoming her home.

Indonesia's Ministry of Immigration and Correction said in a statement it was not aware of any agreement to release or transfer Veloso to the Philippines.

Evi Loliancy, the chief of Yogyakarta's female prison, told The Associated Press that Veloso would remain “under our supervision at the Yogyakarta Correctional Institution until there is a specific order regarding her transfer from the High Prosecutors’ Office."

Philippine Foreign Undersecretary Eduardo de Vega said at a news conference in Manila that Filipino authorities would discuss the legal terms of Veloso's transfer with their Indonesian counterparts. He added they had not asked for anything or specified when she may be repatriated.

The Indonesian government has asked the Department of Justice in Manila to formally request Veloso's transfer back to the Philippines, where she would still be detained. The Philippine justice secretary has sent the letter of request to Indonesia, Philippine Justice Department spokesperson Mico Clavano said.

“This is an example of a detainee moving from one criminal justice system in one jurisdiction to another,” Clavano said.

The decision, Marcos said, “is a reflection of the depth our nation’s partnership with Indonesia — united in a shared commitment to justice and compassion."

Details of the agreement were not immediately disclosed but if Veloso's transfer proceeds, it would remove the possibility of her facing an execution because the Philippines, Asia’s largest Roman Catholic nation, has long abolished the death penalty.

In 2015, Indonesian authorities moved Veloso to an island prison where she and eight other drug convicts were scheduled to be executed by firing squad despite objections from the convicts' home countries, including Australia, Brazil, France, Ghana and Nigeria.

Indonesia executed the eight other drug convicts.

Veloso’s case has caused a public outcry in the Philippines, where her family and supporters contend she is innocent and was unaware that somebody had concealed 2.6 kilograms (5.7 pounds) of heroin in her suitcase that was discovered when she entered Indonesia.

Philippine authorities had filed criminal complaints, including for human trafficking, against the illegal Filipino recruiters, who arranged for Veloso to work in Indonesia, Clavano said, adding she would serve as a crucial witness in the trial of the suspects when she returns.

That Philippine case helped convince Indonesian authorities to delay Veloso's execution and eventually consider her transfer back to her country, Clavano said.

A poor housewife, Veloso traveled to Indonesia in 2010 where her godsister reportedly told her a job as a domestic worker awaited her. Her godsister also allegedly provided the suitcase where the prohibited drugs were found.

Marcos said Veloso’s story resonated with many in the Philippines, as “a mother trapped by the grip of poverty, who made one desperate choice that altered the course of her life."

“While she was held accountable under Indonesian law, she remains a victim of her circumstances," Marcos said.

The Philippines has been a global source of manual labor, including many impoverished women who abandon their families for higher-paying jobs and better opportunities abroad. Alarming abuse, especially of Filipina house helpers, has prompted Philippine authorities to impose restrictions and safeguards but the exploitations have continued.

At least 59 Filipinos around the world face the death penalty mostly for drug and murder convictions, the Department of Foreign Affairs in Manila said.

Associated Press journalist Edna Tarigan in Jakarta, Indonesia contributed to this report.

FILE - Protesters hold a picture of Mary Jane Veloso, a Filipino convicted drug trafficker in Indonesia, as they urge Philippine President save her from execution during a rally in Manila, Philippines on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2016. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila, File)

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq began its first nationwide population census in decades Wednesday, a step aimed at modernizing data collection and planning in a country long impacted by conflict and political divisions.

The act of counting the population is also contentious. The census is expected to have profound implications for Iraq’s resource distribution, budget allocations and development planning.

Minority groups fear that a documented decline in their numbers will bring decreased political influence and fewer economic benefits in the country’s sectarian power-sharing system.

The count in territories such as Kirkuk, Diyala and Mosul -- where control is disputed between the central government in Baghdad and the semi-autonomous Kurdish regional government in the north -- has drawn intense scrutiny.

Ali Arian Saleh, the executive director of the census at the Ministry of Planning, said agreements on how to conduct the count in the disputed areas were reached in meetings involving Iraq’s prime minister, president and senior officials from the Kurdish region.

“Researchers from all major ethnic groups — Kurds, Arabs, Turkmen, and Christians — will conduct the census in these areas to ensure fairness,” he said.

The last nationwide census in Iraq was held in 1987. Another one held in 1997 excluded the Kurdish region.

The new census “charts a developmental map for the future and sends a message of stability,” Planning Minister Mohammed Tamim said in a televised address.

The census will be the first to employ advanced technologies for gathering and analyzing data, providing a comprehensive picture of Iraq’s demographic, social, and economic landscape, offiials say. Some 120,000 census workers will survey households across the country, covering approximately 160 housing units each over two days.

The Interior Ministry announced a nationwide curfew during the census period, restricting movement of citizens, vehicles and trains between cities, districts and rural areas, with exceptions for humanitarian cases.

The count will be carried out using the “de jure” method, in which people are counted in their usual area of residence, Saleh said.

That means that people internally displaced by years of war will be counted in the areas where they have since settled, not in their original communities. The census will not include Iraqis residing abroad or those forcibly displaced to other countries.

Saleh estimated Iraq’s population at 44.5 million and said the Kurdish region’s share of the national budget — currently 12% — is based on an estimated population of 6 million. The census will also clarify the number of public employees in the region.

By order of Iraq’s federal court, the census excluded questions about ethnicity and sectarian affiliation, focusing solely on broad religious categories such as Muslim and Christian.

“This approach is intended to prevent tensions and ensure the census serves developmental rather than divisive goals,” Saleh said. The census will be monitored by international observers who will travel across Iraq’s provinces to assess the data quality, he said.

Hogr Chato, director of the Irbil-based Public Aid Organization, said the census will reshape the map of political thinking and future decision making.

“Even though some leaders deny it, the data will inevitably have political and economic implications,” he said. “It’s also fair to allocate budgets based on population numbers, as areas with larger populations or those impacted by war need more resources.”

Chato said he believes the delays in conducting the census were not only due to security concerns but also political considerations. “There was data they didn’t want to make public, such as poverty levels in each governorate,” he said.

Ahead of the census, leaders in Iraq’s various communities urged people to be counted.

In Baghdad’s Adhamiyah district, Abdul Wahhab al-Samarrai, preacher at Imam Abu Hanifa Mosque, urged citizens to cooperate with the census.

“This is a duty for every Muslim to ensure the rights of future generations,” he said in a Friday sermon the week before the count.

Martany reported from Irbil, Iraq.

People browse through books displayed during the annual book festival in Abu Nawas street in central Baghdad, Iraq, Saturday, Nov.16, 2024. (AP Photo/Hadi Mizban)