For those asking……I am extremely proud to have been able to assist Mary Jane Veloso who had a last minute reprieve from execution last week. In short – Indonesia have a duty to protect victims of human trafficking. Guiding principles mean exploited people should not be prosecuted or (if they are) not punished. In my opinion Mary Jane should be sent straight home on legal grounds. The Indonesian law on human trafficking is better than most other countries on this topic and it appears that the legal issues may not have been been properly raised before. I set out the law in an Amicus Curiae brief for her legal team which has been sent to various interested parties.
I became involved in Mary Jane’s case just a few weeks ago meeting the NUPL team via Skype & have assisted remotely. The NUPL (led by Edre Olalia – see my twitter timeline) invoked the human trafficking mechanisms by filing complaints on human trafficking and illegal recruitment in the Philippines on 16/4. This procedure can be instrumental in exposing traffickers and networks and with the combined effort of the lawyers, the amazing Philippine people & others it led to the stay in execution for Mary Jane Veloso’s case at the last minute. This needs to be made permanent.
Mary Jane is a potential witness (although she should not be forced to give evidence and her release should not be conditional) but this is also a major reason to return her to the Philippines.
#BringMaryJaneHome
I will be in Manila 10th to 16th May 2015.