MANILA – President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Friday confirmed that he had signed the papers granting Mary Jane Veloso an absolute pardon.

“Pinirmahan ko na,” Marcos told reporters in Samar. (I’ve signed it already.)

The confirmation came two days after Bataan 2nd District Rep. and House Appropriations Committee Senior Vice Chair Albert Garcia said Marcos was “seriously considering” granting Veloso an absolute pardon on humanitarian grounds.

“The Office of the President is seriously considering to grant absolute pardon to Mary Jane Veloso on humanitarian grounds in support of the government’s commitment to protecting Filipino Migrant workers,” Garcia said during the House plenary deliberations on the proposed 2027 General Appropriations Bill.

Garcia, who sponsored the proposed 2027 budget of the Office of the President, said an announcement on the matter would be made within days.

During a Palace press briefing, Presidential Communications Office Undersecretary and Palace Press Officer Claire Castro confirmed Garcia’s statement but declined to provide further details at the time.

“Yung timeline, kapag nandyan na po, saka ko ibibigay, pero confirmed po iyan,” Castro said.

Veloso was detained in Indonesia for more than a decade after being convicted of drug trafficking. She was transferred to the Correctional Institution for Women in Mandaluyong following efforts by the Philippine government to secure her return and was officially turned over to the Bureau of Corrections on Dec. 18, 2024.

Veloso was arrested in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, in 2010 after 2.6 kilograms of heroin were found in her suitcase. She was convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to death but was granted a last-minute reprieve after the Philippine government informed Indonesian authorities that her alleged recruiters had surrendered.

In September 2022, Marcos discussed Veloso’s case with then-Indonesian President Joko Widodo during his first state visit to Indonesia. More than two years later, Marcos announced that Veloso would be repatriated to the Philippines.