Prey

OVERSEAS Filipino worker (OFW) Mary Jane Veloso made headlines after an Indonesian court ruled she is guilty of drug trafficking. In Indonesia, the crime is punishable by death, and Veloso is now awaiting her execution by a firing squad.
Veloso’s lawyers, however, are arguing that she unknowingly was used by her recruiter, an alleged member of an international syndicate, to transport 2.6 kilograms of heroin.
Unfortunately, it was too late when Veloso realized that she was smuggling drugs into a country that considers the crime a capital offense.
The 30-year-old mother of two was transported on Friday, April 24 to the ‘execution island’ together with nine other convicts. Though she has yet to receive the date of her execution by firing squad, the clock is ticking.
Hailing from a humble home in Nueva Ecija and failing to finish her secondary education, Veloso is just one of the millions of Filipinos who try their luck abroad– to double what they can earn in the Philippines and create a better life for themselves and their families.
Vice President Jejomar Binay, presidential adviser on Overseas Filipino Workers’ concerns, personally appealed before his Indonesian counterpart “that the penalty of death not be implemented on a woman, a single mother, and a clearly unwitting and unwilling victim of merciless drug trafficking syndicates.”
“She became the target of a neighbor by the name of Marian Cristina Sergio, who offered her work as a household worker in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Mary Jane happily accepted, as her only intention was to work overseas in order to earn enough to provide a better future for her two children, who depend solely upon her for support,” Binay said.
The Vice President added that if Mary Jane was part of a drug syndicate, her family would have “felt the benefits of the illicit trade” and would not be so financially dire. Binay also added that the Philippines is working to end Sergio’s drug trafficking activities.
Unfortunately, Veloso’s drug trafficking story is nothing new. Hundreds of large drug syndicates prey on OFWs.
Filipinos have been a large target of human trafficking, noting that 40 percent of the population is classified as poor. Some willingly submit themselves as a drug mule in exchange for a large sum of money. In Veloso’s case, however, she was promised a decent job without knowing that good fortune comes with a price.
The Philippine government must continuously work on protecting the rights and lives of OFWs. After all, the Philippines’ greatest export is its people. 
(AJPress)