THE Supreme Court did not act on the “urgent omnibus motion” filed by the Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) seeking new guidelines on the conduct of the deposition of Mary Jane Veloso, the Filipino now on death row in Indonesia after being convicted of smuggling heroin.
Veloso’ s deposition are against her alleged illegal recruiters, Julius Lacanilao and Maria Cristina Sergio, both facing human trafficking and estafa raps at the Regional Trial Court Branch 88 in Sto. Domingo, Nueva Ecija.
It can be recalled that the OSG filed a motion with the Supreme Court after the government of Indonesia issued new proposals regarding the deposition of Veloso back in December 2020.
In an eight-page ruling penned by the Supreme Court Special Third Division through Associate Justice Ramon Paul Hernando on March 21, 2022 mentioned that it is leaving up to the Department of Justice (DOJ) and other agencies of the executive branch the task of coordinating with Indonesian authorities regarding technicalities in the implementation of the deposition.
The high court added that it is within the prerogative of the executive branch of government the handling of matters related to foreign relations and negotiations, and that there is no need for the executive department to seek the judiciary’s permission regarding the receiving, countering or revision of conditions laid down by the Indonesian government in relation to Veloso’s deposition.
According to the ruling, the government, through the DOJ already secured a legal miracle for Veloso so that she can air her side of the story despite being convicted in Indonesia.