We woke to the news today that those waiting to be executed in Indonesia for drug trafficking offenses, including 2 Australians were shot by firing squad. Opinions are rife all over social media, hash tags separating countrymen, family, friends and followers into different camps. From the title of this piece I guess you know where I stand.
I do not believe the death of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran or the other inmates executed achieves anything positive. Those other inmates were Nigerians Raheem Salami, Silvester Obiekwe Nwolise and Okwudil Oyatanze. Martin Anderson, who was initially identified as Ghanian, was also Nigerian and Brazilian Rodrigo Gularte, who was said to be mentally ill. Even if you are not against capital punishment, even if death by firing squad sits ok with you, surely we should be asking questions about the inconsistency with which Indonesia hands out the death penalty in relation to the crime committed and in this case, the breaking of international law.
The following press release comes from Rupert Abbott, Amnesty International’s research director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific.
“These executions are utterly reprehensible – they were carried out with complete disregard for internationally recognized safeguards on the use of the death penalty.”
“President Joko Widodo should immediately abandon plans to carry out further executions and impose a moratorium on the death penalty as a first step towards abolition.”
“The death penalty is always a human rights violation, but there are a number of factors that make the executions even more distressing. Some of the prisoners were reportedly not provided access to competent lawyers or interpreters during their arrest and initial trial, in violation of their right to a fair trial which is recognized under international and national law.”
“One of those executed today, Rodrigo Gularte, had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, and international law clearly prohibits the use of the death penalty against those with mental disabilities. It’s also troubling that people convicted of drug trafficking have been executed, even though this does not meet the threshold of ‘most serious crimes’ for which the death penalty can be imposed under international law.”
Rodrigo’s family hired medical specialists who had diagnosed him with paranoid schizophrenia and said he suffered from delusions and hallucinations. A second team of doctors then confirmed this. They suggested he receive treatment in a hospital or a mental health facility but this advice was ignored. His family has argued that his execution actually goes against Indonesia’s own penal code. The code clearly states in Article 44 “a prisoner with a mental disorder cannot be executed.” He was executed in the early hours of this morning.
Mary Jane Veleso, from the Philippines, was granted a stay of execution at the 11th hour. Her lawyers claim she was the victim of human trafficking and wasn’t aware she was carrying drugs. CNN Philippines reported that Veloso’s alleged recruiters, Maria Kristina Sergio and her partner Julius Lacanilao, surrendered themselves to authorities.
There was also a last-ditch plea for mercy from the governments of Australia, France and the European Union, who jointly petitioned Indonesia to declare a moratorium on capital punishment.
“We fully respect the sovereignty of Indonesia. But we are against the death penalty in our country and abroad. The execution will not give deterrent effect to drug trafficking or stop the other from becoming victims will abuse drugs. To execute these prisoners now will not achieve anything,” they said in a statement.
So why don’t I think these executions achieve anything? I don’t have statistics to link here but from everything I’ve read about this case and others; the death penalty does not stop people from committing crimes. The Australian’s, Chan and Sukumaran, have spent the last 10 years in Bali’s Kerobakan Prison taking ownership of their crime, acknowledging their guilt and working to rehabilitate themselves and even giving back in the way of implementing initiatives within the prison community to help others. The prison governor has described Chan and Sukumaran as model prisoners and testified in court that they should not be executed because of the positive influence they have had.
Chan, an atheist before he was arrested, converted to the Christian faith. He took a course in theology, studied to become a pastor, and ran the English language church service at Bali’s Kerobokan prison. Apparently he became a mentor to many. While in prison Sukumaran has been studying a bachelor of fine arts by correspondence through Curtin University which he was due to finish this year. He was a mentor to other prisoners, helped to teach English and ran computer, graphic design and art classes. The computers, without Internet access, were funded by a number of Melbourne criminal lawyers. Both men expressed remorse for their crimes and, together, they established a drug rehabilitation program for fellow inmates at the Kerobokan prison.
10 years. 10 years to learn, to grow, to change, to give back. I am not saying they should have been released. They are not “Heroes” by any stretch of the imagination. They did the crime; they were trafficking heroin, which could have gone on to ruin many other people and their family’s lives, but while these men lived out the rest of their lives in Bali’s Kerobokan Prison they had the opportunity to help others turn their lives around. They could share their experience and warn others of the perils that lie on the path of bad decisions and the crime that goes hand in hand with drugs. They could continue giving back in a positive way to the community they found themselves in. They could be a positive story, a great outcome showing what the Indonesian justice system can achieve with rehabilitation. But they no longer have the chance to do any of this. It’s over. Death is final and with their death they can help no one. No one wins here.
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