Four Indonesians jailed for torture

Four Indonesians were each sentenced to 19 months in prison Wednesday after being found guilty of torturing to death two people trafficked to work on an oil palm plantation that supplied global brands. The victims succumbed to their injuries inside two cages on the property of a local politician in Indonesia’s North Sumatra province, in the country’s latest case of modern slavery.

Rights groups say key industries in Indonesia such as palm oil and fishing are riddled with forced labour of workers. “The defendants have been found guilty of committing torture that caused the deaths of others, which was done together,” judge Halida Rahardini ruled on Wednesday.