Indonesia rejects UN, EU pleas to halt executions
CILACAP — Indonesia quickly rebuffed appeals from the UN human rights chief and the European Union to abandon plans to execute 14 people for drug crimes as preparations intensified Thursday at the prison island where UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein said he's "deeply concerned" by death penalty cases that lack transparency and compliance with the right to a fair trial, including the right to an appeal. He called on the government of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to impose an immediate moratorium on executions.
A stream of ambulances carrying coffins arrived Thursday morning at the port town nearest to the Nusa Kambangan prison island, where the executions of the mostly foreign drug convicts will be carried out by firing squads. Officials began tightening security at the prison several days ago, with more than 1,000 police sent to Cilacap, the port town, and the island.
Indonesia has not released an official list of those to be executed but the country's attorney-general on Wednesday said 14 people would be put to death.
Community Legal Aid Institute, which is involved in some of the death row cases, has circulated the names of four Indonesians, six Nigerians, two Zimbabweans, one Indian and one Pakistani. Previously, the attorney-general's office said it had budgeted funds for up to 16 executions this year.
The EU said the death penalty is an unacceptable denial of human dignity and called on Indonesia to "consider joining the wide community of over 140 states that have abolished the death penalty entirely or have adopted a moratorium."
Muhammad Rum, a spokesman for Indonesia's attorney-general, said the executions are the "implementation of our positive laws" and will not be delayed or stopped. All the cases have gone through a long legal process including appeals, he said. "They all have been given chances at all stages."
The Indonesian government says the death penalty is necessary for drug crimes because the country is facing a drug epidemic, particularly affecting young people. But critics argue capital punishment is not an effective deterrent and some have also questioned the accuracy of the government's drug abuse statistics.