Indonesia delays executions as search continues for AirAsia plane
Date December 30, 2014 - 12:39PM
Michael Bachelard
Indonesia correspondent for Fairfax Media
Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran are on death row in Kerobokan Prison. Photo: Ante Kesuma
Surabaya: With the eyes of the world watching Indonesia during the search for the missing AirAsia plane, the country's attorney-general has quietly delayed plans to execute five or six prisoners before the new year.
Attorney-General H.M. Prasetyo said on Monday: "It's now December 29, only two days left [until the end of 2014] — you can count for yourself".
As late as December 26, Vice-President Jusuf Kalla insisted that at least two prisoners — both convicted of premeditated murder — would be executed by year's end.
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Two days later, AirAsia flight QZ8501 went missing and all eyes turned to Indonesia.
The latest postponement may come as a relief to two of the Bali Nine drug smugglers on death row in Bali's Kerobokan prison, Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan. They were not on the short list of those to be imminently executed, but the determination of new president Joko Widodo to put drug traffickers to death in front of a firing squad has upset all death row prisoners in Indonesia.
Mr Prasetyo said the reason for the postponement was a Supreme Court ruling from 2013 that allowed those facing execution to submit more than one application for judicial review in their case, as long as new evidence had emerged.
One of the convicted murderers, Gunawan Santoso, found out from the media that he was on the execution list and managed to contact his lawyer on Christmas Day to organise a last-minute judicial review. Two of the drug dealers also lodged applications on December 15. Their cases are due to be heard in the new year.
"Once we are notified that the convict wants to submit a judicial review, it can't be refused. That's the problem," Mr Prasetyo said. "This is to do with someone's life: once you are executed there is no way of getting it back."
However, the reprieve may be temporary: the attorney-general said government was determined to continue with executions in the new year.
"It's not that we're in doubt. Once all the conditions are fulfilled, we will continue with the executions. That's our determination."
He wanted to talk to the Supreme Court in the new year to find a "solution" to the problem of multiple judicial reviews.
He said his department only followed the rules as laid down in the law: "Prosecutors are just the executors; don't get that wrong. We only carry out the final sentence after the whole judicial process is complete."
Mr Joko said on the eve of Human Rights day earlier this month: "I will reject the clemency applications submitted by 64 convicts who are sentenced to death in drugs cases".
It was necessary he said because of a "state of emergency on drugs" with 40 to 50 people dying daily.
