Mixed Messages on the Death Penalty in Indonesia's Drug War

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTWzOmYhoFp-0HE_DrROfCTJOO6_RcSXhSNfc_s7-Vc73quAPAOEzVRF2lTYFDYbs5mt974YBVQdnFzxO3Fj8lYP-5uFjvqzUIBdA1QMDxszJaxC85DY4bTlQNv1KbXLRe-mn53YZGRa0/s1600/Duterte+Widodo+Indonesia+9+SEPT+2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo" border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTWzOmYhoFp-0HE_DrROfCTJOO6_RcSXhSNfc_s7-Vc73quAPAOEzVRF2lTYFDYbs5mt974YBVQdnFzxO3Fj8lYP-5uFjvqzUIBdA1QMDxszJaxC85DY4bTlQNv1KbXLRe-mn53YZGRa0/s400/Duterte+Widodo+Indonesia+9+SEPT+2016.jpg" title="Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">Indonesian authorities are sending mixed messages on the death penalty. The country abstained on a UN resolution for its abolition, and the president hinted at ending it, but some senior political figures are calling for the increased execution of drug offenders.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On December 19, 2016, Indonesia was one of 31 countries that abstained from voting on a UN resolution that called for a moratorium on the use of the death penalty, the Jakarta Post reports. The UN has voted on a resolution on abolishing the death penalty every 2 years since 2008. Indonesia has abstained on every such resolution since 2012; prior to this, it had consistently voted <i>against </i>the measures.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Human rights advocates, including the Human Rights Working Group, praised the government's abstention, as Indonesia has built a reputation as a prolific executioner of non-violent drug offenders under President Joko Widodo.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Between 2010 and 2014, despite numerous people being sentenced to death in Indonesia, no executions took place [NB: 5 executions were indeed carried out in Indonesia in 2013: <a href="http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.fr/2013/03/indonesia-execution-of-adami-wilson.html" target="_blank">Adami Wilson</a>, <a href="http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.fr/2013/05/indonesia-executes-three-murderers.html" target="_blank">Suryadi Swabhuana, Jurit bin Abdullah, Ibrahim bin Ujang</a>, <a href="http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.fr/2013/11/indonesia-fifth-execution-confirms.html" target="_blank">Muhammad Abdul Hafeez</a>. No executions were carried out between 2009 and 2012. -- DPN]. This changed after Widodo entered office in October 2014, since which 18 people have been executed - all for drug trafficking.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Many of those executed were foreigners whose respective governments engaged in futile diplomatic efforts to reduce their citizens' sentences. At least 2 death row inmates, including one who was executed last year, accused law enforcement of torture during their interrogation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Despite Widodo's renewal of the death penalty, he recently hinted at potential reform. In an interview with ABC News in November 2016, the president said, "We are very open to options. I don't know when but we want to move towards that direction [of abolishing capital punishment]."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While Widodo's remarks suggest that human rights progress may be on the horizon for Indonesia, statements from other authorities paint a far darker picture of the future of the country's drug policy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Attorney General Muhammad Prasetyo stated in early December that executions were planned "in the near future", and that the state would be prioritising people convicted of drug-related crimes.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In December, Budi Waseso - chief of the country's National Narcotics Agency (BNN) - told members of a new regional counter-narcotic taskforce, "Don't hesitate to shoot drug traffickers, drug dealers and drug users. Anyone involved in drug trafficking should be punished harshly, including traitors in the BNN body".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With echoes of President Rodrigo Duterte's calls for the slaughter of alleged drug offenders in the Philippines, Waseso's remarks suggest that a striking intensification of the Indonesian approach to drug policy may occur.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Indonesian NGOs have repeatedly urged the government to officially end the death penalty, pointing out the lack of evidence for its supposed deterrent effect, and arguing that it contributes to societal harms.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ardhany Suryadarma, Policy Manager for the EU-funded project, Asia Action on Harm Reduction, proclaimed: "These executions only exacerbate the stigmatisation of people who use drugs, driving them underground, and away from [harm reduction interventions, which] ... keep individuals safer and curb the HIV epidemic."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The country has, seemingly, reached a crossroads, and the next step that it takes in regard to the death penalty will clarify its place in a region that is increasingly divided on the matter.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">For example, Malaysia seems to have introduced a secret moratorium on capital punishment for drug-related offences.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Conversely, President Duterte's state-mandated violence against people allegedly involved with drugs has left at least 6,000 people dead in the Philippines since July 2016. Despite international condemnation, his government advocates the continuation of his lethal campaign.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There are clearly conflicting ideologies between different authorities in Indonesia, and it is unclear which path the government will take. The country is currently at a crossroads: will Widodo stay true to his word and move towards adherence to the UN resolution? Will Indonesia return to its traditional approach of state-mandated executions? Or will it begin implementing extrajudicial killings as seen in the Philippines?</div><br />Source: talkingdrugs.org, January 10, 2017<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Mixed Messages on the Death Penalty in Indonesia's Drug War

Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo Indonesian authorities are sending mixed messages on the death pen...

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