Don’t execute Nigerians, Amnesty begs Indonesia

Human rights group, Amnesty International, on Wednesday urged Indonesia to halt the imminent executions of 14 drug convicts, including five Nigerians.

The Group said the execution of the convicts would put Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s government on the wrong side of history.

Amnesty, on its website, said it received credible reports that at least 14 people could be executed this week. They included four Indonesians, a Pakistani, an Indian, a Zimbabwean, a Senegalese, a South African, and five Nigerians.

Amnesty International’s Deputy Director for South East Asia and the Pacific, Josef Benedict, expressed concerns that some of the prisoners were convicted in unfair trials and have not submitted clemency request to the President.

He said it was so unfortunate that Widodo could preside over the highest number of executions in the country’s democratic era at a time most of the world has turned its back on this cruel practice.

Benedict recalled that Indonesia executed 14 death-row convicts last year in a move that drew criticism from the United Nations and the European Union.

He said “President Widodo’s era was supposed to represent a new start for human rights in Indonesia. Sadly, he could preside over the highest number of executions in the country’s democratic era at a time when most of the world has turned its back on this cruel practice,” said

Indonesia has a strong record of fighting for the rights of its citizens abroad on death row, but that is a position that the authorities do not consistently uphold at home, where President Widodo has claimed that the death penalty is needed to deter drug crime.

Benedict said, “There is no evidence to support President Widodo’s position. The death penalty does not deter crime. Carrying out executions will not rid Indonesia of drugs. It is never the solution, and it will damage Indonesia’s standing in the world.”

“If President Widodo is serious about claiming a place for Indonesia on the world stage and as a leader for the region, he cannot ignore its human rights obligations. The first step towards that must be a moratorium on executions with a view to ridding Indonesia of the unjust punishment once and for all.”

Phelim Kine, the Group’s Deputy Asia Director, urged the president to commute the death sentences.

He said Widodo should acknowledge the death penalty’s barbarity and avoid a potential diplomatic firestorm by sparing the lives of the 14 or more people facing imminent execution.

He said more than 121 people were on death row in Indonesia, including 35 foreigners, mainly for drug-related crimes.

President Widodo has taken a tough stance against drug trafficking since his election in 2014, saying the country is facing a drug emergency.

SOURCE:PUNCH