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[h=1]BALI 9 EXECUTIONS: PRISONERS REFUSED BLINDFOLDS, SANG AS THEY WERE SHOT[/h]
Post date:
29 Apr 2015 - 2:42pm
[Pic: A sister of Australian death row prisoner Myuran Sukumaran's screams as she arrives at Wijaya Pura port to visit her brother at Nusakambangan prison ahead of his execution; Getty]
In the still night air of Nusakambangan island, eight condemned prisoners joined together in a chorus of Amazing Grace just after midnight, before their song was cut off by the crack of gunfire.
As details began to emerge of the final minutes of the group, which included the Bali 9 pair Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, it was revealed all eight prisoners rebuffed offers of blindfolds, opting instead to stare at their executioners while they broke out in song.
Pastor Karina de Vega said the voices of all eight members of the group cut through the air.
"They were praising their God," de Vega said.
"It was breathtaking. This was the first time I witnessed someone so excited to meet their God."
De Vega said it was the most beautiful experience she had ever had.
"They bonded together," she said. "Brotherhood. They sang one song after another. Praising God. They sang a few songs together, like in a choir.
"The non-Christian I believe also sang from his heart. It was such an experience."
At 15 minutes to midnight, the families of the condemned lit a candle as they watched the grim procession of cars taking the prisoners to the execution site.
One of the people in the group led a recitation of the Lord's Prayer. Immediately afterwards they were startled by loud gunshots.
Many became hysterical while others, including the spiritual advisers, offered consolation. But by the time the coffins arrived for identification and official handover, a measure of calm had returned and the process went smoothly.
Father Charles Burrows, who provided spiritual guidance to condemned Brazilian man Rodrigo Gularte, said the men met their fate without blindfolds, staring straight ahead.
"Everyone was looking forward, it seems everyone accepted their fate," Burrows said.
He said it was difficult because Gularte, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia when he was a teenager, was mentally ill.
Gularte talked to animals and was afraid of electromagnetic waves from satellites watching him above his prison on the island of Nusakambangan.
In his deluded state he believed Indonesia had abolished capital punishment and established a prisoner extradition agreement with Brazil which meant he could go home next year.
"We didn't think [the execution] would happen," Burrows said. "It is finished. It's all done."
The lawyer for the two Australians took his grief to Twitter. "I Failed. I Lost" he wrote.
Pastor Tuhu Santoso led the prison church mass on Besi prison before Australians Chan and Sukumaran and the other six prisoners were put in isolation on Saturday.
Nigerian Raheem Agbaje Salami, who was known as Stefanus, described how Jesus had saved him.
Chan played the guitar and read a verse from the bible stating everything that happened was God's will. Not a single feather would fall off a sparrow, without God permitting it, Chan read.
Chan and Sukumaran told Tuhu they still believed in miracles and that God would save them but if they were executed it was part of God's plan.
The pair were initially told they could not be accompanied by their choice of religious counsellor in their final hours.
In an SMS, an angry Michael Chan told Fairfax Media: "Last bit of dignity denied."
However, Indonesian authorities changed their mind at the last moment and Christie Buckingham, a senior pastor at Bayside Church, and David Soper, an old friend of the Chan family, were able to be with the men until the final minutes, leaving only when they were led off to the firing squad.
It's understood both men died quickly. A source said all eight prisoners died after being shot in the heart.
It was not necessary for the commander to shoot anyone in the head, as is the case if prisoners don't die after 10 minutes.
One of the condemned men, Nigerian gospel singer Okwudili Ayotanze, was confident right until the end that he was going to be taken off the execution list due to his pending case in the Administrative Court.
Friends and those who knew him for more than 10 years in prison were dismayed his legal cases had been left to the 11th hour.
They believed if the court process had started earlier, Ayotanze's life could have been saved.
A friend close to Ayotanze said he never stopped helping other prisoners. He would make sure everyone would come out of their cells and attend mass.
"He was basically the Nigerian version of Andrew Chan," he said.
"He was a good person. I will really feel the loss."
The Chan and Sukumaran families released a statement on Wednesday morning.
"Today we lost Myuran and Andrew," the families said.
"Our sons, our brothers. In the 10 years since they were arrested, they did all they could to make amends, helping many others."
The family said they asked for mercy, but there was none.
"They were immensely grateful for all the support they received. We too, will be forever grateful."
Brin Sukumaran posted a tribute to her brother on Facebook at midnight.
"Bless the lord o my soul. Myu likes this song. He sang it today. Please sing it for him," she wrote.
Ambulances containing eight coffins have left Nusakambangan and now begin the 12-hour journey to Jakarta.
Australia's Consul-General is required to identify the bodies of the Australians, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said. The bodies of Chan and Sukumaran will then be returned to Australia, likely on Friday.
New Zealand was "dismayed" by the executions, Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully said on Wednesday morning.
Indonesia had won considerable respect for improving human rights in recent years and the executions were "a serious setback to that progress", McCully said.
He had made it clear to the Indonesian government that New Zealand was "strongly opposed to the death penalty in all cases, and under all circumstances."
"While we respect Indonesia's right to set and apply its own laws, and understand the immense harm the country suffers from drug trafficking, we are dismayed that these executions have proceeded in the face of continued appeals from some of Indonesia's closest friends."
LAST-MINUTE REPRIEVE
Filipina maid Mary Jane Veloso was given a last minute reprieve from execution.
Attorney general spokesman Tony Spontana said Veloso's execution had been postponed because of the Philippine president's request in connection with the human trafficking suspect surrendering herself in the Philippines.
He said Veloso was required to provide her testimony.
Veloso's lawyer Edre Olalia also confirmed the stay of execution.
She was sentenced to death in October 2010 for attempting to smuggle 2.6 kilograms of heroin into Indonesia from Malaysia in April 2010.
- SMH with AAP
*Article first appeared on http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/68114615/firing-squad-8-killed-includi...
Post date:
29 Apr 2015 - 2:42pm
[Pic: A sister of Australian death row prisoner Myuran Sukumaran's screams as she arrives at Wijaya Pura port to visit her brother at Nusakambangan prison ahead of his execution; Getty]
In the still night air of Nusakambangan island, eight condemned prisoners joined together in a chorus of Amazing Grace just after midnight, before their song was cut off by the crack of gunfire.
As details began to emerge of the final minutes of the group, which included the Bali 9 pair Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, it was revealed all eight prisoners rebuffed offers of blindfolds, opting instead to stare at their executioners while they broke out in song.
Pastor Karina de Vega said the voices of all eight members of the group cut through the air.
"They were praising their God," de Vega said.
"It was breathtaking. This was the first time I witnessed someone so excited to meet their God."
De Vega said it was the most beautiful experience she had ever had.
"They bonded together," she said. "Brotherhood. They sang one song after another. Praising God. They sang a few songs together, like in a choir.
"The non-Christian I believe also sang from his heart. It was such an experience."
At 15 minutes to midnight, the families of the condemned lit a candle as they watched the grim procession of cars taking the prisoners to the execution site.
One of the people in the group led a recitation of the Lord's Prayer. Immediately afterwards they were startled by loud gunshots.
Many became hysterical while others, including the spiritual advisers, offered consolation. But by the time the coffins arrived for identification and official handover, a measure of calm had returned and the process went smoothly.
Father Charles Burrows, who provided spiritual guidance to condemned Brazilian man Rodrigo Gularte, said the men met their fate without blindfolds, staring straight ahead.
"Everyone was looking forward, it seems everyone accepted their fate," Burrows said.
He said it was difficult because Gularte, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia when he was a teenager, was mentally ill.
Gularte talked to animals and was afraid of electromagnetic waves from satellites watching him above his prison on the island of Nusakambangan.
In his deluded state he believed Indonesia had abolished capital punishment and established a prisoner extradition agreement with Brazil which meant he could go home next year.
"We didn't think [the execution] would happen," Burrows said. "It is finished. It's all done."
The lawyer for the two Australians took his grief to Twitter. "I Failed. I Lost" he wrote.
Pastor Tuhu Santoso led the prison church mass on Besi prison before Australians Chan and Sukumaran and the other six prisoners were put in isolation on Saturday.
Nigerian Raheem Agbaje Salami, who was known as Stefanus, described how Jesus had saved him.
Chan played the guitar and read a verse from the bible stating everything that happened was God's will. Not a single feather would fall off a sparrow, without God permitting it, Chan read.
Chan and Sukumaran told Tuhu they still believed in miracles and that God would save them but if they were executed it was part of God's plan.
The pair were initially told they could not be accompanied by their choice of religious counsellor in their final hours.
In an SMS, an angry Michael Chan told Fairfax Media: "Last bit of dignity denied."
However, Indonesian authorities changed their mind at the last moment and Christie Buckingham, a senior pastor at Bayside Church, and David Soper, an old friend of the Chan family, were able to be with the men until the final minutes, leaving only when they were led off to the firing squad.
It's understood both men died quickly. A source said all eight prisoners died after being shot in the heart.
It was not necessary for the commander to shoot anyone in the head, as is the case if prisoners don't die after 10 minutes.
One of the condemned men, Nigerian gospel singer Okwudili Ayotanze, was confident right until the end that he was going to be taken off the execution list due to his pending case in the Administrative Court.
Friends and those who knew him for more than 10 years in prison were dismayed his legal cases had been left to the 11th hour.
They believed if the court process had started earlier, Ayotanze's life could have been saved.
A friend close to Ayotanze said he never stopped helping other prisoners. He would make sure everyone would come out of their cells and attend mass.
"He was basically the Nigerian version of Andrew Chan," he said.
"He was a good person. I will really feel the loss."
The Chan and Sukumaran families released a statement on Wednesday morning.
"Today we lost Myuran and Andrew," the families said.
"Our sons, our brothers. In the 10 years since they were arrested, they did all they could to make amends, helping many others."
The family said they asked for mercy, but there was none.
"They were immensely grateful for all the support they received. We too, will be forever grateful."
Brin Sukumaran posted a tribute to her brother on Facebook at midnight.
"Bless the lord o my soul. Myu likes this song. He sang it today. Please sing it for him," she wrote.
Ambulances containing eight coffins have left Nusakambangan and now begin the 12-hour journey to Jakarta.
Australia's Consul-General is required to identify the bodies of the Australians, Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said. The bodies of Chan and Sukumaran will then be returned to Australia, likely on Friday.
New Zealand was "dismayed" by the executions, Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully said on Wednesday morning.
Indonesia had won considerable respect for improving human rights in recent years and the executions were "a serious setback to that progress", McCully said.
He had made it clear to the Indonesian government that New Zealand was "strongly opposed to the death penalty in all cases, and under all circumstances."
"While we respect Indonesia's right to set and apply its own laws, and understand the immense harm the country suffers from drug trafficking, we are dismayed that these executions have proceeded in the face of continued appeals from some of Indonesia's closest friends."
LAST-MINUTE REPRIEVE
Filipina maid Mary Jane Veloso was given a last minute reprieve from execution.
Attorney general spokesman Tony Spontana said Veloso's execution had been postponed because of the Philippine president's request in connection with the human trafficking suspect surrendering herself in the Philippines.
He said Veloso was required to provide her testimony.
Veloso's lawyer Edre Olalia also confirmed the stay of execution.
She was sentenced to death in October 2010 for attempting to smuggle 2.6 kilograms of heroin into Indonesia from Malaysia in April 2010.
- SMH with AAP
*Article first appeared on http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/68114615/firing-squad-8-killed-includi...
