Indonesia defends executions of 8 drug traffickers who went singing to their deaths

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Indonesia defends executions of 8 drug traffickers who went singing to their deaths

Condemned drugtraffickerssang 'Amazing Grace' as they faced the firing squad, witnesses say

PUBLISHED : Wednesday, 29 April, 2015, 7:28am
UPDATED : Thursday, 30 April, 2015, 3:26am

Agence France-Presse in Cilacap

A coffin bearing the body of one of the drug convicts is carried in an ambulance as it arrives in Cilacap after the executions. Photo: AFP

As they walked to face the firing squad on an Indonesian prison island, eight condemned drug traffickers defiantly refused blindfolds and sang "Amazing Grace" until they were gunned down, witnesses said.

The convicts - two from Australia, one from Brazil, four from Africa and one Indonesian - made the long journey from their jail to clearings on a prison island to meet their fate early yesterday.

Their executions were greeted with condemnation from some quarters. Australia angrily withdrew its ambassador. Brazil expressed "deep regret" at the execution of its national, whose family said he was mentally ill, and said it was weighing its next move.

But Indonesian President Joko Widodo said he was merely applying "the rule of law" against narcotics traffickers.

An Islamic cleric (left) consoles a relative of Indonesian death row prisoner Zaenal Abidin during his funeral in Cilacap. Photo: Reuters

The husband of Pastor Christie Buckingham, who gave spiritual guidance to one of the Australians in his final moments, said his wife told him the men conducted themselves with "dignity and strength until the end".

"She told me the eight of them walked out onto the killing field singing songs of praise," Rob Buckingham told a radio station in Australia.

Across the water in the town of Cilacap, the final crossing point for inmates destined for death on the high-security Nusakambangan island, a small band of mourners held a candlelight vigil, and also sang "Amazing Grace".

The haunting sounds filled the night sky, drowning out the sobs of those too distressed to contemplate what was taking place in the jungle-clad hills of the prison island.

After the executions, family members could be seen crying and were ushered away by friends and supporters.

Indonesia's Attorney-General Muhammad Prasetyo (right) and Police Chief General Badrodin Haidi (left) speak to the press at Nusakambangan port in Cilacap. Photo: AFP

Indonesian Attorney General Muhammad Prasetyo said: "We are fighting a war against horrible drug crimes that threaten our nation's survival.

"I would like to say that an execution is not a pleasant thing. It is not a fun job," Prasetyo told reporters in Cilacap.

"But we must do it in order to save the nation from the danger of drugs. We are not making enemies of counties from where those executed came. What we are fighting against is drug-related crimes."

Prasetyo also played down Australia's decision to recall its ambassador, describing it as a "temporary reaction", while Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi stressed Jakarta's desire for "good relations" with one of its most important trading partners.

Australia had mounted a sustained campaign to save its citizens, who have been on death row for almost a decade, and Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the executions were "both cruel and unnecessary".

"We respect Indonesia's sovereignty but we do deplore what's been done and this cannot be simply business as usual," he said, announcing Australia's unprecedented step of recalling its Jakarta ambassador.

Indonesian activists hold portraits of the death-row inmates in Jakarta on Tuesday. Photo: AP

Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, ringleaders of the so-called "Bali Nine" heroin-trafficking gang, were described by Canberra as reformed men after years in prison.

The families said their sons did "all they could to make amends, helping many others" in the years since their arrests, with Sukumaran teaching fellow inmates English and art, and Chan ordained as a minister this year.

"They asked for mercy, but there was none. They were immensely grateful for all the support they received. We too, will be forever grateful," the families said in a joint statement.

Little is known about the other four foreigners executed - three of them were from Nigeria but it is not clear whether the fourth held Ghanaian or Nigerian nationality.