JAKARTA, RAKYAT NEWS — Amnesty International Indonesia has called on the Indonesian government to immediately implement a moratorium on the death penalty following the repatriation of British citizen and death row inmate, Lindsay June Sandiford, to the United Kingdom. Executive Director Usman Hamid emphasized that while the decision spares Sandiford from execution in Indonesia, it also underscores the urgent need for broader legal reform toward abolishing capital punishment.

“Repatriating a foreign national facing the death penalty in Indonesia indirectly saves them from execution, particularly if their home country has already abolished capital punishment,” said Usman. “However, this protection does not apply to those whose countries still uphold the death penalty, leaving them vulnerable to the same fate upon return.”

He noted that individuals such as Sandiford, Mary Jane Veloso from the Philippines, and Serge Atlaoui from France have a better chance of avoiding execution since their countries no longer practice capital punishment. Yet, he warned that more than 90 other foreign nationals remain on Indonesia’s death row, some from nations that still enforce the death penalty, including Iran and Nigeria.

Usman urged the Indonesian government to commute the sentences of foreign death row inmates before repatriating them. “Such a move would not only demonstrate Indonesia’s commitment to human rights but also represent an important step toward legal reform consistent with global efforts to end the death penalty,” he stated.

Sandiford’s prolonged uncertainty, he added, amounted to psychological torture and a violation of human dignity. Her case serves as a stark reminder that the death penalty not only takes lives but also undermines the very principles of humanity.

Amnesty also highlighted President Prabowo Subianto’s recent statements expressing disapproval of capital punishment, describing it as an irreversible penalty that leaves no room for correction. “This stance must be followed up by his ministers, particularly Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, through concrete policy reviews aimed at the complete abolition of the death penalty in Indonesia,” Usman said.

He further pointed out that abolishing capital punishment domestically would strengthen Indonesia’s diplomatic position in protecting its citizens abroad. Currently, 157 Indonesian nationals are facing death sentences in foreign countries, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

While abolition may not happen overnight, Amnesty emphasized that Indonesia can take several initial steps. These include declaring an official moratorium on executions and death penalty prosecutions, commuting existing death sentences, and halting new death penalty verdicts across all cases. Such measures would pave the way for legislative revisions involving at least 13 laws that still authorize capital punishment.

Sandiford, 68, had spent over a decade on death row in Bali after being convicted in 2013 for smuggling 4.8 kilograms of cocaine from Thailand. She claimed she acted under duress from an international drug syndicate threatening her son’s life. Her appeal was rejected, and she has since suffered from diabetes and hypertension while imprisoned at Kerobokan Prison. Alongside Sandiford, another British national, Shahab Shahabadi, serving a life sentence for drug offenses, was also repatriated due to deteriorating health.

Since taking office in October 2024, the Prabowo administration has repatriated several foreign inmates sentenced for drug-related crimes, including Veloso and Atlaoui. Although Indonesia last carried out executions in 2016, courts continue to issue death sentences — 85 in 2024 alone, mostly for narcotics offenses. According to the Institute for Criminal Justice Reform (ICJR), as of December 2024, there were 562 inmates on death row, a figure that rose to 596 by October 2025, based on data from the Directorate General of Corrections. (Uki)

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