Bali Nine Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran to be executed together in Bal

[poledriver]

Bali nine: executions could be delayed months as judges re-examine Filipina maid's case

Jakarta: The Indonesian Supreme Court has agreed to review the case of a Filipina drug courier scheduled to be shot at the same time as the Bali nine duo, potentially delaying the executions for months.

The decision is significant for Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan because Indonesian authorities have consistently said they intend to execute all 10 drug felons simultaneously.

Supreme Court spokesman Suhadi said a panel of judges would be appointed this week.

"After that the panel will examine and study her case. It will take months," he said in Kompas newspaper on Tuesday.

Filipina domestic worker Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso was sentenced to death in 2010 for attempting to smuggle 2.6 kilograms of heroin from Malaysia to Yogyakarta. Veloso maintains she was deceived by an acquaintance and did not know the drugs were in her suitcase.

Her lawyer argued she deserved a case review because the translator during her trial was only a student who did not have a license from the Association of Indonesian Translators.

Case reviews take up to three months to be determined.

On March 12, Attorney-General spokesman Tony Spontana said Indonesian authorities would wait on the result of all legal processes lodged by the felons on death row before proceeding with the executions.

He said simultaneous executions were "more efficient and effective".

"We don't want one to have to wait for another's execution before his own. That will affect the convicts' psychological state," he said.

Nine of the 10 drug felons are now understood to have launched legal proceedings.

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http://www.smh.com.au/world/bali-ni...mine-filipina-maids-case-20150317-1m182b.html

 

[Stef27]

Bali Nine duo: Andrew Chan, Myuran Sukumaran may be executed after Asian-African Conference

THERE are rumours that the executions of up to 11 drug runners, including Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, may not occur until after the Asian-African Conference concludes in Indonesia in late April.

The major event, commemorating the 60th anniversary of the forum, will see 109 leaders from across Asia and Africa attend events in Jakarta and Bandung, and may give President Joko Widodo his best opportunity to make a statesmanlike gesture of clemency.

A well-connected source told News Corp Australia the Indonesian Government was considering delaying the executions until after the conference, possibly because there are two Nigerians and a Ghanaian slated for the firing squad, along with a Filipino woman, Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso.

Link: http://www.bluelight.org/vb/threads...kumaran-to-be-executed-together-in-Bal/page16

 

[poledriver]

Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran are not the only ones who could benefit from a clemency bid

IT cannot be known whether President Joko Widodo is cooling off, looking for a way to avoid killing the drug runners or is — as his Attorney-General HM Prasetyo has said — just waiting for the legal processes to be exhausted.
But there is such doubt about the integrity of the judicial process in Indonesia that grounds exist to annul the death sentences of Andrew Chan, Myuran Sukumaran and up to eight or nine others facing execution.
What is certain is that if the executions do proceed, most of the victims will have been sent to the firing squad having faced tainted trials and appeals.

The allegations run from bribes being sought by judges in the cases of Chan and Sukumaran in order to grant them life over death; to unthinkable situations in which judges condemned people to death — including Brazilian schizophrenic Rodrigo Gularte — without lawyers standing at their side.

Indonesia’s sovereign right to conduct executions is not disputed, but it still needs to feel comfortable within itself when sending people to their deaths. As matters stand, no such comfort exists. People will be gunned down without having received fair trials.
In Indonesia, going to court without knowing the result beforehand is like asking a girl to marry you without being sure of the answer first — it is thought unwise.

The common belief in Indonesia is that for those who have money, courts are there to deliver results, not justice. This should offend the President, who was elected last year on a mandate that corruption in Indonesia must be extinguished.
The place to start is in the courts, which not only have their hands out, they have permitted the shambolic treatment of those who came before them to plead for their lives, sometimes without even translators who could have allowed them to question or raise objections through their lawyers. If they were lucky enough to have lawyers.

How judges could preside over such grave proceedings without affording defendants all possible protections should be of concern to the President, and all Indonesians.
Lately, Australia — NSW in particular — has seen such a stream of high-level corruption among public officials that complaints about Indonesia would seem ludicrous were it not for the life-and-death nature of the decisions.

cont -

http://www.news.com.au/world/asia/a...m-a-clemency-bid/story-fnh81fz8-1227289048327

 

[poledriver]

Tracking the Bali Nine's Mr Big

A horrifying death by firing squad awaits two members of the Bali Nine. But who were the masterminds behind the failed drug run? Rory Callinan investigates.

The drug dealer's widow serves a tasty dhal. "Come on, eat, eat," she begs, ladling the steaming broth onto the tin plates on the clay hearth under the old stone farmhouse.

Up in the hills in the district of Satyadevi, beneath the imposing snowy peaks of Ganesh Himal in central Nepal, the family of late drug trafficker Man Singh Ghale is honouring the region's reputation for hospitality. The welcome is partly associated with a local religious tradition of treating an unexpected guest like a god. But the family is also desperate to welcome anyone who brings news about the mysterious death of their patriarch: 30-year-old Ghale.

"They printed terrible things about him in the newspaper," sighs his 35-year-old widow, Sita, a short and harried-looking woman. "I fainted when I read it. They said he was dead. They said he was a drug dealer and he had two wives and drove around in a Pajero. I didn't even know what a Pajero was, let alone to drive around in one. And the wives, that was very wrong."

The distraught Nepalese family are not the only ones to have disturbing questions about Ghale's death. Ghale was killed during the investigation into the now-infamous Bali Nine drug case. The probe into Ghale was triggered when the Australian Federal Police warned their Indonesian counterparts about a group of Australians who were attempting to smuggle 8.3 kilograms of heroin from Bali to Australia. The tip-off led to nine Australians being arrested in Bali on April 17, 2005, and a near guarantee they would face the death penalty under Indonesian law if convicted.

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Seven of the group, Scott Rush, Si Yi Chen, Michael Czugaj, Renae Lawrence, Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen, Matthew Norman and Martin Stephens, who acted as couriers or in slightly more senior roles, eventually had their sentences reduced to either life or 20 years. Two others, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, who played middle manager roles in the gang, are currently engaged in a desperate, last-minute appeal process to try to avoid a date with a firing squad in the coming weeks.

Ghale's death sentence came a lot faster. Just days after the Bali busts, Indonesian police raided Ghale's Jakarta home, claiming he was the likely supplier to the Bali Nine. During the raid, police fatally shot Ghale, claiming he had resisted arrest. They alleged he was armed and had been shot in the chest; claims contradicted by residents who told journalists that Ghale suffered only a minor wound and was in good condition when they saw him walk out to the police car.

Cont -

http://www.smh.com.au/good-weekend/tracking-the-bali-nines-mr-big-20150403-1m5xmt.html

 

[poledriver]

Bali Nine duo’s challenge to deny clemency heard by Jakarta court

LAWYERS for Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran say the pair have a legitimate legal case that should prevent Indonesian authorities from moving on their executions.

The Bali Nine duo yesterday lost a bid to challenge their clemency rejections, with the state administrative court upholding its earlier decision that the presidential decrees were outside its jurisdiction.

Jakarta is now just waiting on the legal efforts of a few other prisoners before setting an execution date for 10 inmates, including the two Australians.

However, Chan and Sukumaran’s lawyers plan to move their battle to the constitutional court, despite Attorney-General HM Prasetyo dismissing such plans as delaying tactics.

“No, there shall be no more (delays),” he said after Monday’s verdict.

“This is proof of their tendency to delay ... it’s like toying with law.”

The attorney-general argued clemency was a matter of presidential prerogative only.

Cont -

http://www.news.com.au/national/bal...by-jakarta-court/story-fncynjr2-1227293258983

 

[poledriver]

 

[poledriver]

Bali Nine ringleaders Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran: execution letters sent

IN OMINOUS signs for the Bali Nine ringleaders Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, the Indonesian Attorney-General’s office has sent letters to the prosecutors of all 10 death row prisoners due to face the firing squad, ordering them to prepare the executions.

The letters were sent on Thursday and authorities say they are the official orders to get everything prepared ahead of the date of the executions being announced.

The Attorney-General’s spokesman, Tony Spontana, was quoted on Indonesian wire service, Detik, as saying the only thing left now was to announce the date.

The lawyer for a Nigerian man scheduled for execution with Chan and Sukumaran says the embassy has been summoned to Central Java, a likely sign the date is imminent.

Utomo Karim, lawyer for Raheem Salami, said the Nigerian embassy received a letter asking it to go to Cilacap, the port closest to Nusakambangan, on Saturday.

“Based on experience from the previous execution, they’re going to tell them the date for the execution,” he told AAP.

Indonesia is required to give 72 hours notice of the executions.

Chan and Sukumaran are in the same cell block as Salami on Nusakambangan, where they and six other drug offenders await execution by firing squad.

Mr Utomo says based on the experience of the Nigerian embassy in January, when six people were executed, the Saturday meeting means the date is drawing near.

“Last time, when we were asked to gather in the district prosecutor’s office, we were then taken to Nusakambangan to tell the convict about the execution time,” he said.

“And three days after that, they were executed. I don’t know whether other embassies have been notified at the same.”

Cont -

http://www.news.com.au/world/asia/b...ion-letters-sent/story-fnh81fz8-1227317822595

 

[poledriver]

Bali Nine pair officially told they could be executed 'within days'

Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan have been told they may be executed as soon as Tuesday.

The pair was given notice on Saturday of Indonesia's intention to execute them in a minimum of 72 hours, during a meeting on Nusakambangan Island.

Lawyer Julian McMahon returned with three self-portraits by Sukumaran.

One canvas was dated April 25 and signed "72 hours just started".

Australian embassy officials were earlier called to a meeting in Cilacap, signalling the beginning of the process to execute the Australians for the Bali Nine plot ten years ago.

Indonesia must give at least 72 hours' notice of the executions.

Mr McMahon did not comment to reporters but showed Sukumaran's self-portraits, the others signed "Our new prison. A Bad Sleep Last Night" dated April 25 and "A strange day" dated April 24.

Jakarta had pledged to wait for all 10 prisoners in line for the firing squad to exhaust their legal avenues before naming what the attorney-general's spokesman Tony Spontana termed "D-day".

Indonesian Zainal Abidin's bid for a judicial review is expected to be determined on Monday.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said the summoning of all embassies with nationals in the ten set for execution had her "deeply and profoundly" worried.

"I fear the worst," she told reporters in Brussels.

It wasn't too late for President Joko Widodo to show mercy to two rehabilitated men, she said.

"He is the leader of a great nation, a dear and close friend of Australia," Ms Bishop said.

"We ask that he take into account our considerations."

Cont -

Read more at http://www.9news.com.au/world/2015/...ially-notified-executions#lBJDBP7A5lfwU2Q5.99

 

[poledriver]

 

[ro4eva]

Seems to me that Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran's executions will provoke the Australian government into possibly severing all ties with Indonesia. They may even ban travel to the country - business or pleasure, for a long, long time.

Personally, I believe that these men have been locked up in deplorable, shit-stained conditions for long enough. Let 'em go - they've learned their lesson: Don't ever be smuggling certain drugs - which are considered evil - in a country run by religious fundamentalists who happen to smoke like chimneys, and who are experts on plywood.

And Jackass Widodo may indeed attempt to facilitate a "human tsunami" if foolhardy, for if the dear leader believes it'll accomplish anything, he might be back at the local wood chipper sooner than planned.

 

[kytnism]

Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan make their final requests before execution.

THE executions of Andrew Chan, Myuran Sukumaran and others will without doubt be conducted just after the stroke of midnight on Tuesday, after a local mortician in Cilacap was instructed to inscribe the names of victims and date their deaths.

The mortician, B. Suhendroputro, was yesterday busily stencilling crosses and putting finishing touches the names of the Christian victims to be shot by firing squad within two days.

All crosses were dated 29.04.15, meaning the condemned men and the solitary female on the death list will be killed after the stroke of midnight on Wednesday morning.

continued...

...kytnism...

 

[poledriver]

Bali Nine: Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan refuse to sign execution papers

MYURAN Sukumaran and Andrew Chan have both refused to sign their execution warrants, telling the prosecutors tasked with executing them that they believed their impending death was unjust, that they had been rehabilitated and deserved a second chance.

Their dignified and courteous responses, which at one stage brought a hush over the area where the process was taking place, came on Saturday when prosecutors went to Nusakambangan to deliver the execution notice.

And in his last days, Sukumaran yesterday expressed extraordinary compassion, telling one of his visitors that he felt sad for Filipina woman, Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso, the sole woman in the group to be executed on Tuesday night.

Cont -

http://www.news.com.au/world/bali-n...execution-papers/story-fndir2ev-1227322426248

 

[poledriver]

Bishop calls on Indonesia to halt Bali Nine executions after 'very serious' bribery allegations

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop says allegations Indonesian judges asked for bribes before sentencing Bali Nine duo Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan should be reason enough for a stay of execution.

A former lawyer for the pair, Muhammad Rifan, has claimed the judges asked for more than $130,000 in exchange for sentencing Chan and Sukumaran to less than 20 years in prison, Fairfax Media has reported.

"These allegations are very serious," Ms Bishop said at a press conference today.

"They call into question the sentencing process."

She said the executions should be halted while Indonesia's judicial system probed the claims.

Mr Rifan made the initial bribery allegations months ago, but this is the first time a figure has been revealed.

Ms Bishop’s comments came as it was revealed the Bali Nine pair refused to sign a death warrant issued ahead of their executions, planning instead to go down fighting.

Cont -

http://www.9news.com.au/national/20...an-vow-to-hold-their-heads-high-until-the-end

 

[mister]

The Indo government are corrupt savages. I will never set foot in that country

 

[ro4eva]

The Indo government are corrupt savages. I will never set foot in that country

I'm with you on that. Money in exchange for a life and death situation to be "judged" mercifully is, in my opinion, sadistically felonious. And while these bribery allegations - to the best of my knowledge - have not been proven beyond a reasonable doubt, I believe that everyone can be bought for a price, regardless of the possibly fatal implications to others.

 

[poledriver]

Supporters claim Mary Jane Veloso is victim of human trafficking

AS AUSTRALIAN leaders beg for the lives of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran to be spared execution in Indonesia, another woman is capturing hearts overseas.
Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso, 30, is the sole woman among the group of nine who are due to be killed this week. She will join the Australian men, four Nigerians and a man each from Brazil, France and Indonesia who have been condemned to die by the Indonesian government.

Like emotive appeals for Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, her case has been taken up by those who support the rights of Filipino workers and others who think she is an innocent victim duped by a drug syndicate.
The name Mary Jane has been trending on Twitter with Indonesian celebrity chef Rahung Nasution saying “Jokowi is not battling drugs. He is executing poor women”. The Philippines has also pushed for a review of her case saying she is a victim of human trafficking rather than a drug trafficker.

On Friday, Veloso’s lawyer, Edre Olalia, launched a last-ditch attempt to have her execution delayed based on new evidence. He said a groundswell of support for Veloso since her case had been publicised meant Indonesia must not rush its decision.
“We will never give up until the last breath of someone like Mary Jane Veloso, an innocent mother, a young mother of two little boys, forced out of her country because there are no economic opportunities to live a decent life like a human being.”
“While the legal battle is important, while the diplomatic initiatives may contribute, we think that the key here is intensify appeals and calls that the Indonesian government should give this woman one last chance please,” he said.
“Let this woman speak out, let her tell the whole world her story ... After all, she is a victim here.”

Dr David McRae, a senior research fellow at University of Melbourne’s Asia Institute, said Veloso is the only one of the prisoners that spurred noticeable sympathy among Indonesians.
“If she was an Indonesian citizen there would be an outcry in Indonesia and pressure on the government to act,” he said.

Dr McRae said her case had drawn a number of mainstream public figures to express opposition to the death penalty who wouldn’t normally comment on these kinds of cases.
“If there is a ray of hope for a stay of execution it would come from Indonesian sympathy towards her case,” he said.

The single mother was sentenced to death after being caught with 2.6 kilograms of heroin in a suitcase in 2010. She was travelling to Indonesia from Malaysia in the hope of getting work as a maid, which had been allegedly arranged by her godsister.
She has always said she was innocent of drug trafficking and previously appealed on the basis she wasn’t able to defend herself at trial because she didn’t have a qualified translator for Tagalog.
However this was rejected, and last Friday she was transferred to Nusakambangan Island — which she had previously avoided because it didn’t have facilities for women — and visited by her family. While there, she gave them a series of heartfelt handwritten letters addressed to leaders begging for her life to be spared.

“As a mother, I have two children who are still small and need the love of a mother very much whom they love in return,” she wrote.
She also wrote separate letters to Filipino youth warning them not to get involved in drugs and to the country’s women urging them if they’re going to work overseas, to do it via the right legal channels.
The letters, written in a neat hand and signed with a heart, follow a video plea made by her two young sons, Mark Daniel and Mark Darren Veloso, aged 6 and 12, to the son of Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Kaesang Pangarep, to spare her life.
“Please tell your father not to execute her. We beg you to lift our mother’s sentence and not execute her,” Mark Darren said.

Cont -

http://www.news.com.au/world/asia/s...uman-trafficking/story-fnh81fz8-1227323416208

 

[kytnism]

By the numbers: Indonesia's executions of foreigners

Changes in Indonesia's approach to death penalty cases under Joko Widodo mean foreigners are now more likely than locals to be executed there.

Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran are under imminent threat of facing the firing squad at a time when Indonesia's use of executions is changing dramatically under new president Joko Widodo.

In his first four months in power, Widodo has both sharply increased the use of executions and shifted the focus to narcotics prisoners, meaning that many more foreigners have already been executed or are now slated for execution. If Widodo maintains his hardline stance of no mercy for drug crimes, approximately 40 more foreign citizens may be executed as Indonesia clears its death row of narcotics prisoners.

Indonesia's use of executions is escalating under president Joko Widodo. Between 1999-2014, under Indonesia's first four democratic-era presidents, 27 people were executed, an average of fewer than two executions per year. Within Widodo's first 100 days in office, in January 2015, Indonesia executed six people on drug related charges.

Executions in a single year:

After only two months, 2015 is set to break the record for the most number of executions in a single year. If Indonesia conducts 10 executions as planned, it would entail putting as many people to death on a single day than had previously been executed in democratic Indonesia in an entire year. The previous record for single-year executions was set in 2008 when 10 prisoners were executed, including the Bali bombers.

Executions of Narcotics convicts:

The escalation of executions has focused on those on death row for narcotics crimes. Before Joko Widodo became president, only seven out of 27 prisoners executed were sentenced in narcotics cases, with 17 people put to death for murder and three for terrorism. All six prisoners put to death by Widodo so far have been narcotics convicts, and all 10 names slated for execution next are narcotics convicts.

Executions of foreigners:

More foreigners have been executed or are slated for execution in 2015 than the total for the previous 16 years. Prior to Widodo's administration, only seven of the 27 people executed were foreigners. By contrast, five of the first six people Widodo has executed have been foreigners and nine of the next 10 slated executions also involve foreigners.

continued...

...kytnism...

 

[Dysphoric]

Why doesn't the AUS government send a bunch of officials to break them out?... Forcefully. They already are cutting ties, so they might as well bring in small military like group if they really care that much.

 

[poledriver]

Why drugs mean death in Bali

“XANAX, viagra, Valium ...” These are the muttered words that float from the shadows as we wander through the streets of Bali, dodging mopeds and staff trying to entice us into restaurants.

“You don’t want dinner, how about a drink? You need a taxi? Some prescription drugs, then?”

With Australians Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan facing death tomorrow for their part in smuggling heroin out of Indonesia, the country’s drug problem remains plain.

The dealers know their market. Westerners are enticed with any kind of high they want — as long as it’s available from a pharmacy. Cocaine is replaced by Ritalin.

Amphetamines by vaguely defined “prescription speed”. Ketamine by benzodiazepines (tranquillisers that include Valium, Rohypnol and Ativan).

My two-week trip to Indonesia barely scratched the surface of its complex culture.

But one thing was immediately obvious: drugs are everywhere. In tourist hotspot Seminyak, they’re sticking to medication, but it still isn’t legal, and there’s no guarantee what you’re getting.

After Bali, we visited nearby Gili Trawangan, a popular island getaway with no motorised transport, magical coral reef diving and luxury villas.

Law enforcement is minimal in this tiny paradisiacal bubble, so the stakes are higher. Here, you’re offered weed, cocaine and mushrooms that will “take you to the moon”.

When we hit the island’s busy strip at night, the most popular bars are packed with drunk Australians, Americans and Europeans, interspersed with vacant-looking Indonesians, blissfully swaying on the spot.

The manager at our villa says most locals — workers from mainland Lombok — can’t afford the beer and cocktails that the Westerners use to fuel their partying. Instead, many are hooked on cheaper meth (or “syabu”) and crack.

Cont -

http://www.news.com.au/world/asia/why-drugs-mean-death-in-bali/story-fnh81fz8-1227325205874

 

[poledriver]

The executions of Bali Nine duo Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran

Chan, Sukumaran executed at 3.25am AEST

CONVICTED Australian drug smugglers Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran have been executed by firing squad in Indonesia.

5.04am - ‘Miracles do come true’

The ecstatic family of pardoned prisoner Mary Jane Veloso have called her temporary reprieve a miracle.
Speaking on Philippine radio shortly after Veloso was spared the firing squad, her mother Celia said: “Miracles do come true. We are so happy, I can’t believe it. I can’t believe my child will live.”
There is no official word from the families of the executed Australians, but a tweet from an unconfirmed account claiming to belong to Michael Chan said: “I have just lost a Courageous brother to a flawed Indonesian legal system. I miss you already RIP my Little Brother.”

4.16am - Heartache from legal team

One of the lawyers who acted on behalf of Chan and Sukumaran has tweeted a gut-wrenching expression of defeat less than an hour after their executions.


4.09am - Armed police move in

As the family of Mary Jane Veloso responds to news of her last-minute reprieve, armed police are reportedly moving into position for the transfer of coffins.

Nine cheap and badly made silk-lined coffins — each valued at around $100 — passed in an ambulance on to a ferry and over to the prison island of Nusakambangan yesterday afternoon, confirming the mass execution was in its final planning stages.
One of them had been commissioned extra large for Sukumaran.

3.52pm - Australia’s politicians respond

Steven Ciobo, the parliamentary secretary to Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop, is the first Australian politician to respond to the execution.
He tweeted this scathing and mournful message moments ago, possibly signalling further condemnation to come when the Abbott Government officially reacts to Indonesia’s actions.

3.43am - Executions happened ‘without disruption’

“We’ve carried out the executions,” said an Attorney General’s Office official, talking to the Jakarta Post on condition of anonymity.
An anonymous Cilacap police officer said: “The executions went well, without any disruptions,” he said.
The eight dead were Indonesian Zainal Abidin, Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, Brazilian Rodrigo Gularte, Nigerians Sylvester Obiekwe Nwolise, Raheem Agbaje Salami and Okwudili Oyatanze, Ghanaian Martin Anderson.

http://www.news.com.au/world/asia/t...myuran-sukumaran/story-fnh81fz8-1227325701195