Bali Nine executions: hope of further delays as appeals continue

Portrait of Indonesian president Joko Widodo by Myuran Sukumaran

Australia does not expect Indonesia will move to execute the convicted drug smugglers Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran until every legal avenue has been exhausted, Julie Bishop, the foreign minister in Canberra, has said.

The pair have been transferred to Nusa Kambangan, known as “execution island”, along with eight other drug offenders but the date they will face the firing squad is yet to be set.

Bishop said she had meanwhile been in “constant” contact with her Indonesian counterpart. “We are awaiting the outcome of the legal proceedings. There are two legal avenues on foot at present. One is an appeal against the final rejection of the clemency plea,” she said.

When asked by reporters on Sunday if there was anything more Australia could do to stop the executions, Bishop added: “I understand there are also judicial commission hearings in relation to allegations of bribery and corruption at the original trial of Mr Sukumaran and Mr Chan.

“I understand those matters are proceeding so I cannot imagine that further plans for the execution of these two Australian citizens would be proceeding while there are legal options still being pursued.

“I believe it would be unthinkable for planning to proceed for these executions while there were still legal avenues open.”

The Labor opposition’s foreign affairs spokeswoman, Tanya Plibersek, suggested the Liberal government’s policy of turning back people-smuggling boats had strained the relationship so much Indonesia was unlikely to relent. Tony Abbott, the prime minister, dismissed this as “loose and irresponsible talk from the Labor party” when questioned about it on Sunday.

Abbott also said on Sunday that it was currently a case of “the less said the better” if Australia wanted to save Chan and Sukumaran – emphasising the political delicacy of the situation and its relationship to the pair’s fate.

This was underscored by Bishop. “I think we should all be careful with the commentary that we undertake in relation to this,” she told reporters in Perth.

Previous remarks by Abbott, including linking calls for clemency to Australia’s support for Indonesia in past natural disasters, have been seen as damaging to their cause.

Abbott has requested a phone call with Widodo but it has so far gone unanswered.

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Source: The Guardian, March 15, 2015

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