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Right: 1967 saw furious protests against the execution of prison escapee and convicted killer Ronald Ryan. While Premier Henry Bolte refused to intervene to stop Ryan's hanging, the repugnance generated by the act resulted in Ryan being the last person hanged in Australia.


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Arguments in favour of the execution of foreign nationals convicted of drug smuggling in Indonesia

1. The Indonesian government, justice system and the Indonesian populace support the death penalty for drug smugglers
Indonesian government officials have expressed their faith in capital punishment as a deterrent for drug smuggling.
The Indonesian Attorney-General, H.M. Prasetyo, has claimed that capital punishment is needed to 'save the nation'. Mr Prasetyo has stated, 'We need to wage war and of course we can't compromise. There is no forgiveness for narcotics criminals. [Implementation of the death penalty] provides a deterrent effect.'
Claims that Indonesia is in violation of international law by using the death penalty against drug smugglers have been disputed. According to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, execution can be applied in cases involving serious crimes. However, an opinion piece by Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat and Mediaa Wahyudi Askar, published in New Matilda on February 18, 2015, states, 'There seems to be no exact definition of what "serious crimes" are. The majority of western countries believe that trafficking drugs is not something that falls into that category.
On the other hand - for countries such as Singapore, China, Vietnam, and Indonesia - drug smuggling is considered an horrendous crime. Indeed, Singapore has the strictest death penalty against those in the drug trade.'
Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat and Mediaa Wahyudi Askar argue that different jurisdictions have different attitudes to combating the drug problem and to the circumstances under which capital punishment should be applied. The two authors maintain, '[T]he majority of drug users in Indonesia are students, with numbers reaching 75 per cent of total drug users. This reality should be enough to be a catalyst for the Indonesian government to implement the death penalty as one of the ways to reduce drug trafficking in Indonesia.'
According to this argument, the Indonesian government has been moved to take the strongest action against drug smugglers in order to protect the nation's youth.
It has also been noted that Indonesian public opinion supports the death penalty. In an article published in the Jakarta Post on January 23, 2015, it was noted, 'Public opinion in Indonesia is still overwhelmingly in favour of retaining capital punishment, certainly for the most heinous crimes, including drug trafficking, which is rampant in this country and has such deadly effects.'

2. Indonesia faces a growing drug problem
In Indonesia the issue of drugs is a growing problem. The United Nations' Office on Drugs and Crime's Country Manager, Troel Vesters, recently declared Indonesia as one of the pathways in the global drug trafficking trade. Vesters noted that Indonesia is being used as a major hub for drug trafficking by transnational organised crime groups in an effort to meet the current or possible demand of a large, young population and a correspondingly large market for drugs.
Vesters stated, 'It is estimated that there were 3.7 million to 4.7 million drug users in Indonesia in 2011. About 1.2 million of them used crystalline methamphetamine and 950,000 consumed ecstasy. By comparison, there were an estimated 2.8 million cannabis users and roughly 110,000 heroin addicts.'
Indonesia's National Narcotics Board (BNN) estimates there are currently 5.6 million drug users in the country and it is further estimated that every day an average of 50 people die from drugs.
An article published in 2014 in the Journal of Economics and Sustainable Development stated, 'Indonesia is one of the seven largest drugs consumers in the world [and] is known as a [sic] number one producer of ecstasy in the world.'
In an article published in The Jakarta Post on February 29, 2012, it was noted that a report published by the International Narcotics Control Board (an independent monitoring group linked with the United Nations) suggested that Indonesia could become the major producer of ecstasy in East and Southeast Asia.
Troel Vesters has also noted the increasing manufacture of methamphetamines in Indonesia. Vesters has stated, 'ATS (Amphetamine-type stimulants) is the most trafficked drug in Indonesia. A decade ago, most of the crystalline methamphetamine seized in Indonesia originated from China (including Hong Kong), the Philippines and Thailand. At present, however, most ATS is supplied by domestic manufacturers, with remaining quantities continuing to be trafficked into Indonesia by transnational criminal networks.'

3. Indonesia objects to interference in questions of national sovereignty
Indonesia tends to regard attempts to challenge its application of the death penalty as an infringement of its national sovereignty.
The central argument it offers is that crimes committed in Indonesia, irrespective of the nationality of the perpetrator, must receive the penalty that Indonesian law dictates. Any attempt to circumvent this process is seen as a challenge to Indonesian law and by extension an attack on national sovereignty.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has stated that '[T]here shouldn't be any intervention towards the death penalty because it is our sovereign right to exercise our law.'
In an article published in the Jakarta Globe on January 23, 2015, Astari Anjani and Dimas Muhamad stated, 'Other countries whose citizens are convicted can raise their objection, but the final verdict rests with the country where the prosecution takes place. Indonesia is fighting tooth and nail to protect its citizens abroad, but we do so in conformity with local laws. And when a verdict is handed down, we respect this decision even if we disagree. After all: when in Rome, do as the Romans do.'
Anjani and Muhamad concluded, '[W]hen all is said and done, every country has the sovereign right to prosecute criminals in accordance with its national laws...'
An opinion piece by Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat and Mediaa Wahyudi Askar, published in New Matilda on February 18, 2015, argues similarly, 'Australia should respect the Indonesian government's decision to implement the death penalty over drug cases. Canberra must not ignore the philosophical and sociological differences between the two countries.'

4. Indonesia sees foreign objections to the death penalty as hypocritical
Indonesian officials and social commentators have argued that Australia's position on the death penalty is hypocritical. This claim is made primarily with regard to the execution of terrorists involved in the Bali bombings, whose deaths Australian authorities appeared to support.
An opinion piece by Muhammad Zulfikar Rakhmat and Mediaa Wahyudi Askar, published in New Matilda on February 18, 2015 stated, 'Australia's stance on the Bali Nine death row appears to be very problematic given that previously the government insisted Indonesia implement the death penalty over convicted Bali bombing terrorists.'
The same claim has been made by commentators within Australia. In an opinion piece published in The Conversation on March 11, 2015, Barry Jones, Professorial Fellow at University of Melbourne, stated, 'Australia has been monumentally hypocritical on the death penalty abroad...
In the case of the execution of three of the "Bali bombers" ... Kevin Rudd and John Howard both gave explicit support for it to happen, and Stephen Smith a more nuanced version. Simon Crean, as Labor leader, was equivocal, but Mark Latham was more supportive.'
Professor Tim Lindsey from Melbourne University's Centre for Indonesian Law, Islam, and Society has highlighted the effect of this apparent double standard.
In an interview given on the ABC's Late Night Live on February 23, 2015, Lindsey stated, 'Both John Howard and Kevin Rudd at different times indicated support for the execution of the Bali bombers, and I think John Howard in fact called it appropriate at one stage.
Indonesian officials quite early on in efforts to spare Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran's execution threw this back in the face of Australians.
This is a theme running through the whole of this debate: we have double standards.
We don't mind Indonesia executing the Bali bombers, but we object to it for our citizens...'

5. Foreign nationals are aware of the penalty they face for drug smuggling
A number of commentators have argued that any foreign national who goes to Indonesia knows that the country imposes serious penalties on drug smugglers and dealers. The implication to be drawn from this is that if smugglers and dealers knowingly risk execution, they cannot expect clemency if caught.
In an article published in Perth Now on February 6, 2015, Joe Spagnolo, The Sunday Times political editor, stated, 'When you arrive in Bali you are under no illusions that if you intend to bring drugs into the popular tourist spot or plan to smuggle drugs out, you will be in serious, serious trouble.'
Spagnolo explained further, 'It's not like we, in Australia, are ignorant of the fact that in Bali you either rot in jail for drug crimes or end up before a firing squad.'
Spagnolo argues that Australians who knowingly break the laws of another country should be prepared to accept the consequences of their actions. He states, 'As a nation we are quick to demand that anyone coming to Australia abide by the rules and laws of this country. Yet we seem quick to criticise another country's rules when they appear too tough.
Should we not abide by the rules of Bali when we slap on our sun screen and put on our boardies on our annual visits to this popular tourist destination? And should we not be prepared to wear the consequences of our actions?'
Media personality, Derryn Hinch, has similarly argued that those who smuggle drugs in or out of Indonesia should be aware of the penalties those actions bring with them. Mr Hinch has stated, 'It's the same in China, in Malaysia, in Thailand, in Vietnam; that's the risk you run.'
Northern Territory News commentator Maria Billias has stated that Chan and Sukumaran knowingly took the risk involved in smuggling heroin out of Indonesia. Billias has stated, '10 years ago...they thought it a good decision, along with seven others, to strap on 8.3kg of heroin and try to smuggle it into Australia...
They were also arrogant enough to think they wouldn't get caught.'
Billias went on to note, 'Ultimately Sukumaran and Chan knew they were dicing with their lives. These countries are not subtle in their messaging, particularly when you disembark a plane and are met with confronting messaging of the death penalty at every turn of the terminal.'