INDONESIA SAYS DRUG-RELATED DEATH PENALTY CRUCIAL FOR NATIONAL SURVIVAL by Fardah

 Jakarta, Jan 19, 2015 (Antara) - Every day, some 30-40 people, mostly youngsters, die due to illicit drugs in Indonesia, which has seen the number of drug users on the rise, particularly among juveniles.

         At least 4.5 million Indonesians are drug addicts, and around 70 percent of them is the younger generation. Of the number, 1.2 million users could not be rehabilitated due to their dire conditions.

         "Most of drug addicts are students and other members of the  younger generation. They constitute 75 percent of the total number of drug addicts, which is 4.5 million people throughout Indonesia,"  Adjunct Senior Commissioner Maria Sorlury of the National Anti-Narcotic Agency (BNN) said last year.

        Given this alarming trend, the government has determined to impose capital penalty on drug offenders.

         Six people, consisting of a Brazilian, a Dutch, a Vietnamese, a Malawi, a Nigerian and an Indonesian woman were shot to death recently.  The six were the first batch of people executed under the government of new President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.

         Attorney General HM Prasetyo said that the execution of the six drug convicts by a firing squad had been carried out well and smoothly on Jan 18, 2015.

        "Five of the death row convicts were executed at the  Nusakambangan prison compound while the other one in Boyolali," he said.

        The tough approach by the Indonesian government has triggered a controversy at home as well as overseas, as some people supported the move but others criticized it.

         "The Indonesian Children Protection Commission (KPAI) supports the stern measure taken by President Joko Widodo and the attorney general in the fight against illicit drug crimes. The strong commitment is reflected by refusing to pardon death sentences given to narcotic criminals," Asrorun Niam Sholeh, the KPAI chairman, stated on Jan 19, 2015.

           The Indonesian government has imposed death sentence on drug offenders to protect the right to life of the public in general and the nation's younger generation, the chairman of KPAI stated.

           The Commission is concerned about rampant illicit drug trafficking activities that have targeted Indonesian children.   The prevalence of juveniles falling victims to illicit drugs has increased so far, he pointed out.

         Illicit drugs have become a serious threat to the future generation of Indonesia, according to him. Therefore, the nation needs to strengthen its commitment to protect children by imposing stern measures uncompromisingly against drugs traffickers, he stated.

        "Heavy punishment for illicit drug traffickers is a crucial move to protect children," he stated.

          Death sentence for drug traffickers is crucial for the survival of the nation and is in line with the Constitution, he stated.

         "The KPAI, as one of the national human rights institutions, believes that death sentence is not against human rights, but in fact, it protects the right to life," he remarked.

        Besides, the basic rights of the community must collectively be prioritized than an individual's rights, he said.

          "The protection of victims' rights must be prioritized than the criminals' rights. That is the general principle," he noted.

          Indonesia's National Anti-Narcotics Agency (BNN) believes that the execution of six narcotics convicts on death row on Sunday will have a deterrent effect.

          "We hope the executions will have a deterrent effect on those who have been caught as well as those who control or distribute narcotic drugs," BNN spokesman Senior Commissioner Sumirat Dwiyanto said recently.

       The number of narcotics transactions in Indonesia has been the largest in the ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region, he said.

          "Based on the results of the BNN's meetings with agencies or ministers concerned with narcotics from the ASEAN member countries, it has been found that 40 percent of transactions happened in Indonesia," he explained.

           He added that narcotics transactions across the ASEAN region have been worth some Rp110 trillion, of this Rp48 trillion worth of transactions happened in Indonesia, making the country the highest ranked in narcotics transactions.

          That is why, he said, President Joko Widodo recently declared narcotic drug emergency status for Indonesia.      
    Currently, 66 narcotics convicts sentenced to death are on Indonesia's death row, he noted.

         Legislator from Commission III of the Parliament Ruhut Sitompol hailed the government's move to impose capital punishment on drug offenders.

         "I will strongly insist on immediate execution of the death penalty," Ruhut Sitompul, a lawmaker from the Democrat Party, said recently.

            Convicts who have committed gross crimes deserve heavy punishment, he added.

          More supports came from Indonesian Islamic organizations such as the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI), the Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Muhammadiyah, and the Indonesian Mosque Council (DMI).

           Asrorun Niam of MUI said according to Islam, those who make continuous and serious destruction on Earth must be stopped, if necessary by killing them, Detiknew reported on Jan. 17, 2015.

         Hery Sucipto of the DMI said his organization fully supported the death penalty on drug criminals. "Indonesia is not only in an emergency status of corruption, but also due to illicit drugs. We must save this nation's younger generation because narcotics have killed and poisoned million children in this country," he said.

       On the other, a number of human rights NGOs such as Komnas HAM,  the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), Setara Institute, LBH Masyarakat, Imparsial, and Human Rights Watch (HRW), as well as some foreign countries have criticized the Indonesian government for implementing the capital punishment.

       Kontras in a written statement on Jan 17, criticized the Attorney General's statement saying that capital punishment was aimed at saving the country from the danger of narcotics.

           "The statement does not reflect the institution's agenda in the midst of the current global trend of death penalty eradication, which is also in line with the national human rights agenda," Azhar pointed out.

            The Dutch and Brazilian governments recalled their ambassadors to Indonesia in protest against the execution of their citizens. ***2***
(f001/S012)