Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran have been executed by firing squad on the Indonesian prison island of Nusakambangan in the early hours of this morning.
They were killed along with six other death row prisoners on Nusakambangan prison island just before 3:30am AEST.
Mulya Lubis, a member of the pair’s legal team, tweeting: “I failed. I lost. I am sorry”.
Indonesian attorney-general Muhammad Prasetyo is expected to hold a press conference this morning to officially confirm the executions.
Another prisoner who was due to be executed this morning, Philippine woman Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso, was spared, according to a text message from the attorney-general’s office.
Chan, 31, and Sukumaran, 34, members of the so-called Bali Nine, were sentenced to death in 2006 after being found guilty of attempting to smuggle more than eight kilograms of heroin into Australia.
They were refused clemency by Indonesian president Joko Widodo as part of a hardline stance on the death penalty for convicted drug criminals.
They were shot dead despite an emotional final plea for clemency from the Chan and Sukumaran families only hours before the execution.
There was also a last-ditch plea for mercy from the governments of Australia, France and the European Union, who jointly petitioned Indonesia to declare a moratorium on capital punishment.
“We fully respect the sovereignty of Indonesia. But we are against the death penalty in our country and abroad. The execution will not give deterrent effect to drug trafficking or stop the other from becoming victims will abuse drugs. To execute these prisoners now will not achieve anything,” they said in a statement.
Last night Michael Chan said both his brother and Sukumaran had been “dignified” ahead of the executions, which he said amounted to “cruel, undignified torture”.
Sukumaran’s brother, Chintu, said he had spoken with his brother about the death penalty.
“We did talk about the death penalty and he knows this is just a waste,” he said.
Attorney-general’s spokesman Tony Spontana said arrangements to hand over Chan and Sukumaran’s bodies to Australian officials had already been made.
“We have a request from the Australian Government, through the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, requesting that the two remains will be brought and transited in a morgue house in West Jakarta, and for the next day to be fly out back to Australia,” he said
“That can be granted, and we will escort the remains to the location.”
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop last night criticised Indonesia’s handling of the “ghastly” executions and warned there would be diplomatic repercussions if they went ahead.
“I don’t intend to focus on consequences, but of course should these executions proceed in the manner that I anticipate, of course there have to be consequences,” she said.
“I’m obviously deeply disturbed at some of the aspects of how this has been handled,” Ms Bishop told the ABC’s 7.30 program.
“I think the ghastly process that the family have been put through today just underscores how chaotic this has been.”
source:abc.net.au
STUDIO 3 NEWCASTLE AUSTRALIA 