[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

April 25


INDONESIA:

Preparations for execution of 3 Bali terrorists


3 years after sentence was handed down, the authorities have started
technical preparations to carry out the punishment. The terrorists'
imminent death will do nothing to further a positive outcome in the case
of 3 Catholics awaiting execution in Palu.

3 years after they were sentenced, the execution of 3 terrorists linked to
the Bali bombings in 2002 draws near. Many Indonesians consider the death
of Imam Samudra, Amrozi and Muhklas as a prologue to that of three
Catholics convicted in Palu, a province in Central Sulawesi.

Yesterday, the Attorney General's Office in Bali released an official
statement to say all technical procedures to carry out the execution of
the three Islamic militants had been started. As yet, however, no details
about the time and place of execution have been given.

"There is nothing to prevent the execution of sentence, but usually one
waits until the last possibility of appeal has been exhausted," said
Wirawan Adnan, defence lawyer.

In fact, the authorities are waiting to find out if the relatives of any
of the terrorists intend filing a plea for clemency to President Susilo
Bambang Yudhoyono, as stipulated by the law. The condemned men have
refused to appeal to the head of state. The lawyer, Adnan, said the 3
Muslims did not ask for clemency in person because this, in their view,
would have signaled "surrendering to manmade law." Amrozi and the others
have said several times over they want to be judged by God's law alone.

The 3 men - detained in Nusakambangan prison, central Java - were
condemned to death in 2003 by the Denpasar district court for their
involvement in the 2002 bombings in Bali that killed 202 people.

3 Catholics in Palu - Fabianus Tibo, Marinus Riwa and Dominggus da Silva -
are also waiting to be executed. They were accused of masterminding the
massacre of Muslims in 2000 in Poso. There are growing doubts about their
guilt, but the government is standing firmly by accusations against them.
Some Indonesian observers say the government's refusal to overturn their
death penalty is a bid to "balance out" the imminent execution of the
Islamic terrorists. By executing the Christians too, the government will
be able to present an "impartial" front in its dealings with both
communities.

(source: Asia News)