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Condemned men sing 'Amazing Grace' before executionAs they walked to face the
firing squad in Indonesia, eight drug traffickers defiantly sang their praise
to GodNick Perry for AFP, CilacapIndonesiaApril 29, 2015As they walked to face
the firing squad on an Indonesian prison island, eight condemned drug
traffickers defiantly sang praise to God, witnesses said, while in a town
across the water a group of tearful supporters was also uniting in song.
The convicts — two from Australia, one from Brazil, four from Africa and one
Indonesian — made the long journey from their prison to clearings on a prison
island to meet their fate early Wednesday. But rather than bow their heads in
defeat and resignation, the convicts all reportedly refused blindfolds and
raised their voices in song, including a rendition of "Amazing Grace", until
the gunfire from the firing squads rang out.The husband of Pastor Christie
Buckingham, who gave spiritual guidance to one of the Australians in his final
moments, said his wife told him the men conducted themselves with "dignity and
strength until the end"."She told me the eight of them walked out onto the
killing field singing songs of praise," Rob Buckingham told 3AW radio in
Australia.Across the water in the town of Cilacap, the final crossing point for
inmates destined for death on the high-security Nusakambangan island, a small
band of mourners held a candlelight vigil, and also sang "Amazing Grace".The
haunting sounds filled the night sky, drowning out the sobs of those too
distressed to contemplate what was taking place in the jungle-clad hills of the
prison island.One man wailed loudly and implored Indonesian President Joko
Widodo to have mercy. Another supporter read out the names of each inmate one
by one. Owen Pomana, a former convict turned pastor and friend of Australian
convicts Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, tried to buoy the spirits of those
dwelling on the fate of the prisoners."Fear not, they have nothing to fear!" he
declared of the condemned inmates.Moments later, the eight inmates were dead,
executed by 12-man firing squads after being tied to posts.Just before dawn,
their bodies returned from the island in coffins, some covered in
embroidery.Family members could be seen crying, ushered away by friends and
supporters to begin the long journey to bury their loved ones.Angelita
Muxfeldt, the cousin of Brazilian inmate Rodrigo Gularte, wept as she was led
through the large throng of onlookers by Father Charlie Burrows.But others shed
tears of joy. The family and friends of Filipina convict Mary Jane Veloso — who
was moments away from being executed with the others only to be granted a
reprieve — rushed to the port to embrace and express their disbelief.Father
Harold Toledano, a Filipino priest assisting the Veloso family throughout their
plight, had been praying when he heard the good news."This is a miracle for
us," he cried, as Veloso's lawyers and supporters celebrated. "It's like a
resurrection for us. She is alive."For the Chan and Sukumaran families, there
was no such solace. They had lost their sons, their brothers, after begging for
their lives to be spared at every possible opportunity. "They asked for mercy,
but there was none," the family said in a statement after the executions.They
will bury their loved ones soon, but won't be the first.Barely had the dust
settled at Cilacap port when Zainal Abidin — the sole Indonesian prisoner among
the group — was laid to rest at a nearby graveyard. AFP
