Abolish Death Penalty in Indonesia

Written  by Yusuf L. Henuk

The death penalty is not justice, it is a failure of justice.

The death penalty is not a useful instrument for fighting crime.

The loss of human life it entails is irreparable, and no legal system is immune from miscarriages of justice.

Resorting to the death penalty is not a mere instrument of criminal policy, it is a violation of human rights (http://www.ambafrance-id.org/International-Campaign-to-Abolish).  I personally agreed well with the above statement as well as the following reports: “Time to abolish the death penalty in Indonesia” (http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2013/01/30/time-abolish-death-penalty-indonesia.html). Without doubt, Indonesia was 12 of 22 countries to report executions in 2013, according to Amnesty International. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/17/death-penalty_n_5500606.html).

Therefore, I personally urge the Indonesian Government to abolish death penalty in Indonesia. This paper is written by the author after we all know that “All six of those to be executed on Sunday were convicted and sentenced to death for drug-related offences. They include one Indonesian, Rani Andriani alias Melisa Aprilia; and five foreign nationals: Daniel Enemuo (Nigerian), Ang Kim Soei (Dutch), Tran Thi Bich Hanh (Vietnamese), Namaona Denis (Nigerian) and Marco Archer Cardoso Moreira (Brazilian). Five of them are reportedly going to be executed on Nusakambangan Island, Central Java province, while Tran Thi Bich Hanh is to be executed in Boloyali district, also in Central Java (Indonesia: Stop imminent execution of six people by firing squad: http://www.amnesty.org/en/news/indonesia-stop-imminent-execution-six-people-firing-squad-2015-01-15). By  contrast, “Hukuman mati mengancam 265 TKI” (http://indonesia.ucanews.com/2013/10/16/hukuman-mati-mengancam-265-tki/).

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As an Indonesian, I have long been protested against death penalty in Indonesia since 2006 I have published the following articles in the news papers: (1) “Hukuman Mati di Indonesia” (Timor Express, Sabtu, 8 Juli 2006: 11); (2) “Kapan Hukuman Mati Lenyap dari Indonesia?” (Pos Kupang, Rabu, 26 Juli 2006: 4);  (3) Pro-Kontra Pelaksanaan Hukuman Mati” (Timor Express, Jumat, 23 September 2006: 4); (4) “Pelaksanaan Hukuman Mati di Indonesia” (Timor Express, Jumat, 2 Oktober 2006: 4); (5)  "Hapus Hukuman Mati di Indonesia" (Victory News, Senin, 3 Maret 2014: 4).

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From my best article titled: “Kapan Hukuman Mati Lenyap dari Indonesia?”, I personally urged to Presiden Joko Widodo and all Indonesian people: “Pertanyaan ini terjawab nanti di kemudian hari bila seluruh rakyat Indonesia betul-betul memaknai: (1) Pembukaan UUD ’45 (yang diamandemen sendiri oleh penulis): “Bahwa sesungguhnya hidup dan kehidupan itu merupakan hak setiap umat manusia di dunia dan oleh sebab itu maka hukuman mati di atas dunia harus dihapuskan, karena tidak sesuai dengan perikemanusiaan  dan perikeadilan”. Amandemen ciptaan penulis ini didukung oleh Pasal 28 A UUD 1945: “Setiap orang berhak untuk hidup dan kehidupan”; dan (2) prinsip kemanusiaan universal (The Universal Declaration of Human Rights) ciptaan PBB tahun 1948. Kini setelah lebih dari setengah abad Indonesia lepas dari penjajahan Belanda, apakah bangsa Indonesia harus menunggu lagi tiga ratus tahun untuk menyamai penjajahan Belanda dalam memberlakukan hukuman mati yang merupakan salah satu bentuk penjajahan di muka bumi, peninggalan penjajahan Belanda yang masih diberlakukan oleh Indonesia dalam menjajah rakyatnya sendiri?”.

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Without doubt,  my personal voice to President Joko Widodo supported  by KOMNAS HAM & ELSAM plus “…..The petitioners argued that capital punishment is contrary to the right to life, which is otherwise  protected by the Indonesian Constitution, under Article 28A. Additionally, according to Article 28I,  the right to life is considered as one of the non-derogable rights that cannot be limited in any  circumstances. The petitioners also argued that Indonesia’s international treaty obligations under  Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which Indonesia ratified  in 2005, specifically required the government to abolish the death penalty for drug offences. The petitioners recognised the worldwide trend towards abolition and questioned capital punishment’s deterrent value. With respect to the claim that capital punishment violates the Indonesian Constitution, the court argued that ‘from the perspective of the original intent of the 1945 constitution makers, the application of all human rights set forth in Chapter XA of the 1945 Constitution can be limited’…”. (http://www.ihra.net/files/2014/08/06/HRI_-_2012_Death_Penalty_Report_-_FINAL.pdf).

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In general, capital punishment in Indonesia is restricted to 17 crimes. Though the death penalty existed as a punishment from the inception of the Republic of Indonesia, the first execution did not take place until 1973. The Indonesian government does not issue detailed statistics about every person facing the death penalty in the country. It is believed that there are around 130 people, Indonesians and foreign nationals, currently (as of 2013?) sentenced to die in Indonesia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_Indonesia). However, Kontras (2013) reported that “…..the prisoners ondeathrow include 41 foreign nationals, 40 sentenced to death for drug crimes and one Malaysian citizen sentenced to death for murder. These foreign inmates come from18 different countries: Australia, Brazil, China,  France, Ghana, Great Britain, India, Iran,Malawi,  Malaysia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Pakistan, Senegal, Sierra Leone,t heU.S., Vietnam, and Zimbabwe. Kontras finally recommends that the government take the following four steps:

1) Abolish the death penalty, in accordance with UN Commission on Human Rights resolutions, by declaring a moratorium on all executions; and commute all pending death sentences to terms of imprisonment; (2) Amend all relevant articles of Indonesia’s Criminal Code (Kitab Undang‐Undang Hukum Pidana,KUHP) so that they do not provide for the death penalty; (3) Take concrete steps to ensure that all prosecutions, in particular those for crimes carrying the death penalty,meet the highest international standards for fair trial. This would include the right to adequate legal representation at every stage of proceedings,adequate access to interpretation and freedom from torture or ill‐treatment; and (4)  Facilitate an informed public debate about capital punishment, including its lack of a proven unique deterrent effect, and about alternative methods of dealing with law and  order in away that is consistent with human rights standards (http://kontras.org/data/Capital%20Punishment%20in%20Indonesia%20Update%202012-2013.pdf).

Finally, “Indonesia must end death penalty” (http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/03/27/indonesia-must-end-death-penalty-amnesty), because I am “...... seorang akademisi senior dari dari Universitas Nusa Cendana (Undana) yang berlatar-belakang ilmu "kebinatangan" (peternakan), tetapi memiliki nurani kemanusiaan, sehingga tidak rela hukuman mati peninggalan penjajah Belanda [tetap] diberlakukan [di Indonesia]"  (http://permalink.gmane.org/gmane.culture.region.indonesia.ppi-india/37179).

*) Professor in the Faculty of Animal Science, University of  Nusa Cendana, Kupang, ENT, INDONESIA.