Page 4, 14th April 2006

14th April 2006

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Page 4, 14th April 2006 — Indonesian Catholics face state execution
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Indonesian Catholics face state execution

BY WILL GORE
THREE INDONESIAN Catholics are facing execution before the end of the month after a second appeal to save their lives was rejected by the Supreme Court in Jakarta.
Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus da Silva and Marinus Riwu were accused of killing Muslims during riots in Poso, Central Sulawesi province, in 2000. They were sentenced to death the following year.
Several human rights organisations believe that the men are victims of a miscarriage of justice and have campaigned to have the death penalty overturned. But now it seems their efforts will end in failure. The Supreme Court has announced that the judgment is “irrevocable”.
Chief Supreme Court Justice Bagir Manan said: “The death sentence is final and the fate of the three convicts is no longer in our hands.” Anton Bachrul Alam, deputy spokesman for Indonesia’s National Police, announced that Central Sulawesi Police had already selected members of the firing squad to carry out the execution.
But Stephen Rening, of the Advocacy Service for Justice and Peace in Indonesia, urged the Indonesian authorities to look again at the case.
He said: “This is a matter of humanity. We have discovered this trial was unjust and we are asking President Susilo to overturn the execution order and to give the three Catholics back their freedom.” Amnesty International also expressed fears that the original trial in 2001 may not have been fair.
Reports suggest that during the trial the legal representatives of the three men were subjected to intimidation and death threats by Muslim extremists.
Indonesian authorities have been under pressure from sections of the Muslim community, angered by the delays caused by the appeal process.
Dr Patrick Sookhdeo, international director of Barnabas Fund, a charity set up to help persecuted Christians around the world, said: “This case illustrates the injustice in the Muslim and Indonesian courts when they deal with Christians. Decisions are dictated not by justice but by the climate of opinion.” He added: “This really is a tragedy, we call on the Indonesian government to grant clemency.” Dr Sookhdeo’s plea has been echoed by Amnesty and a number of other human rights groups. In Jakarta more than 500 people from a variety of non-governmental organisations mounted a demonstration. Several groups, including the Commission for Disappearances and Victims of Violence, the Association of Legal Aid in Indonesia and the Jakarta Legal Aid Agency, released a joint statement demanding that the death sentence be rescinded.
The statement said: “The death penalty is against humanity and should be abolished since it is against the Constitution. We strongly demand that the death penalty imposed on Tibo [and the others] be overturned.” The Vatican has also supported the condemned men. Last month Pope Benedict XVI sent a “special envoy”, Bishop Joseph Suwatan of Manado, to visit them in prison.
Bishop Suwatan said: “The Holy See charged me with visiting these Catholic brothers because the Pope wanted to express in person his deep closeness to the condemned men. Benedict XVI has asked the three Catholics to have patience in these difficult times and to share their feelings with Our Lady and to recite the rosary together with him.” In 2000 rioting and violence erupted between Christian and Muslim factions in Poso and the surrounding area, leaving more than 1,000 people dead. The government brokered a truce in December 2001, but sporadic violence continues in the area.




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