Police seek go-ahead to execute drug convicts

Abdul Khalik, Jakarta

The National Police announced on Sunday that they were preparing a firing squad on standby to execute the drug dealers currently on death row, but the Attorney General's Office (AGO) said it had no immediate plans regarding their execution.

"We have designated officers to carry out the executions. However, we will have to wait for an order from the prosecutorial authorities ... We hope they will issue such an instruction soon," National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar said during an antidrug rally in Senayan, South Jakarta.

Separately on Sunday, an AGO spokesman said all convicted drugs dealers were appealing their sentences.

"Our data shows that there are no convicts to be executed in the near future; they have all appealed to higher courts. We must wait for this process to end before planning executions," Kemas Yahya Rahman told The Jakarta Post.

But police data shows that at least four of the convicts have had their appeals rejected by the Supreme Court and the President rejected their pleas for clemency.

National Narcotics Agency (BNN) director Comr. Gen. Togar Sianipar said that four out of the around 30 convicts on death row should have been executed several months ago after their requests for presidential pardons were rejected.

"They must be executed as soon as possible to show our sincerity in eradicating drug trafficking. These executions would have a deterrent effect on other dealers," he told the Post.

He was referring to a number of big-time death-row offenders whose death sentences were upheld by the Supreme Court in 2001. Their requests for clemency were also rejected by the President.

Under Laws No. 22/1997 on narcotics and No. 5/1997 on psychotropic substances, certain drug offenses carry a maximum sentence of death. The defendant may however appeal to the high court and later to the Supreme Court.

Then although the Supreme Court hands down a ruling, a convicted person may still ask the Court to review the case based on new evidence, and then file up to two requests for presidential pardon as stipulated in Law No. 3/1950 on clemency.

In the last 10 years only one person sentenced to death for drug offenses has been executed -- -- Malaysian Chan Ting Tong alias Steven Chong. The failure to execute those given the death penalty had caused an increase in the number of drugs cases over the last three years, Togar argued.

Togar's office and the University of Indonesia have found that around 4 percent of the population or around nine million people, used drugs in 2003, an increase of almost 400 percent compared to the 2002 figure. "Medication for one addict costs Rp 5 million per month, so for some nine million addicts mean we have to spend around Rp 45 trillion per month on medication alone," said Togar.

4 convicts whose clemency pleas have been rejected
                  by President

=====================================================

No. Convict                Nationality District Court 

=====================================================

1.  Ayodhya Prasadh Chaubey Indian     Medan

2.  Deni Setia Maharwan     Indonesian Tangerang

3.  Meirika Franola         Indonesian Tangerang

4.  Rani Andriani           Indonesian Tangerang
Source: National Narcotics Agency (BNN)