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Home / World

Aussie pair in countdown to grim finale

NZ Herald
4 Mar, 2015 04:00 PM4 mins to read

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Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were driven out of Bali's Kerobokan prison in an armoured carrier yesterday. Photo / Getty Images

Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were driven out of Bali's Kerobokan prison in an armoured carrier yesterday. Photo / Getty Images

Drug-runners transferred to island prison to face a firing squad.

The countdown to the grim finale of the Bali Nine drug-running affair has begun, with the Australian ringleaders expected to face a firing squad within days after being transferred to Nusakambangan prison island yesterday.

Although a final appeal by Andrew Chan, 31, and Myuran Sukumaran, 33, has still to be heard, and despite yet more pleas from the Australian Government, the pair - who have been on death row for 10 years - could be killed as soon as this weekend.

Ominously, Indonesian authorities did not alert Australia before the two men were moved out of Bali's Kerobokan prison, Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop said yesterday, despite her asking "that the Australian Government be kept informed".

Indonesia's Attorney-General, HM Prasetyo, has said the executions will go ahead once nine other convicted drug criminals - including nationals of France, Brazil and the Netherlands - arrive on the island.

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Under Indonesian law, people on death row are required to be given 72 hours' notice of their execution date. The Australians' families, who were distraught to learn of their move, can visit them on the island.

In Parliament yesterday, Bishop appealed to President Joko Widodo to spare the duo's lives, while Attorney-General George Brandis revealed the Government had made at least 22 representations to Indonesia since January, including letters and phone calls from Bishop, Prime Minister Tony Abbott and police.

Abbott said he still hoped "even at the 11th hour ... there might be a change of heart". But with Widodo ruling out clemency for drug traffickers, and with widespread support for the death sentence in Indonesia, a change of heart seems improbable.

Indonesia put on a show of force for the transfer of Sukumaran and Chan, who were driven out of the gates of Bali's Kerobokan prison in an armoured personnel carrier, with another armoured vehicle behind. Two busloads of riot police were stationed outside, along with a water cannon.

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From Bali's Denpasar airport, where police with automatic rifles guarded the perimeter, the two men were flown to the Javanese port town of Cilacap in a chartered civilian plane escorted by four fighter jets. A convoy of military vehicles and police cars with sirens blaring accompanied them to the port, where they boarded a ferry for the short crossing to Nusakambangan.

Although it had been expected for weeks, the move sent shockwaves through Australia, where people are mostly horrified at the prospect of the pair being shot.

Both are said to have undergone a complete rehabilitation in jail, with Chan finding religion and leading Christian services, and Sukumaran discovering artistic talents and holding classes for fellow inmates.

Bishop, who planned to speak to the two yesterday, said executing them would serve no purpose. It "won't bring back any people who have lost their lives to drugs", she said, nor would it "stop people from doing the same stupid things".

Discover more

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I don't back execution - governor

01 Mar 04:00 PM
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Pair leave for execution

03 Mar 07:52 PM
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Abbott 'revolted' at prospect of executions

03 Mar 08:51 PM
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Bali nine pair in good spirits

04 Mar 12:56 AM

Abbott went further, describing Chan and Sukumaran as "assets" and "allies of the Indonesian Government in its fight against drug crime". In recent years, the pair had preached an anti-drugs message to fellow Kerobokan inmates. "I think right now millions of Australians are feeling sick in their guts at the prospect of execution for these two," Abbott said, adding that he felt "revolted".

In Australia, there has been talk of boycotting Indonesia as a holiday destination. A Supreme Court judge and former human rights lawyer, Lex Lasry, tweeted yesterday: "I will never again go to Bali or anywhere in Indonesia. I am without adequate words for the hideous event that is about to occur."

Ten years ago, Lasry tried unsuccessfully to save Australian heroin trafficker Van Tuong Nguyen from being hanged in Singapore.

Chan and Sukumaran were woken at 4am yesterday and, according to prison authorities, were calm and smiling as they thanked their guards and said goodbye to other prisoners. On Tuesday night, they had dined with the Governor, Sudjonggo.

Both men packed Bibles for their final journey, Sukumaran also brought a drawing book and pens.

Asked about possible diplomatic repercussions if the executions go ahead, Bishop said: "I am sure that Indonesia understands it will have consequences."

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