Barbarically appalling death penalty executions revived in Indonesia, starting with two female drug smugglers

Under President Widodo, death row executions are used to control drug use in Indonesia.

Six drug smugglers were shot dead by firing squads in Indonesia, Southeast Asia's largest drug market. 40 to 50 people die each day from drugs in Indonesia, according to the National Anti-Narcotic Agency.

LOS ANGELES, CA (Catholic Online) - Trying to protect the people from drugs, Indonesia has implemented extremely strict drug laws. Indonesia's newest president, Joko Widodo, has taken Indonesia's drug use personally and is forcefully adamant about cleaning up the country. He has denied clemency to 64 drug convicts on death row, according to Daily Mail.

Today, more than 138 people stand on death row, with the majority for drug crimes and about one-third being foreigners. "What we do is merely aimed at protecting our nation from the dangers of drugs," explained Indonesian attorney general, Muhammad Prasetyo in Daily Mail.

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Tran Bich Hanh of Vietnam and Rani Andriani of Indonesia were the two female victims among the six executed in what Amnesty International is calling a "retrograde step" for human rights.

After President Widodo rejected requests of clemency and refused last-minute appeals by the other four executed's home countries' request to spare them, Hanh, Andriani, Marco Archer Cardoso Moreira, Ang Kiem Soei, Namaona Denis and Daniel Enemuo were executed.

"There is no excuse for drug dealers and hopefully, this will have a deterrent effect," exclaimed Prasetyo.

After a five-year gap, Indonesia began exercising death row executions again in 2013.

"Using the death penalty, which is increasingly rejected by the international community, seriously affects relations between our countries," said Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff.

According to the Amnesty International, "drug-related offenses do not meet the threshold of the most serious crimes for which the death penalty can be imposed under international law."

Although there weren't any executions in 2014, President Widodo plans on executing as many as 20 people during 2015.

"Rather than putting to death more people, the government should immediately impose a moratorium on the use of the death penalty with a view to its eventual abolition," explained Rupert Abbott, Amnesty International's research director for Southeast Asia and the Pacific. "It would be a huge set back if the government goes ahead with its plan to execute as many as 20 people during the year. Tackling rising crime rates is a legitimate goal of President Widodo's administration, but the death penalty is not the answer and does not work as a deterrent to crime."

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According to Abbott, the executions happening in Indonesia are occurring simultaneously as the Indonesian government seeks to protect their own who face the death penalty overseas.

"If the death penalty is wrong elsewhere, it is surely wrong in Indonesia too," Abbott stated.

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