Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott spoke to Indonesia‘s President Joko Widido on Wednesday (February 25) night and asked to show mercy for the two Australians on death row at Bali’s Kerobokan Prison.
“Well it was a positive sign that the conversation took place. The fact that the president of Indonesia and the prime minister of Australia can talk candidly about these issues is a sign of the strength of the relationship and it’s a sign of the depth of the friendship between Australia andIndonesia. I don’t think it would help the case of these two young Australians if I was to start ventilating in public the contents of the conversation. Suffice to say that the president absolutely understands our position, absolutely understands our position, and I think he is carefully considering Indonesia‘s position,” Abbott told reporters on Thursday (February 26).
Australia has been pursuing an eleventh-hour campaign to save the lives of Myuran Sukumaran, 33, and Andrew Chan, 31, members of the so-called Bali Nine, who were convicted in 2005 as the ringleaders of a plot to smuggle heroin out of Indonesia.
An Indonesian judge rejected an appeal from the two after Widodo denied them clemency, their lawyer said on Tuesday (February 24).
Widodo has denied clemency to the convicts despite repeated pleas fromAustralia, Brazil and France, who all have citizens due to be executed by firing squad, ratcheting up diplomatic tensions.
Indonesia has harsh penalties for drug trafficking and resumed executions in 2013 after a five-year gap.
(Reuters wires)
