Attorney General Sanitiar Burhanuddin says that the country has difficulty in implementing death penalty on foreign drug convicts due to obstacles in diplomatic relations.
Currently, the majority of the 300 death row inmates in Indonesia are drug convicts from Europe, America and Nigeria.
In the process of prosecuting the convicts, the Attorney General’s Office cooperates with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
However, the death penalty is difficult to implement because in the process it takes into account Indonesia’s diplomatic relations with other countries.
“We have spoken several times, at that time it was the era of Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi, We are still trying to become a member of this, a member of this. Please don’t do it yet. Later we will be attacked,” Burhanuddin said on Wednesday, February 5, 2025, while citing the arguments surrounding the discussion on implementing the death penalty on the foreign convicts.
On the other hand, the government is considering the fate of Indonesian citizens (WNI) who are convicts in other countries. “
So, I did say, no matter how tired we are of demanding the death penalty, it cannot be implemented. That might be Indonesia’s problem,” he said.
As an example, the Coordinating Ministry for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Correctional Institution repatriated the French death row convict for narcotics, Serge Areski Atlaoui.
The process of transferring/repatriating Serge was carried out through an agreement between Indonesia and France based on bilateral cooperation.
Ahmad Usmawri Kaffah, Special Staff for International Relations at the Coordinating Ministry for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Correctional Institution, said that the repatriation of the death row convict was carried out due to the health condition of the person concerned, which required the French Government to repatriate him.
On the other hand, the French government is obliged to recognize the Indonesian court’s decision. In this case, France must admit that Serge, its citizen, is a convict sentenced to death.
Meanwhile, the authority to foster prisoners will be handed over to the country concerned after being transferred. Indonesia will respect the policy that will be taken by France, including granting clemency to Serge.
