Jubilee Campaign, March 09, 2006
Three Indonesian Christians on Death Row: Update and Analysis
Note: Scroll over photos to see captions.
Earlier this week we informed you that three Indonesian
Christians--Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus Dasilva and Marianus
Riwu--face imminent execution for supposedly committing
murder during the communal violence in Central Sulawesi in
2000. Today we offer the following update, based on information
we have received from our sources in Indonesia.
Judicial Review Held
The Jakarta Post reported today that, in an unusual move, the district court in Palu,
the capital of Central Sulawesi province, held a review of the case against the three
men. This was a surprising development because the court had rejected the
defendants' earlier request for a review two years ago. Christian observers in Central
Sulawesi are cautiously optimistic: optimistic because the review is taking place at
all; cautious because it is taking place in Palu, which is known as a hotbed of Islamic
extremist activity. The article from the Jakarta Post follows.
Case review held for death row militants
The Jakarta Post, March 9, 2006
JAKARTA (AFP): A court in religiously- divided Central Sulawesi province on Thursday
held a judicial review for three Christians on death row for inciting religious violence in
the region.
In an unusual move the trio were granted a second review even though their first was
rejected in March 2004. Under Indonesian law, a review hearing can be held for death
row inmates if lawyers unearth fresh evidence.
The case review hearing for Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus da Silva and Marianus Riwu,
who were jailed in April 2001, was held at the district court in the provincial capital of
Palu, said court official Andi Rusman.
The men were found guilty of inciting some of the violence between Christians and
Muslims which resulted in at least 1,000 deaths between 2000 and 2001.
A government-brokered truce went into force in December that year but intermittent
bombings, shootings and other attacks targeting Christians have continued in Poso
and other areas. Muslim extremists are believed linked to them.
Legal aid group PADMA said last month it had evidence showing that 16 people -- and
not the three men -- had masterminded the violence.
... Central Sulawesi police chief Oegroseno said last week that the men would be
shot by a firing squad this month since President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono had
refused to pardon them last year, the state news agency Antara reported.
Indonesia is the world's largest Muslim- populated nation, but Christians and Muslims
live in roughly equal numbers in parts of the eastern island chain of Sulawesi and in
Maluku.
END
Analysis by Jeff Hammond
Jeff Hammond, Director of Bless Indonesia Today in Jakarta, has been deeply involved
in the efforts to stay the execution of the three men and convince the government to
conduct a full review of the case. The following are excerpts from his analysis of the
current situation:
"The Palu Chief of Police said and reported in the Jakarta Post on March 3 . . . that
he had prepared the thirty men to carry out the execution and that they would be
executed this month; i.e., March. Furthermore, Brig. Gen. Oengroseno said, 'The day
and place of the execution is still secret, but clearly it will be this month.
"As a result of these reports, we began to mobilize international efforts to have a
judicial review, a retrial and a postponement of the executions. Furthermore, I have
enlisted criminal lawyers from other cases in Java who have successfully delayed the
execution of their clients and connected them to [the condemned men's] lawyers to
give [them] the best opportunity of winning a delay of execution. We have also
lobbied the US State Department, Congressmen and Indonesian Islamic leaders to try
and get a total review of [the May 2000 events in] Poso and to uncover the original
instigators going back to 1998 so that justice can be done."
The above article from the Jakarta Post "shows some of the fruit of the combined
efforts of many people to gain a judicial review. We do not yet feel it is enough, but it
is a start. I am afraid the Government is so determined to go ahead with this
execution to placate: a) the militants in Poso who are . . . demonstrating against the
arrests of some of their leaders; and b) as a balance to the planned executions of
[convicted Bali bomber] Amrozi et al.
"All agree that these three were involved in the Christian militia and that the militia
was active in fighting the attacking Muslims and many were killed. However, they did
not instigate the conflict; they were forced to defend due to the police, military and
local government not defending the Christian villages and perhaps even supporting
attacks against the Christians.
"The specific incident over which they were charged and the conduct of the trial were
so polluted with lies in a political and violent atmosphere of threats that no fair trial
was possible. I was in Palu during part of the trial and the mob's threats even included
exploding a bomb in Palu police headquarters as a warning of what would happen if
the three were not convicted.
"In the name of justice, there should be a retrial, a stay of execution until the events in
the conflict are thoroughly examined and also the initial Islamic perpetrators are held
accountable for initiating this conflict. There are a number of very strange incidents
surrounding their case and the reasons for the Walisongo incident that are still
unresolved. There is also some considerable doubt over the involvement of the three
men especially, in the light of the testimonies of Muslims who testified in their
defense."
See a document detailing this testimony.
"If the men have to be executed, then at least it should be for crimes they have
committed--not for fabricated events and definitely not at a time when police at last
seem to be arresting Muslims over Poso incidents. I hope that they are not trying to
force these executions to happen now to try and placate the Muslim mobs who are
currently protesting the arrests of their 'heroes.'"
Please continue to pray for justice to be done in this case.
email: jubilee@jubileecampaign.org
phone: 703-503-0791
web: http://www.jubileecampaign.org
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