On Monday night, before delivering a sobering speech at The Sydney Institute’s annual dinner, the foreign minister Julie Bishop gave the room an update on two unfolding matters. The first was the recovery efforts in Nepal following the devastating earthquake in Kathmandu. The second was the fate of two Australians on death row in Indonesia Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.
In both instances Julie Bishop said she “feared the worst”. The emotion in her voice and etched on her face as explained her grim hope was palpable. In that moment the execution of these two men suddenly seemed horrendously inevitable. And so it was.
In the early hours of this morning Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran faced a firing squad. They were killed alongside six other men on Nusakambangan prison island in Indonesia just before 4am. (A Filipina maid Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso was spared death, receiving a last minute reprieve.)
Like many other Australians I went to bed last night knowing – fearing – this would take place. That inevitably did not – and does not – render it any less shocking.
Two men, who committed a serious crime, who have spent ten years in prison for that crime, who have rehabilitated themselves and rebuilt their lives, have been killed. Clemency was sought, but it not forthcoming.
There are too many families, friends and loved ones, in this very moment, facing the most exquisite anguish. There are hundreds and thousands of supporters, lawyers, advocates and citizens who have actively campaigned for mercy, aghast. Politicians and diplomats, including Julie Bishop, who have worked tirelessly to avoid this fate now face the sobering fact that their efforts proved unsuccessful.
Today, each and every one of us has to come to terms with the fact humanity did not prevail. It is a brutal confrontation. To what end does it serve?
Here are some of the statements that are being shared this morning in the aftermath of the executions.
“Today we lost Myuran and Andrew. Our sons, our brothers. In the 10 years since they were arrested they did all they could to make amends, helping many others. They asked for mercy, but there was none.
They were immensely grateful for all the support they received. We too, will be forever grateful.”
The joint statement from Andrew and Myuran’s families.
“The Australian government deeply regrets the executions of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran. The government had hoped that Indonesia would show mercy to these young men, who have worked hard since their arrests to rehabilitate themselves and improve the lives of other prisoners.
They committed a serious crime. Lengthy prison terms would have been an appropriate punishment. In jail, Andrew Chan brought comfort and hope to others and Myuran Sukumaran shared his skills to give prisoners the chance of a better life.
Our thoughts and prayers are with Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran’s family and friends at this extremely difficult time. Australia respects Indonesia’s sovereignty, but deeply regrets that Indonesia could not extend the mercy it so often seeks for its own citizens.
We will withdraw our ambassador for consultations once the men’s bodies have been returned to the Chan and Sukumaran families. Ministerial visits will remain suspended.”
Joint statement from Tony Abott and Julie Bishop
“I have just lost a courageous brother to a flawed Indonesian legal system. I miss you already RIP my Little Brother.”
Michael Chan, Andrew Chan’s brother.
“I am sorry. I failed. I lost.”
Andrew & Myuran’s Indonesian lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis.
“We stand in solidarity with the families of all those who were brutally executed in this senseless, tragic and wasteful act of state-sanctioned murder.”
Amnesty campaigner and human rights lawyer Diana Sayed.
“Indonesia has not just robbed two young men of their lives but robbed itself of two examples of the strengths of its justice system.”
Opposition leader Bill Shorten
“A very sad day for human rights – for Australia and Indonesia. Thoughts with their families. The death penalty should be abolished.”
Human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson
An eye for an eye leaves the world blind. What a waste. #IStandForMercy #heartbroken
Journalist and author Kate Gibbs
“Vale two Australians that became so much more than their crimes #Bali9”
Radio National host Patricia Karvelas
Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran embodied the fact that rehabilitation is possible. They didn’t get the chance to fulfil the entirety of their rehabilitation and Indonesia’s prisoners are already poorer for that. Let their deaths remind us always why Australia needs to be a country that supports people to fulfil their potential, to rehabilitate and to rebuild. Because today, right now, we are witnessing the alternative.
Indonesia’s conduct, not merely in perpetrating state-sanctioned murder but in the chaos and inconsistency in which it was discharged, has been almost universally condemned. Will this unity, perhaps, bring about a renewed focus on humanity and justice? A recognition of the inviolability of human rights? Please let it.