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Indonesia will not abolish death penalty, Wiranto says
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Coordinating Minister for Legal, Politics and Security Affairs Wiranto (left) and Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati speak to journalists prior to the inauguration ceremony for the new Cabinet members at the State Palace on July 27. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)
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oordinating Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto has stressed that the government would not consider abolishing the death penalty, and therefore there was no need to evaluate prevailing laws.
"This is our law. Despite some pressures on us, we have our national legal jurisdiction," Wiranto said on Tuesday.
The death penalty is a harsh punishment, he said, but it is needed to protect many people from the dangers of narcotics and related crimes.
(Read also : US notes Wiranto's appointment with human rights concerns)
Wiranto’s statement ran directly against that of Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung, who said that the government and House of Representatives planned to evaluate the death penalty.
Human rights groups and the international community have long urged the government to abolish or adopt a moratorium on the death penalty, saying that it is a cruel and inhumane punishment, which has also failed to create a deterrent effect.
Indonesia executed four drug convicts in the early hours of last Friday, with further legal processes sparing the lives of 10 other death-row convicts who were slated to be killed. (bbn)
