Alvin Darlanika Soedarjo, Jakarta – A noted lawyer filed a judicial review with the Constitutional Court on Wednesday calling for the abolishment of capital punishment.
"The right to life is guaranteed by the Constitution. I'm optimistic that even though the Indonesian legal system still recognizes the death penalty, eventually capital punishment will become history," Todung Mulya Lubis said.
He said the right to life, which is protected by Article 29 of the Constitution, could not be reduced under any condition by any party, including the state.
"I am requesting the Court to amend the 1997 Narcotics Law. Those who are involved in drug-related crimes need to be punished, but not through the death sentence. We can give traffickers life sentences without the possibility of sentence remissions. The Narcotics Law should be amended to give traffickers life without parole," he said.
Todung said he had asked the court to review articles 80, 81 and 82 of the 1997 Narcotics Law, which he believes violate the articles 28 and 28(a) of the Constitution. The Narcotics Law states that drug trafficking can be punished with death, life in prison or 20 years in prison.
Todung did not comment when asked about amending the Criminal Code, which also allows for capital punishment for crimes such as premeditated murder. Other laws that carry the death penalty are the law on corruption, the law on terrorism and an emergency law on the possession of firearms and explosives.
Indonesia, Todung said, is a signatory to the UN Human Rights Declaration and has a moral obligation to abolish capital punishment.
"There is trend where more countries are abolishing the death penalty than those countries keeping it. According to statistics, the death penalty does not serve as a deterrence (to crime)," the lawyer said.
Todung represents four convicted drug traffickers who are on death row. They are Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, members of the so-called Bali Nine, and Edith Y. Sianturi and Rani Andriani.
Edith and Rani were sentenced to death by the Tangerang District Court in Banten. Chan and Sukumaran, the supposed leaders of the Bali Nine smugglers, received the first ever death sentences handed down by the Denpasar District Court. If the appellate courts reject their appeals, the four will be executed by firing squad.
A spokesman for the Attorney General's Office, Salman Maryadi, said as long as the country allowed capital punishment, prosecutors would continue seeking the death sentence when warranted.
"I don't say that I agree or disagree with capital punishment. We are only doing our job, as long as it's based on the law," he said.