[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 8



INDONESIA:

Execution of Bali bombers tomorrow. Island on high alert


The authors of the massacre in 2002 will be killed by firing squad
tomorrow at dawn. Indonesian security forces are afraid of terrorist
attacks and violent demonstrations, even following the execution of the 3
Islamic militants. Extraordinary security measures to protect possible
targets of attacks in the country.

Their execution seems to be imminent, scheduled for 3 o'clock local time
tomorrow morning. The authors of the massacre in Bali are expected at dawn
outside the former prison of Nirbaya Hill, in the central district of the
island of Java, 3 kilometers from the maximum-security prison of
Nusakambangan where they are detained.

After the 1st death sentence, handed down in 2003, and a series of delays
and procedural appeals, the affair of the 3 Islamic militants seems to
have come to its conclusion.

There has not been the official confirmation from the Indonesian attorney
general, but various elements seem to validate the hypothesis that the
execution of Amrozi, Imam Samudra, and Ali Gufrom is imminent.

This afternoon, representatives of the accused from the district of Serang
and the province of Banten visited the family of Imam Sumadra in the
village of Lopang Gede. Amri Sata, the public minister of the district of
Serang, has provided no details on the reason for the visit, saying only
that "we are authorized to give official information to the family."
Indonesian law authorizes the local public minister to inform the families
of the condemned about the times and terms of their execution.

Another sign considered to be a confirmation of the imminent execution
comes from the news of the suspension of work at a construction site in
Cilacap. The police have ordered a stop to the circulation of heavy
machinery and transportation vehicles in the area. The security measures
are substantial and widespread in various areas connected in different
ways to the execution. An official of the port of Wijayapura, the point of
departure for the boats connecting Java to the penitentiary where the 3
prisoners are being held, confirms that "people are not allowed to enter
Nusakambangan until next Monday."

The defense attorney for Amrozi (in the photo, together with some family
members) has also presented a protest to the national commission for human
rights, complaining about the slowness of the office of the public
minister in allowing permission for the last visit to the condemned by his
lawyers and family. At the same time, some demonstrators belonging to
Muslim groups have held protests in front of the office of the attorney
general, claiming that "Amrozi's execution is nothing more than the
massacre of an innocent Muslim." Protests and demonstrations against the
government and in favor of the 3 attackers have continued in recent days,
and an alarm was issued, and then recalled, over the risk of an anthrax
attack.

Security forces on the island are on high alert, and the list of possible
targets includes the embassies of the United States and Australia. The
climate is being made even more tense by a statement from Abu Bakar
Bashir. In an interview with the Australian newspaper The Age, the
cofounder of the extremist group Jemaah Islamiah says that after the
execution, he intends to attend the funerals of Amrozi and Imam Samudra.
The police are already preparing for the arrival of radical Islamic groups
that have announced that they will attend the funerals of the 2 attackers,
expected to take place in Tenggulun.

(source: AsiaNews)





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Party planned for Bali bombers


FAMILY and supporters are planning an elaborate "celebration" for Amrozi
and Mukhlas after their deaths, including the slaughter of a goat for a
feast and a procession of their bodies through their home village of
Tenggulun.

A prosecutor yesterday arrived in the small village to convey the last
wishes of the Bali bombers to their families and to say their executions
were imminent.

The brothers Amrozi and Mukhlas and their co-conspirator, Imam Samudra,
are to be executed for their role in murdering 202 people, including 88
Australians, in Bali in 2002.

It was their wish that their bodies be wrapped in the traditional Muslim
cloth and buried in Tenggulun next to their father, Nurhasyim, said their
older brother, Chozin, after meeting the prosecutor, Irnensif.

More details of the funeral arrangements were revealed by another brother,
Ali Fauzi, and Said Sungkar, who is on a committee overseeing the funeral.

Sungkar, the younger brother of Abdullah Sungkar, who co-founded the
terrorist group Jemaah Islamiah, said the funeral was an occasion "to
celebrate the victory of Islam", and 500 of his supporters would act as an
honour guard for the bodies.

"I'm positive about the execution of Amrozi and friends because they have
done jihad in God's way," Sungkar said. "The TNI [Indonesian military]
should have learnt from them how to make bombs."

Ali Fauzi said that his older brothers wanted their bodies to be taken
first to their family home before being moved to the nearby mosque. After
that, they will be carried several hundred metres to an Islamic school,
for further prayers. They will then be taken to one of two village
graveyards to be buried next to their father.

Family members, including the wives of the bombers, have gathered in the
village. Both Amrozi and Mukhlas have 2 wives.

Ali Fauzi said the wives asked Irnensif to allow them to see their
husbands before they die and the prosecutor agreed to pass on the request
and try to facilitate a visit.

(source: Sydney Morning Herald)