Rahel Narda Chaterine, Jakarta – Amnesty International Indonesia has recorded a rise in the number of death sentences handed down by courts in Indonesia in 2020.
According to Amnesty, there were at least 117 people sentenced to death in Indonesia in 2020. In 2019 meanwhile some 80 people were sentenced to death and in 2018 only 48 death sentences were handed down.
"Death sentences globally have declined, but in Indonesia they have risen by 46 percent on the previous year", said Amnesty International Indonesia researcher Ari Pramuditya during a press conference on Wednesday April 21.
This number, according to Pramuditya, is the record for death sentences during the administration of President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo.
According to Pramuditya, right from the start Widodo has indeed focused on fighting narcotics related crimes.
"[The number of] death sentences in 2020 represents the record for death sentences in one year, at least under the leadership of President Joko Widodo", said Pramuditya.
Furthermore, Pramuditya also provided a breakdown mapping out the 117 death sentences. Some 101 people were sentenced to death for violations related to narcotics, while 16 other people were sentenced to death for murder. Out of these 117 people, 113 were men and four others were women.
"Out of the four women, two were sentenced to death in narcotics cases and the other two for murder", said Pramuditya.
In addition to this, there were five Malaysian nationals sentenced to death over narcotics violations. "Aside from Indonesian nationals, there were five foreign nationals, all of them were Malaysian citizens who were sentenced to death over narcotics violations", he said.
Amnesty International also revealed that globally, the number of death sentences declined in 2020. Amnesty International's annual report noted that there were 1,477 death sentences in 2020, 2,307 in 2019 and at least 2,531 in 2018.
“Amnesty noted a significant decline in the total number of death sentences globally", said Pramuditya on Wednesday.
According to Pramuditya, the main reason for the decline in death sentences was as a consequence of the Covid-19 pandemic which has impacted on the judicial system in many countries.
"The decline in death sentences was caused by several things, first the Covid-19 pandemic which impacted upon the judicial process or litigation and also because of Covid-19 restrictions throughout the world", he said.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Amnesty: Vonis Hukuman Mati Indonesia Tahun 2020 Capai Rekor Tertinggi di Masa Kepemimpinan Jokowi".]
