Bali Nine: Chan, Sukumaran Lose Final Appeal

Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran have lost their last chance at escaping execution. An Indonesian administrative court has rejected the Bali Nine ringleaders’ appeals to challenge President Joko Widodo’s rejection of clemency on Monday.

The pair’s legal team challenged Mr Widodo’s blanket ban on 64 death row inmates, saying the Indonesian leader did not review individual cases before deciding on them. They argued that Mr Widodo had the responsibility to give each clemency application thorough consideration.

A lower administrative court previously rejected their appeal on the grounds of their lack of jurisdiction to hear the matter. However, the Australians’ defence team was adamant that the court was the right place to lodge their appeal. Dr Otong Rosadi, the Dean of Law from Ekasakti University, testified as an expert witness for Chan and Sukumaran. He said the president’s decision to refuse the clemency plea was an administrative process, and therefore should be heard in the administrative court.

On Monday, the three-judge panel at the Jakarta High Administrative Court who tried Chan and Sukumaran’s complaints separately agreed with the lower court that the case is out of their jurisdiction. They ruled that clemency is the prerogative of the president.

The appeal would have been Chan and Sukumaran’s final chance avoiding execution. Their lawyers now plan to challenge the constitutional court to outline Mr Widodo’s obligations in giving out clemency. They hope to delay the execution until they have exhausted all legal avenues for the condemned Australians. However, Attorney-General HM Prasetyo won’t wait for them anymore.

“This is proof of their tendency to delay … it’s like toying with law,” he said after the court’s verdict, vowing there would be no more delay. “For me it’s enough. It’s finished. It’s finished.”

Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop has expressed her disappointment over the Indonesian court’s verdict for Chan and Sukumaran. “Both men have undergone extensive rehabilitation and I will continue to make representations to my counterpart, just as Australia will continue to use all diplomatic options to seek a stay of execution,” she said in a statement. “Again, the Australian Government respectfully requests the President to review their pleas for clemency.”

Sukumaran and Chan, who have already been transferred from Kerobokan prison to Nusakambangan Island, are included in the next batch of 10 death row inmates facing the firing squad over drug charges. Filipino Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso’s appeal for judicial review was recently rejected by the Supreme Court. Serge Areski Atlaoui from France and Martin Anderson from Ghana are still awaiting results for their judicial reviews.