A group of drug convicts including foreigners will face the firing squad in Indonesia this week after authorities Tuesday gave notice of their executions, a diplomat said, despite protests from governments and rights groups.
Syed Zahid Raza, the deputy Pakistani ambassador in Jakarta, told AFP the convicts, who include a Pakistani, could be executed around midnight Friday after officials signalled the start of a 72-hour notice period at a meeting with diplomats.
Nationals from Pakistan, India, Nigeria and Zimbabwe are expected to be executed alongside Indonesians. Officials say no Europeans or Australians will be included in the third round of executions under President Joko Widodo.
Indonesia sparked international outrage with its last batch of executions in April 2015 when it put to death seven foreigners, including two Australians. But Widodo has insisted Jakarta is fighting a war against drugs and traffickers must be harshly punished.
Pakistan has so far publicly voiced the most concern about the upcoming executions, and its foreign ministry Tuesday summoned the Indonesian ambassador to Islamabad to convey their concerns about the case of their national, 52-year-old Zulfiqar Ali.
Activists say that Ali, sentenced to death in 2005 for heroin possession, was beaten and tortured into confessing and did not receive a fair trial. Rights groups have also called on Indonesia to halt the planned executions, citing worries about irregularities with some convictions.
Credit: Vanguard
