“The death penalty is cruel, barbaric, inhumane and has no place in the world.”
Richard Branson has denounced the execution of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran by firing squad as “needless” and “brutal”, and warned the Indonesian government that the decision will severely “hamper the country’s chances to secure clemency for Indonesians facing the death penalty abroad”.
Writing on the deaths of the alleged drug traffickers in his blog, the Virgin Airlines entrepreneur said: “Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso was granted a last-minute reprieve. But Rodrigo Gularte, Martin Anderson (aka Belo), Raheem Agbaje Salami, Sylvester ObiekweNwolise, OkwudiliOyatanze, ZainalAbidin bin Mgs Mahmud Badarudin, Andrew Chan and MyuranSukumaran lost their lives brutally and needlessly. “Brutally, because the death penalty is always cruel, barbaric and inhumane. It has no place in a civilised society.
“Needlessly, because these executions will not do anything to deter drug trafficking in Indonesia or reduce supply and demand. There is plenty of evidence that prohibition and strict law enforcement have little to no effect on the drug trade. If Indonesia wants to tackle its drug problems effectively, it needs to return to evidence-based policies that place public health over criminal law enforcement.”
He went on to discuss the tales of prisoners’ rehabilitation, particularly of Andrew and Myuran, whom he heralded as “shining examples of people working through their mistakes and becoming productive members of society.”
“They were success stories of Indonesia’s prison system,” he continued. “And yet, they are dead now.”
Branson concluded: “the death of the eight prisoners in Bali will have a significant negative impact on Indonesia’s standing in the world.” (Reuters)