Two British nationals convicted of drug offences including death row inmate Lindsay Sandiford were repatriated from Indonesia to the United Kingdom on Friday under a humanitarian agreement between the two governments.
Indonesia, known for some of the world’s toughest anti-drug laws, has recently taken steps to release several high-profile foreign inmates.
Lindsay Sandiford, 69, was sentenced to death in 2013 for smuggling cocaine into Bali. She was returned alongside Shahab Shahabadi, 36, who had been serving a life sentence for drug-related crimes since 2014. Both departed Bali on a Qatar Airways flight to London via Doha, according to Indonesia’s Ministry of Law and Human Rights.
The two prisoners were presented to the media a day earlier during a handover ceremony at Kerobokan Prison, where Sandiford concealed her face. Ministry official I Nyoman Gede Surya Mataram told reporters that their “detention will be moved to the United Kingdom” as part of a bilateral transfer deal.
According to The Guardian, “For Lindsay and Shahab, after we hand (them) over to the United Kingdom government, (they) are fully responsible for the legal decision that will be given there but still respecting our legal decision,” he said.
Sandiford was arrested in 2012 after customs officers discovered $2.14 million worth of cocaine hidden in her suitcase. She admitted to smuggling the drugs but said she acted under duress after a criminal syndicate threatened to kill her son. The repatriation follows an agreement signed last month by Indonesia’s senior law and human rights minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra and British Home Secretary Yvette Cooper.
Suffer Serious Illnesses
Yusril confirmed both inmates were in poor health, stating Sandiford was “seriously ill,” while Shahabadi was “suffering from various serious illnesses, including mental health issues.”
Britain’s Deputy Ambassador to Indonesia, Matthew Downing, said the two were being returned “on humanitarian grounds.”
According to Manchester Evening News, “When they first arrive in the UK, the priority will be about their health,” he explained. “So they’ll be going through a health assessment, and any treatment and rehabilitation that they need.”
Upon arrival, both will be “governed by the law and procedures of the UK,” Downing added.
Sandiford, a grandmother and former legal secretary, has spent 13 years in Kerobokan Prison under harsh conditions. She was sentenced to death despite prosecutors initially seeking a 15-year term.
Last month, British and Indonesian authorities reached an arrangement to facilitate her release after her health deteriorated. Indonesian sources said Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Home Secretary Yvette Cooper personally appealed for her transfer.
Pastor Christine Buckingham, who visited Sandiford recently, told The Mirror: “She is in extremely ill health and she’s very keen to get back and be with her family after these 13 years. She wants to get home and enjoy some creature comforts.”
Buckingham added: “We’re deeply grateful to the Indonesian Government and of course the British Government for working this out together. We look forward to her getting home now. She’s very unwell. The most important thing is that she gets home, we need her to be checked medically and then the plan is that she says she will spend as much time as she can with her family.”
Sandiford became known inside Kerobokan as “Grandmother,” teaching fellow inmates how to knit. Her release marks another example of Indonesia’s evolving stance on drug-related sentencing the country has not carried out an execution since 2016.
Sources : TheGuardian.com, ManchesterEveningnews
Feat Image : via AFP