A total of 64 foreign nationals serving sentences in correctional facilities across Bali received sentence remissions to mark the 81st anniversary of the Republic of Indonesia’s independence, with four of them immediately set free.
The sentence reduction is part of a broader remission granted to 3,026 inmates in Bali. Bali Governor Wayan Koster symbolically presented the remissions at the Kerobokan Class IIA Correctional Facility in Badung Regency on Monday, the 17th of August. The duration of the remissions granted to the inmates ranged from one to six months.
Koster hopes that, in addition to the remissions, the guidance and training provided to the inmates can be put into practice once they return to society, ensuring that they do not violate the law again.
“They must be grateful so that they become more orderly and disciplined, and can soon return to society,” the Governor said.
Kerobokan Correctional Facility, in particular, is one of the prisons with the largest number of inmates in Bali, including foreign nationals. The prison is currently home to 100 foreign inmates from 29 countries who are serving sentences for various offences, including narcotics and murder. Of this number, 34 foreign inmates from 19 countries received remissions.
Remissions were also granted in other provinces across Indonesia. Regarding the granting of sentence remissions in Central Java, Central Java Governor Ahmad Luthfi emphasised that remission is not merely a reward but a means of evaluation designed to encourage inmates to engage in productive activities and avoid repeating past mistakes.
“I urge the inmates here to focus on their recovery after undergoing the legal process. This is crucial to prevent recidivism and to ensure a deterrent effect once they return to society,” Luthfi said while attending the ceremony for the granting of general sentence remissions for adult inmates and sentence reductions for juvenile offenders at the Hall of the Semarang Class I Correctional Facility on Monday.
Meanwhile, a total of 20,500 inmates in correctional institutions and state detention centres across West Java also received sentence remissions to mark the 81st anniversary of the Republic of Indonesia’s independence.
“Show that upon returning to society, you can be self-reliant and make a positive contribution to your family and community—you must change,” said Yudi Suseno, the Head of the West Java Regional Office of the Directorate General of Corrections, on Tuesday, the 18th of August.