The Indonesian government transfers two Dutch nationals convicted of drug offences to the Netherlands following a bilateral agreement between both governments.
The Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Law, Human Rights, Immigration, and Corrections has repatriated two Dutch nationals convicted of drug offences – SM (74) and AT (65) – to their home country. The handover ceremony took place at Class I Cipinang Prison, East Jakarta, on Monday, the 8th of December.
The transfer of the two prisoners was attended by Deputy for Immigration and Corrections Coordination at the Indonesian Coordinating Ministry for Law and Human Rights, I Nyoman Gede Surya Mataram; Deputy Head of Mission of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Indonesia, Adriaan Palm; and Head of the West Jakarta District Attorney’s Office, Nurul Wahida Rifal.
Mataram stated that the transfer of the two prisoners followed an agreement between the Indonesian Government and the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which allowed SM and AT to serve the remainder of their sentences in the Netherlands.
“As we all know, on the 2nd of December, a pact agreement was signed between the [Indonesian] Coordinating Minister for Law and Human Rights, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of the Netherlands,” Mataram told the press.
Moreover, according to Mataram’s report, SM had been serving a prison sentence since 2008 at Cipinang Class I Prison before being sentenced to death by the Supreme Court in 2009. Meanwhile, AT had been serving a prison sentence since 2014 at Surabaya Class I Prison.
“They [SM and AT] will depart today [Monday, the 8th of December] from Soekarno–Hatta Airport on a KLM flight at 7.25 PM [Indonesian Western Time], and they will be transferred to the Netherlands for detention,” Mataram concluded.
The Indonesian government further explained that the repatriation of the 74-year-old SM and the 65-year-old AT was approved for health and humanitarian reasons, particularly after considering the prisoners’ elderliness. The Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Law and Human Rights, Yusril Ihza Mahendra, stated that the repatriation was carried out at the request of the Netherlands.
“There are many humanitarian and other considerations, so the Indonesian government has given the green light to return them to their country,” Mahendra previously told the press back in October.