REMAINING BALI 9 MEMBERS ARRIVE IN AUSTRALIA
The 5 remaining members of the Bali 9 who remained incarcerated in Indonesia until their recent release have arrived in Australia on a Jetstar flight, following a special agreement between the Indonesian and Australian Governments. The agreement requires the five individuals; Scott Rush, Matthew Norman, Si-Yi Chen, Martin Stephens, and Michael Czugaj, to be placed in a rehabilitation centre upon their return to Australia. The agreement did not state how long the men must remain in the rehabilitation centre.
WHO ARE THE BALI 9?
The Bali 9 were a group of 9 Australians who were convicted by Indonesia in April 2005 of the drug offence of attempting to smuggle 8.3kg of heroin out of Indonesia bound for Australia, with the drugs having a street value of $4 million.
Out of the 9 members, the two ringleaders of the drug offence, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, were sentenced to death and executed by Indonesia on 29 April 2015, despite pleas of clemency from the Australian Government. 6 member received life sentences, whilst Renae Lawrence received a 20 year sentence and was released when that sentence was commuted in November 2018. Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen died in an Indonesian hospital on 9 May 2018. The remaining 5 members were recently released.
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THE 5 BALI 9 MEMBERS RELEASE A JOINT STATEMENT
The 5 repatriated members of the Bali 9 released a joint statement stating that they are relieved and happy to be back in Australia. The statement released on their behalf also stated that “they look forward, in time, to reintegrating back into and contributing to society” and that “the welfare of the men is a priority, they will need time and support, and we hope and trust our media and community will make allowance for this.”
The father of Scott Rush, who is one of the 5 Bali 9 members, clashed with reporters outside of his Brisbane home while being asked about his son’s return. He was caught on video appearing to hit a reporter with his recycling bin.
IS IT COMMON FOR THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT TO INTERVENE?
The Australian Government generally intervenes to seek the release or downgrading of punishment to its citizens incarcerated overseas in two types of scenarios. The first scenario is where the citizen is facing execution. An example of this involved the Australian Government’s pleas for clemency prior to the execution of two of the Bali 9, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran. The second scenario is where the citizen is argued to be an innocent victim of a regime incarcerating them for political reasons, such as Kylie Moore-Gilbert, an Australian who was imprisoned by Iran on charges of espionage and released in a prisoner swap on 25 November 2020.
The arrangement for the release of the current 5 individuals was unique as it involved neither of the two scenarios. In fact, their sentence of life imprisonment is generally consistent with Australian law which also has life imprisonment as a punishment for drug offences, notwithstanding the fact there may be differences depending on the drug type, quantities and overall nature of the drug offence. Nevertheless, the arrangement was largely welcomed across the political spectrum, although it did receive some criticism and questions from the Federal opposition.
Liberal Senator Michaela Cash had gone on the attack, asking what Prime Minister Albanese had given up in relation to the deal. Following their arrival, Opposition Leader Peter Dutton’s approach was more measured, stating that the individuals aren’t national heroes and not political captives and that the Prime Minister should provide the details of the deal, although conceding that “from a personal perspective, for those individuals and their families, you can understand that they’ll be overjoyed to be back in Australia for Christmas” and that “we welcome them back home.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese expressed his thanks and gratitude to the Indonesian President, Probowo Subianto.
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