Indonesia plans remote island jail for drug offenders

JAKARTA

Almost six months after Indonesia executed eight convicted drug smugglers on a penal island off its southern coast, the government said Tuesday that it plans to erect a remote prison for narcotics traffickers as part of its ongoing fight against narcotics.

National Narcotics Agency Chief Budi Waseso said Tuesday that he expects the jail to be built on an island far from urban settlements and without any communication networks.

"President Joko Widodo is exploring and evaluating the [development] of an island prison, specifically to accommodate drug offenders," Waseso told reporters as quoted by Kompas.com.

He said the plan would be realized as the president had given him direct instructions to seriously address the drugs issue.

In April, the government defied intense pressure from the international community and executed eight death row prisoners on Nusakambangan prison island near Cilacap in Central Java.

The 121 square kilometer (47 square mile) island is located in the Indian Ocean, separated by a narrow strait off the southern coast of the province of Central Java.

Waseso underlined Tuesday that unlike Nusakambangan, the new prison would be extremely remote.

"Nusakambangan is too close to land, is easily accessible by small boats, and is still on the telephone network," he said. "What we expect is truly remote. One possibility is Papua [the largest and easternmost province of Indonesia]."

Indonesia has declared a war on drugs, with the president underlining Dec. 9 last year that he would reject all requests for clemency submitted by drug offenders.

He stated that drugs "destroy the future of the nation," and defended the death penalty as "important shock therapy" for anyone violating drug laws.

Since January, 14 drugs smugglers have been executed despite various appeals -- among them Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, which sparked fierce reaction from the international community.

According to the Attorney General’s office, 136 people are currently on death row in Indonesia -- 64 convicted of drug trafficking, two for terrorism and the remainder for murder and robbery.