Christians 'Deeply Saddened' by Execution of 3 Indonesian 'Scapegoats'
Christian human rights groups have said they are “deeply saddened” by the deaths of the three Indonesian Christians who were executed by a firing squad at midnight on Friday.
“Justice has once again been denied Indonesia’s Christians,” said Jeremy Sewall, Washington-based International Christian Concern policy analyst in a statement. “I am deeply saddened at the news, and ask all concerned Christians to pray for the families of these men. This is a tragedy. This is not justice.”
Fabianus Tibo, 60, Marinus Riwu, 48, and Dominggus da Silva, 42, were convicted of leading a Christian militia in a series of attacks against Muslims in May 2000. They were convicted in 2001 and scheduled for execution last month, but an appeal from Pope Benedict XVI and demonstrations by thousands of Indonesians halted the event until Friday.
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Alexa Papadouris, Christian Solidarity Worldwide advocacy director, also said he was “deeply saddened” by the deaths of the three men. In addition, he expressed concern that the sentences given to those involved in the sectarian violence in 2000 “varied widely between Christians and Muslims.”
“We urge the Indonesian authorities to act with wisdom to restore peace following these executions and we call on them to act fairly and promote justice for those still detained following the violence in 2000,” urged Papadouris.
The case has been controversial because human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have questioned the fairness of the trial. According to the Associated Press, human rights workers have said the men’s trial was a “sham” and although it is possible they were involved in the attacks, they “almost certainly we not the masterminds.”
The men had denied that they headed the attacks in Poso six years ago and gave authorities the names of 16 Christians who allegedly started some of the violence.
“Tibo and his friends continue to reject their executions because they said they are not the perpetrators of the Posos unrest,” said Tibo’s lawyer, Roy Rening, according to AFP on Wednesday.
The three men are poor, uneducated farmers who some say serve as scapegoats to appease Muslims ahead of the execution of three Islamic militants convicted for involvement in the 2002 Bali nightclub bombings that killed 202 people.
Indonesia is the world’s most populous Muslim country with 88 percent of the country ascribing to the faith.
“These men were sacrificed as scapegoats so that the Indonesian government could wash their hands and walk away from the Poso conflict of 1998 to 2003,” said ICC’s Sewall. “But if Indonesia really wants to show the world they value truth, they should re-open the investigation into this conflict and find all those responsible for the violence.”
Thousands of Christians rallied peacefully in at least seven towns on Thursday ahead of the executions, reported The Associated Press.
U.K.-based human rights group Christian Solidarity Worldwide reported that the leader of the Central Sulawesi Christian Church, Rinaldy Damanik, has said he will resign in protest of the executions, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide.
“Please pray that the Christians in Poso will not seek revenge for these executions,” concluded Sewall, “and that instead they would trust God to administer justice in his own time.”
