Church team takes Indonesian execution cases to international court

Published: 2006-10-05

JAKARTA, Indonesia (CNS) -- Lawyers and priests from a church-based group have decided to take the case of the executions of three Indonesian Catholics to the International Criminal Court, claiming the executions were illegal and unconstitutional. "The executions of Fabianus Tibo, Marinus Riwu and Dominggus da Silva on Sept. 22 in Palu were a legal and human tragedy. They were illegal and unconstitutional because the three citizens did not perpetrate the crime during (the) Poso riots in May 2000," said a statement from Advocacy Service for Justice and Peace in Indonesia, known by its Indonesian acronym as Padma Indonesia. The three men were convicted of killing 224 people, burning about 5,000 houses and office buildings and torturing people. The statement was signed by Divine Word Father Nobert Bethan, director of Padma Indonesia; Stefanus Roy Rening, coordinator of the legal team; Ignatius Ignas Iryanto, coordinator of the paralegal team; and Father Jimmy Tumbelaka, spiritual counsel. The four, accompanied by Robert Tibo, son of Fabianus Tibo, presented the statement at a Sept. 29 press conference in Jakarta.

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