Q. wrote:RustyCage wrote:http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2869230/Bali-Nine-ringleader-Andrew-Chan-mastermind-international-drug-deal-went-horribly-wrong-threatened-17-year-old-mule-Hong-Kong-jail-mouth-shut.html
But... But.... But..... He's such a nice young man who just made a mistake because he was young....
Definitely deserves to be murdered then.
In the last few days I've become a lot more involved with Andrew and Myuran's plight, and it's changed a big part of the way I was thinking. I've never been for capital punishment, so to me, their conduct in jail doesn't make a particle of difference as to whether or not they deserve to die. But I've been arguing the fact of their rehabilitation nonetheless, because it matters to
other people. It certainly matters in the arguments Australia have been presenting to Indonesia. And if I really want to be honest with myself, I guess to me, personally, it made the prospect of their pending executions that much worse. If they had behaved badly in prison instead, I don't think I would have felt the same magnitude of horror... then. That is, the idea of their deaths would've appalled me no matter what. But it seemed doubly worse when I thought about how much they've done to improve conditions inside Kerobokan, the classes and initiatives they've implemented, the skills they've taught other people.
I was speaking to a colleague a few days ago, who dodged the question as to whether or not they supported the death penalty, and instead brought up the issue that Andrew Chan had been involved in previous drug smuggling operations. The Daily Mail article above was referenced. Basically, they were questioning the sincerity of Andrew's rehabilitation and whether or not Andrew would've continued to run drugs overseas if he hadn't been caught. Well, we won't ever know these answers. But none of that matters a skerrick. At the time, I was like 'Yes, I see your point' and tried to argue against it, when what I really should've said was 'Shut up.' Because where does that sort of thinking get us? Other than a sense of smug superiority, I can't see that it achieves anything.
As I said, I've become more involved with things over the past few days, and I've met some of Andrew and Myu's friends. I know a bit more about these guys now, and their families, than simply how they've been presented in the media. I've seen what these people, their mates, are going through. And it's heartbreaking. Everyone, absolutely everyone close to these guys, is walking a knife's edge at the moment. There's no relief. The situation in Indonesia keeps changing. You can't be sure what'll happen next. But another thing, the stories these people were telling, their memories - it brought home to me that Andrew and Myu once had other lives besides Kerobokan prison, besides the drug operation. They're human, same as everyone else. They've got mates and family who love them. The stories I heard about them as teenagers were like reading over a familiar book where you remember everything that happened, even if you don't recall the exact wording - that is to say, it reminded me a lot of my own growing up and some of the s*** my mates said about me on my 18th. And I reckon it'd be the same for most people. They committed a bloody stupid act ten years ago. It doesn't make them monsters, or incapable of remorse, or incapable of change. And their families' hearts are breaking for them.
Andrew and Myu's rehabilitation is still an important issue - I think it will become critical in the following weeks if the Jakarta Admin Court uphold the latest appeal, as the onus will then be on President Widodo to explain why he rejected clemency, and he will likely have to take their rehabilitation and remorse into consideration. All I'm saying is that it no longer matters to me. I don't care what they've done; I just don't want them to die. I want peace for them, and their family and friends, who are going through hell. Also, look, you've probably seen the photos of them as kids being circulated, and people have responded by putting up photos of Jon Venables and s*** like that - and yeah, I see the point. Everyone was once a child, and being a child doesn't preclude you becoming a monster when you grow up. These guys aren't.