The execution of three ethnic Indonesian Christians has been “stayed indefinitely,” a representative of International Christian Concern said Aug. 23. The three men, Fabianus Tibo, Marianus Riwu and Dominggus da Silva, all Catholics, were convicted in 2001 for inciting Christian-Muslim violence that led to the killing of some 1,000 people in the Poso port region of Indonesia’s Sulawesi Island.
Their execution by firing squad had been scheduled Aug. 12 but was delayed at the last moment. Protests of the execution were waged not only by International Christian Concern but also by the Vatican and the European Union and townspeople in the Poso region, including an estimated 10,000 people Aug. 18.
In other developments, Indonesia’s Supreme Court has rejected a second appeal for a pardon of the three men, AsiaNews reported Aug. 23. AsiaNews is a Catholic news service based in Rome.
AsiaNews reported that a defense attorney for the men said he will challenge the court’s ruling by contending that it only has authority to make a recommendation to the country’s president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, regarding the appeal for a pardon. (BP)
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