JAKARTA, Indonesia — A French citizen on death row for drug-related charges has made an urgent appeal to be allowed to return to his native country. This request comes as Indonesia’s new president, Prabowo Subianto, considers a plan to grant clemency to around 44,000 prisoners nationwide. The announcement of such a broad pardon is unexpected, especially since previous administrations rarely utilized the presidential power to grant amnesty.
Serge Atlaoui, aged 61 and a father of four, has been imprisoned in Indonesia for nearly two decades. He was spared execution in 2015, just moments before a planned execution by a firing squad. Atlaoui is currently reported to be battling cancer and has formally requested to serve the remainder of his sentence in France. Yusril Ihza Mahendra, Indonesia’s coordinating minister for legal affairs, human rights, immigration, and corrections, confirmed the receipt of his letter during a joint news conference with French Ambassador Fabien Penone.
Atlaoui was arrested in 2005 for his alleged role in a manufacturing plant producing MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, located near Jakarta. His defense team asserts that he was merely a welder and had no knowledge of the illicit activities occurring at the factory. “We are forwarding a personal request from Serge Atlaoui to the Indonesian government which of course should be responded by the French government, because this concerns the transfer of a prisoner,” said Mahendra.
Last week, Law Minister Supratman Andi Agtas stated that the decision to release approximately 44,000 inmates was motivated primarily by humanitarian reasons and the need for rehabilitation, stressing that Indonesia’s prisons are currently facing severe overcrowding. While details of which prisoners will benefit from this plan have not been made public, another recent case involved the repatriation of Mary Jane Veloso, a Filipina woman who narrowly escaped execution in 2015.
Additionally, five Australians who had spent almost two decades in Indonesian prisons for heroin trafficking were returned to Australia as part of a diplomatic agreement. Regarding Atlaoui’s case, Mahendra noted that it is still in the early stages and may require time, as there has yet to be an official request from France. Ambassador Penone indicated that he is actively working with the Indonesian government to address this matter.
Hailing from Metz, Atlaoui has consistently proclaimed his innocence during his long incarceration. He asserts that he believed he was working at an acrylic plant, while authorities accused him of being a “chemist” involved in drug production. Initially sentenced to life imprisonment, his sentence was later escalated to death after the Supreme Court’s ruling in 2007.
Atlaoui’s situation has garnered significant media attention in France, a country staunchly opposed to capital punishment in any form. Although eight other prisoners were executed in Indonesia in May 2015, Atlaoui’s execution was postponed due to an ongoing court appeal. Unfortunately, a subsequent appeal to an Administrative Court in Jakarta was denied in June 2015.
Despite possessing some of the strictest drug laws globally, Indonesia remains a significant hub for drug trafficking, as noted by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, which highlights its vulnerability to international drug syndicates that exploit its youthful demographic. According to the Ministry of Immigration and Corrections, approximately 530 individuals are currently on death row in Indonesia, with nearly 100 being foreign nationals. The last executions carried out in Indonesia happened in July 2016.