[JURIST] Indonesia notified nine convicted of drug traffickers–four Nigerian men, two Australian men, a Filipino woman, and one man each from Brazil, France and Indonesia–that their executions will be carried out within 72 hours. The executions will be carried out by firing squad [AP report] in Besi prison on Nusakambangan Island at the earliest on Tuesday or Wednesday. UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon appealed [Al Jazeera report] to Indonesia to stop the planned executions, urging President Joko Widodo to “urgently consider declaring a moratorium on capital punishment in Indonesia, with a view toward abolition.”

Indonesia has been under international scrutiny over its use of the death penalty. In February a spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) [official website] urged [JURIST report] the Indonesian government to halt all executions of people convicted of drug-related offenses. In January another spokesperson for the OHCHR voiced concern [JURIST report] over the continued use of the death penalty in Southeast Asia, particularly Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. The OHCHR reported that eight more people convicted of drug trafficking in Vietnam had been sentenced to death. Also in January Brazil and the Netherlands recalled [JURIST report] their ambassadors from Indonesia after an Indonesian firing squad executed six convicted drug traffickers [JURIST report], sparking international condemnation from human rights groups and foreign leaders.