mmalabanan
The mother of Myuran Sukumaran, an executed Australian national in Indonesia, penned a moving letter addressed to Indonesian President Joko Widodo.
In her open letter, Raji Sukumaran, mother of the 34-year-old convicted foreign drug smuggler, accused Widodo of not having enough courage to meet her face to face.
“I asked to meet you, to speak to you but once again you could not even have the courage to face our requests to communicate with you.”
Sukumaran, along with fellow Australian national Andrew Chan and five other convicts faced the firing squad last week triggering global outrage.
“My son did commit a serious crime but he also apologised to your country and your people many times,” Sukumaran wrote in the letter.
Rehabilitating Fellow Prisoners
Sukamaran also revealed in her open letter that her son spent many years helping fellow prisoners. Her son, according to Sukamaran, hoped to change the lives of as many prisoners as possible before they leave jail.
“My son never asked for his rehabilitation to be enough to free him from prison, all he asked was he he not be killed. Was it too much for you to let him live the remainder of his life in prison?”
Sukamaran to President Widodo: Put Your Family in Our Situation
The mother of the ringleader also asked President Widodo to put his family in the situation her family is facing.
“Think for a second, one of your children is tied to post, and men are lined up in front of them and the fear he would have felt, and then your child is shot through the heart,” she wrote.
“I also want you to remember when your child falls in love, gets married, makes plans for the future, that Andrew Chan also fell in love, made plans for his future and was executed. How would it feel if this was your son?” she added.
Sukamaran and Chan spent 10 years on the death row for attempting to traffic heroin in Indonesia. Their bodies were flown back to Australia this weekend. Funeral services will be held in Sydney in the following days.
As a means of protest to the execution of the two Australian nationals, Australia withdrew its ambassador to Jakarta. Despite the tension between two countries, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott is positive that the relationship will be restored.
Read Sukamaran’s full open letter through this link.
