INDONESIA: MORE INDONESIANS OPPOSE DEATH PENALTY

July 7, 2021:

While the majority of the Indonesian people are in favor of death penalty, their support for it declines as they learn more about the scope of judicial killing or are shown with specific circumstances such as unfair trials, according to a public opinion research by Oxford University whose results were released on 30 June 2021.
There are currently more than 350 death row inmates in Indonesia, with convicted drug traffickers accounting for around 60%.
The research highlighted that the public lacked knowledge about the death penalty; only 2 percent considered themselves “very well informed”, and only 4 percent stated that they were “very concerned” about the issue.
It found that of 1,515 respondents, 69 % initially favored retention of the death penalty -- although only 35 % felt ‘strongly’ in favor of retention.
However, “when presented with realistic scenarios on the application of the death penalty, there was a dramatic decline in the public’s support for its retention,” according to Professor Carolyn Hoyle of Oxford University's The Death Penalty Research Unit.
“Of those who had initially supported retention, 70% changed their minds when shown a variety of specific circumstances where the death penalty could be applied,” she said in a statement.
Up to 1/2 of death penalty supporters agreed to change their mind under certain circumstances: the death penalty was applied unfairly (47 %), wrongful convictions occur (46 %), there was no deterrent effect (38 %), or religious leaders showed support for abolition (37 %).
The research was conducted in 2019-20 in partnership with the University of Indonesia and law firm LBH Masyarakat which provides pro bono legal services.