TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Nahdlatul Ulama (NU) chairman Said Aqil Siradj has voiced support to the government’s imposing death penalty for drug criminals, saying drug trafficking in Indonesia is rampant.
“We’ve always supported the government to refuse clemency requests from drug convicts and we support death penalty,” said Said on Friday. The Attorney General’s Office (AGO) executed six drug convicts in mid-January.
Said continued he would always endorse every government’s policy that was pro-people. “We will give recommendations and inputs if there are policies that are not pro-people,” he said.
He also lauded the government’s efforts in combating the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) and said that Indonesia, as the country with the largest Muslim population, was an ideal example of implementation of Islam.
“Indonesia will hopefully become the frontrunner in combating ISIS,” he said. “According to Vice President Jusuf Kalla, Islam in Indonesia can be set as an ideal example compared to Islam in Middle Eastern countries.”
REZA ADITYA