DEATH PENALTY DOES NOT AFFECT DEFENSE COOPERATION

Jakarta, May 4 (Antara) - The Indonesian government's imposition of death penalty on foreigners involved in drug cases from countries such as Australia, Brazil, and France does not affect defense cooperation, stated Indonesian Army (TNI) Commander General Moeldoko. "It does not affect cooperation with Australia and Brazil too. We need some defense equipment that must be provided by Brazil. It is all going well," Moeldoko noted at the TNI Headquarters, Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Monday. He remarked that the military cannot react to the foreign policy as it is under the control of the president. The Army must adopt a balanced approach while addressing the diplomatic relations between Indonesia and other friendly countries. "If the Army is reacting excessively on this matter, it might cause a blunder. Ups and downs are common in political relations. So, the military must not be too proactive and must maintain balanced communication with the militaries of friendly countries," Moeldoko emphasized. The government of Indonesia had earlier executed 14 drug convicts. The executions were carried out in two batches, with the first batch of six drug convicts executed on Nusakambangan Island, Cilacap. The five convicts were Marco Archer Cardoso Moreira from Brazil, Rani Andriani from Indonesia, Namaona Denis from Malawi, Daniel Enemuo alias Diarrassouba Mamadou from Nigeria, and Tommi Wijaya from the Netherlands. One Vietnamese drug convict Tran Thi Bich Hanh was executed in Boyolali, Central Java. Furthermore, the second batch comprised Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran from Australia; Raheem Salami Agbaje from Spain; Rodrigo Gularte from Brazil; Zainal Abidin from Indonesia; and Martin Anderson, Sylvester Obieke Nwolise, and Okwudili Oyatanze from Nigeria. The executions of Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso from the Philippines and Serge Atalaoui from France were postponed.