"Bali Nine Reunion: Long-Awaited Family Embrace After Nearly Two Decades Apart"

After nearly two decades, the freed Bali Nine members reunite with their families and supporters. Last Sunday, all five men returned to Australia from Indonesia, thanks to a humanitarian agreement between the Australian and Indonesian governments.

P24 News Media

December 20, 2024

1 minute

"Bali Nine Reunion: Long-Awaited Family Embrace After Nearly Two Decades Apart"

India

The Bali Nine members have finally reunited with their families and supporters after nearly two decades apart. The five individuals from the group departed from Darwin last night, landing in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne this morning, where they were warmly welcomed by loved ones and well-wishers at the airports.

Among them, Michael Czugaj arrived in Brisbane, while Matthew Norman and Si Yi Chen touched down in Melbourne. Martin Stephens landed in Sydney. Reports indicate that Scott Rush was released a day earlier than the others.

The Bali Nine refers to a group of nine Australians who were apprehended in Indonesia in 2005 due to an attempt to smuggle heroin. Out of the nine, only one managed to return to Australia for nearly two decades.

Matthew Norman and Si Yi Chen, hailing from New South Wales, were met by close friends in Melbourne, who had provided unwavering support during their time in Bali's Kerobokan prison. Their release took place last Sunday after negotiations between the Indonesian and Australian governments allowed for their return on humanitarian grounds.

The five men had been serving life sentences in Indonesian prisons following their involvement in a 2005 scheme to transport over 8 kilograms of heroin from Bali to Australia. Despite numerous appeals for clemency and pardon falling on deaf ears for years, last month, a breakthrough occurred when Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese facilitated a deal with Indonesia's new President Prabowo Subianto.

This agreement resulted in the five members being granted freedom on humanitarian grounds, although the Indonesian government clarified that it was not a formal pardon. There were no conditions requiring the men to serve further time in jail upon their return; instead, authorities requested that they continue their rehabilitation while being monitored in Australia.

Upon arriving in Australia last Sunday, the group was placed in the Howard Springs quarantine detention center near Darwin to undergo medical evaluations and briefings. Last night, they boarded flights to their home states, marking the first time since their ill-fated drug smuggling attempt in April 2005 that they returned to their homeland.

Their plight began as they were caught in Bali while preparing to board flights back to Australia. Four members, including Scott Rush, Michael Czugaj, Renae Lawrence, and Martin Stephens, were detained at Bali airport, with over 8 kilograms of heroin concealed on their bodies. Additionally, Andrew Chan, one of the ringleaders, was apprehended at the airport. Myuran Sukumaran, Matthew Norman, Si Yi Chen, and Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen were arrested at a hotel in Kuta, where remnants of the equipment used to attach the drugs to the mules were found.

Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, who were identified as the ringleaders of the operation, faced the death penalty and were executed in April 2015. The others, some initially sentenced to death, had their sentences reduced to life imprisonment through appeals, remaining incarcerated in Bali and Java since their convictions.

Renae Lawrence, the only member of the group with a lighter sentence, received 20 years in prison. After receiving reductions for good behavior, she was released in 2018 and returned to her home in Newcastle. Tragically, Tan Duc Thanh Nguyen succumbed to cancer in a Jakarta hospital in 2018.

The decision for their return was made by Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto as part of a humanitarian initiative following his inauguration earlier this year. This also extended to another case, with a Filipino prisoner, Mary Jane Veloso, who had been on death row for a separate drug smuggling case, being allowed to return home this week. She had narrowly escaped execution alongside Chan and Sukumaran and has remained in detention since then.

Furthermore, a French prisoner facing the death penalty is also expected to benefit from this arrangement and return home as part of the deal with Indonesia.