Rest in peace:
Reformed drug smugglers Andrew Chan (left) and Myuran Sukumaran (right)
were put to death at 3:25am Australian Eastern Standard Time on
Wednesday morning
Reformed Bali Nine ringleaders Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran and their six fellow death row prisoners were tied to crosses with cable ties before being shot by a 12-member firing squad in the early hours of Wednesday morning.
All
eight men refused to wear blind-folds as they spent their last minutes
of life praying, praising God and singing songs including Amazing Grace,
according to the pastors who were with them in their final hours.
Irish-born
priest Charlie Burrows, who was present at the executions, said the men
were tied up about four metres apart from one another.
'When
they were being put on the cross for execution they were singing on the
crosses and we were in a tent not too far away from the execution place
trying to support them,' Father Burrows, spiritual advisor to the
Brazilian man executed, told News Corp.
The
white ambulances carrying the bodies of Chan and Sukumaran arrived in
Jarkarta after making the 10-hour journey from Cilacap on Wednesday
afternoon. The police convoy then brought the bodies to a funeral house
in the city. From here the bodies will be flown back to Sydney.
Scroll down for videos
Journalists photograph the passing
ambulance in Jarkarta transporting the body of executed Australian drug
smuggler Andrew Chan on Wednesday
A police escort leads the way as an
ambulance carrying Myuran Sukumaran's body, followed by a second
ambulance carrying Chan's, arrive in Jakarta
An Indonesian policeman on Wednesday
checks the ambulance carrying Sukumaran's body in Jakarta as the
ambulance carrying the body of Chan follows closely behind
Police and the public look on as the ambulances carrying Sukumaran and Chan's bodies drives by
The ambulance carrying the body of the
executed Sukumaran arrives in Jarkarta after making the 10-hour journey
from Cilacap on Wednesday afternoon
This
comes as a picture has emerged of Andrew Chan smiling as he places a
ring on his bride Febyanti Herewila's finger, fulfilling one of his
final wishes at their prison wedding on Nusakambangan island on Sunday.
Salvation Army Pastor David Soper officiated the ceremony between Chan and his bride known as 'Feby'.
A
Javanese princess and pastor, she met her future husband while
preaching in Bali's Kerobokan Prison where Chan and Sukumaran were held
for 10 years.
An Indonesian worker makes a box that
will carry the coffin of either Chan or Sukumaran on Wednesday at
Condelence House in Jakarta. From here the bodies will be flown back to
Sydney
A carpenter saws into pieces of wood
at Condelence House in Jakarta as he makes a box to place the coffins
of Chan or Sukumaran into
Indonesian policemen stand guard as they prepare to receive the bodies of the two executed Australians
Ambulances with the bodies of the
eight men executed by Indonesia overnight were pictured arriving at
Cilacap port from the prison island
Rodrigo Gularte's body is lifted from a hearse into Saint Carolus funeral Home in Jakarta
Andrew Chan smiles as he places a ring
on his bride Febyanti Herewila's finger, fulfilling one of his final
wishes at their prison wedding on Nusakambangan island on Sunday
Family and friends carry the coffin
bearing the body of Indonesian drug smuggler Zainal Abidin for burial at
a cemetery in Cilacap
Indonesian nuns and officers stand in
front of Rodrigo Gularte's coffin during his funeral at Saint Carolus
funeral Home in Jakarta. The Brazilian was one of the eight men,
including Australians Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, executed
The coffins were covered with white satin material before beginning the 10 hour trip to Jakarta
Armed police lined the road at Cilacap
port as the ambulances carrying the coffins of the executed men were
transported through a crowd
Execution ground: Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran were killed at this clearing at Nusakambangan
On
Wednesday morning, Pastor Christie Buckingham - who read Chan and
Sukumaran their last rites - said the eight death row inmates walked out
onto the killing field singing religious songs in the moments before
they were executed.
Pastor
Buckingham said the men conducted themselves with 'dignity and strength
until the end', according to her Melbourne-based husband Rob Buckingham
who spoke to 3AW radio.
Another pastor, Karina de Vega, said it was a 'beautiful experience'.
'It was breathtaking. This was the first time I witnessed someone so excited to meet their God,' Pastor de Vega told Fairfax.
Members
of the Chan and Sukumaran families have joined a convoy of buses
travelling behind the ambulances that are carrying the executed men's
coffins, as they make the 10-hour journey to Jakarta.
The
ambulances left the prison island of Nusakambangan, where Chan, 31,
Sukumaran, 34, and six other prisoners were taken to a jungle clearing
at 12.25am local time (3.25am AEST) to face a firing squad.
It
took 27 minutes for authorities to confirm their deaths. Local media
quoted an official saying they were 'shot at 00.35 and died at 01.02'.
Flowers lay alongside two burning candles outside the Enfield home of the parents of Andrew Chan, in Sydney on Wednesday morning
People pause to look at the Bali Nine vigil remnants at Martin Place in Sydney on Wednesday
Eva Mouawad, a neighbour of Chan's family, breaks down outside the Chan family home in Sydney
Ms Mouawad was one of a number of neighbours who lay flowers outside the home to pay respect
Myuran Sukumaran, known affectionately
as Myu, and Andrew Chan had become an accomplished artist and an
ordained pastor respectively, following extensive rehabilitation
programs in Indonesian prisons
The bodies were washed and formally
identified by consular officials before being loaded into the coffins
and transported from Nusakambangan Island
Emotional scenes: As news filtered through to the nearby port of Cilacap, supporters prayed and sung Amazing Grace
The
others executed were Indonesian Zainal Abidin, Brazilian Rodrigo
Gularte, Nigerians Sylvester Obiekwe Nwolise, Raheem Agbaje Salami and
Okwudili Oyatanze, and Ghanaian Martin Anderson.
Armed
police lined the road at nearby Cilacap port as the ambulances
carrying the coffins of the executed men were transported through a
crowd of local residents and international media more than four hours
after they were killed.
The
bodies were washed and formally identified by consular officials before
being loaded into the coffins and transported from Nusakambangan
Island.
Two coffins with wooden crosses came off the ferry first followed by a car with Australian consular staff.
Consul
general Majel Hind, Chan and Sukumaran's lawyer Julian McMahon and
their spiritual guides Christie Buckingham and David Soper left the port
shortly after the convoy of ambulances and police.
The Australian convoy will now drive 10 hours back to Jakarta before the men's bodies are repatriated to Sydney.
On Wednesday afternoon, just after 4pm AEST, The Guardian reported the bodies had arrived at a funeral home in West Java.
Sympathisers carry the coffin bearing the body of Indonesian drug convict Zainal Abidin
Abidin, who was shot alongside Chan and Sukumaran, was buried in Cilacap on Wednesday
Abidin, 50, was arrested at his home in 2000 with about 59 kilograms (130 pounds) of marijuana
The families of Chan and Sukumaran released a statement following the executions.
'Today we lost Myuran and Andrew. Our sons, our brothers,' they said.
'In
the ten years since they were arrested, they did all they could to make
amends, helping many others. They asked for mercy, but there was none.
'They were immensely grateful for all the support they received. we too, will be forever grateful.'
Neighbours have laid flowers alongside burning candles outside the Sydney home of Andrew Chan's parents.
The
tributes rest under a calendar, which depicts an image of the
resurrection of Jesus Christ, tied to the fence of the home in Enfield,
in the inner west.
Chan's
father, Ken, had been too sick to stay in Indonesia and spent a
sleepless night on Tuesday with family and friends in his Enfield home.
A close family friend kissed and hugged Ken, who left the house ashen-faced to visit the doctor on Wednesday morning.
Supporters pray: At nearby Cilacap
port, anti-death penalty protesters began playing the song Hallelujah
just prior to news of his death
Distraught scenes: Bali Nine supporters comfort each other at Cilacap
Survivor: Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso (centre) survived - spared after her alleged recruiter turned herself in
'They're all very tired now because they stayed up,' the family friend, who did not wish to be named, told AAP.
'It's a heartache.
'I think the anger's going to come for a lot of us, it's not here yet. It's just sadness.'
On
Wednesday morning following the executions, a law enforcement official
was quoted saying: 'The executions went well, without any disruptions.'
In
following through with the killings, the Indonesian government ignored
agonised pleas for clemency from the prisoners' families and Australian
and international officials.
Sukumaran
had pledged to face the firing squad with 'strength and dignity' and
was planning to go without a blindfold. The pair's last meal were
buckets of KFC.
Mary
Jane Fiesta Veloso - the Filipino drug mule who was the ninth convict
sentenced to death - was spared after new information emerged about her
case.
Mary Jane's family: Darling Veloso and
Marites Laurente, the sisters of the spared Filipina woman, are
pictured after the good news for their family
Relief: Mary Jane Veloso's family
appear relieved after arriving at Nusakambangan port in Cilacap after
their loved one was spared at the 11th hour
The fingerprints and signatures of the nine condemned prisoners are seen on a canvas at Nusakambangan
A Twitter account purporting to belong to Chan's brother, Michael, tweeted his response to the devastating development
Poll
The Chan and Sukumaran families were staying together in a hotel in Cilacap when the murders occurred.
Some relatives who were on the island reportedly heard the deadly shots ringing out and 'became hysterical'.
A
Twitter account purporting to belong to Chan's brother, Michael,
tweeted: 'I have just lost a Courageous brother to a flawed Indonesian
legal system. I miss you already RIP my Little Brother'
An apparent Sukumaran family member also took to Twitter to grieve for his lost relative.
'To
my cousin Myu... I love you more than you can imagine,' he wrote. 'Your
legacy will live on. I promise. Save me a place in heaven. #Bali9
'Thank
you all means the world to know all you beautiful people support my
family. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Real talk.'
One of the pair's lawyers, Peter Morrissey, told the Nine Network: 'It's a very sad time.. The two boys are gone.
'They were beautiful blokes. It is really sad.
'We did have a good (legal) argument. We still have a good argument. We just don't have anything to (argue) it for.
'We'll all keep fighting the death penalty for sure but it's not going to bring the boys back.'
One of the lawyers for the Bali Nine, Todung Mulya Lubis, saw the loss of the young Australian men as a personal failure.
'I failed. I lost,' he wrote on social media. 'I am sorry'.
As
the executions occurred, at nearby Cilacap port anti-death penalty
protesters lit white candles and sang 'Hallelujah' just outside the
gates.
Later,
a silence fell over the area with only singing voices, music of Amazing
Grace and prayers heard for the doomed Bali Nine duo.
Hundreds
of people gathered near the gate to pay their respects to the convicted
drug smugglers or see if they could catch any hint of the executions
taking place just kilometres away.
Vigil: Supporters from Andrew Chan's church group crowded the port at Cilacap
One of the lawyers for the Bali Nine drug traffickers took to Twitter shortly after their deaths were confirmed
His tweeted, 'I failed. I lost', which was followed by another tweet apologising for their deaths
Angry reaction: A sampling of the hundreds of tweets calling for the boycott of Indonesia
The Australian duo were accompanied by their nominated spiritual advisers in some of their final moments.
It is understood they did not witness the execution.
Daily
Mail Australia has been told the grim task officially informing the
families will fall to Australia's Consul-General, Majell Hind.
An Australian representative will accompany the bodies as they are taken by road to Jakarta later on Wednesday.
The
execution brings to an end almost ten years imprisonment for the drug
smugglers. Both were famously rehabilitated in Kerokoban Prison.
Sukumaran is now an accomplished artist, whereas Chan, an ordained pastor.
Myuran Sukumaran's grief-stricken mother, Raji, pleads for her son's life as her husband Sam looks on
Raji and Sam Sukumaran try to come to terms with their grief on the worst day of their lives
A local television station broadcast a chilling re-enactment of how executions are carried out in Indonesi
Firing squad: An Indonesian mobile
brigade police team, believed to be an execution team, were photographed
being taken on a boat to Nusakambangan island
More prisoners are slated to face the firing squad in future batches.
A British grandmother convicted of smuggling cocaine, Lindsay Sandiford, has accepted she will likely be among the next group.
She reportedly told a friend: 'I just want to get it over with.'
The
Australian government is expected to retaliate for Wednesday's
executions, which Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Foreign Minister Julie
Bishop had long lobbied against.
Even in the final hours, officials were fighting the death penalty ruling.
The Australian, French and EU governments released a statement saying bluntly: 'It is not too late to change your mind'
'We fully respect the sovereignty of Indonesia. But we are against the death penalty in our country and abroad.
'The execution will not give deterrent effect to drug trafficking or stop the other from becoming victims will abuse drugs.
'To execute these prisoners now will not achieve anything.'
Ms Bishop warned of 'consequences' on Tuesday evening, but would not name them.
Vigil: Thousands of Australians had rallied in prayer for Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, who had rehabilitated themselves
President Joko Widodo holds a meeting
following a ceremony at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta on Tuesday.
He gave no sign that there would be any late reprieve for the Bali Nine
pair
Sukumaran's final paintings: A heart dripping with blood is carried by one of the Bali Nine duo's lawyers
Sukumaran's brother Chinthu and sister Brintha also pleaded for their brother's life earlier
Brintha Sukumaran (centre), Myuran's sister, had begged: 'Please don't take my brother from me'
Andrew Chan's mother Helen was with other family members who spoke to the press at a hotel in Cilicap
Two other paintings by Myuran Sukumaran are shown to the media on Tuesday in Cilacap, Indonesia
Sukuraman's mother Raji (centre) cried
as she arrives at the port authority office on Tuesday at Cilacap for a
last visit with her son
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The World seem to forget that four Nigerians were among those executed by Indonesia Is it because they are blacks and do not matter.Check the EURO news of today 29th April where they were refered to as OTHERS.Death has no color or race
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