Australia makes 11th hour bid to save drug smugglers with prison swap

Australia has offered Indonesia a prison swap deal in an 11th hour bid to save the lives of two Australian drug smugglers who have been transferred to an island prison where they are to be killed by firing squad within days. Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said on Thursday she made the proposal to her Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi who had agreed to convey it to President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. Bishop said she had yet to hear back. The Australian newspaper reported Bishop had offered to repatriate three convicted Indonesian drug criminals in return for the lives of the Australians, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran.

We are seeking opportunities to explore every option that might be available to us, every avenue that might be available to save the lives of these two men.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said he had requested to speak again with Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Thursday. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Widodo said the men would be executed soon, but not this week. The planned executions of Myuran Sukumaran, 33, and Andrew Chan, 31, have ratcheted up diplomatic tension between Australia and Indonesia following repeated pleas for mercy on their behalf. They are among a group of up to 11 convicts, mostly foreigners, due to be executed on the prison island of Nusakambangan.

Asia-Pacific