As they walked to face the firing squad on an
Indonesian prison island, eight condemned drug
traffickers defiantly sang praise to God, witnesses
said, while in a town across the water a group of
tearful supporters was also uniting in song.
The convicts — two from Australia, one from
Brazil, four from Africa and one Indonesian —
made the long journey from their prison to
clearings on a prison island to meet their fate early
Wednesday.

But rather than bow their heads in defeat and
resignation, the convicts all reportedly refused
blindfolds and raised their voices in song, including
a rendition of “Amazing Grace”, until the gunfire
from the firing squads rang out.

The husband of Pastor Christie Buckingham, who
gave spiritual guidance to one of the Australians in
his final moments, said his wife told him the men
conducted themselves with “dignity and strength
until the end”.

“She told me the eight of them walked out onto the
killing field singing songs of praise,” Rob
Buckingham told 3AW radio in Australia.
Across the water in the town of Cilacap, the final
crossing point for inmates destined for death on
the high-security Nusakambangan island, a small
band of mourners held a candlelight vigil, and also
sang “Amazing Grace”.

The haunting sounds filled the night sky, drowning
out the sobs of those too distressed to
contemplate what was taking place in the jungle-
clad hills of the prison island.

One man wailed loudly and implored Indonesian
President Joko Widodo to have mercy. Another
supporter read out the names of each inmate one
by one.
– ‘Like a resurrection’ –
Owen Pomana, a former convict turned pastor and
friend of Australian convicts Andrew Chan and
Myuran Sukumaran, tried to buoy the spirits of
those dwelling on the fate of the prisoners.
“Fear not, they have nothing to fear!” he declared
of the condemned inmates.

Moments later, the eight inmates were dead,
executed by 12-man firing squads after being tied
to posts.
Just before dawn, their bodies returned from the
island in coffins, some covered in embroidery.
Family members could be seen crying, ushered
away by friends and supporters to begin the long
journey to bury their loved ones.

Angelita Muxfeldt, the cousin of Brazilian inmate
Rodrigo Gularte, wept as she was led through the
large throng of onlookers by Father Charlie
Burrows.
But others shed tears of joy. The family and friends
of Filipina convict Mary Jane Veloso — who was
moments away from being executed with the
others only to be granted a reprieve — rushed to
the port to embrace and express their disbelief.
Father Harold Toledano, a Filipino priest assisting
the Veloso family throughout their plight, had been
praying when he heard the good news.

“This is a miracle for us,” he cried, as Veloso’s
lawyers and supporters celebrated. “It’s like a
resurrection for us. She is alive.”
For the Chan and Sukumaran families, there was
no such solace. They had lost their sons, their
brothers, after begging for their lives to be spared
at every possible opportunity.

“They asked for mercy, but there was none,” the
family said in a statement after the executions.
They will bury their loved ones soon, but won’t be
the first.
Barely had the dust settled at Cilacap port when
Zainal Abidin — the sole Indonesian prisoner
among the group — was laid to rest at a nearby
graveyard.

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A sad end...if only ppl actually learn from the mistakes of others..

Amazing Grace, How sweet the sound that saved wretches like us. Let them March with boldness to heaven!