The case of the Thai-flagged tanker, the Sea Dragon, captivated Indonesia after the boat was raided in waters off the country’s Riau Islands last May, with almost two tonnes of methamphetamines aboard.
It was the largest drug haul in Indonesia’s history, but the case swiftly became a test of the Indonesian legal system and, in particular, the new Criminal Code, which came into effect in January of...
This case is a microcosm of Indonesia’s legal and moral tensions around drug enforcement. The strongest version of the narrative is that the judiciary demonstrated restraint and independence by rejecting the prosecution’s demand for uniform death sentences, instead applying the new Criminal Code’s rehabilitative principles. The court’s decision to spare Ramadhan—despite prosecutorial pressure—suggests a system capable of nuance, even if his conviction still carries lifelong stigma.
However, the ...