Jakarta. Indonesia and the United Kingdom signed an arrangement on Tuesday to repatriate two British nationals serving long sentences for drug-related crimes, including 68-year-old Lindsay June Sandiford, who has been on death row in Bali for more than a decade.

The agreement was signed in Jakarta by Chief Legal, Human Rights, Immigration, and Correctional Affairs Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra and UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper.

Sandiford and another inmate, 35-year-old Shahab Shahabadi, will be transferred to British custody following the completion of legal and logistical arrangements. The Indonesian government said the move aligns with its human rights principles, particularly for foreign prisoners suffering from deteriorating health conditions.

“Indonesia values international cooperation rooted in humanity, especially for foreign nationals who are seriously ill while serving their sentences,” Yusril said at a press briefing after the signing.

Sandiford was convicted in 2013 for smuggling 4.8 kilograms of cocaine worth about $2.1 million into Bali from Thailand. She told the court she was coerced by an international drug syndicate that had threatened her son’s life. Her appeal was rejected the same year, and she has since remained in Bali’s overcrowded Kerobokan Women’s Prison, suffering from diabetes and hypertension.

Shahabadi, meanwhile, has been serving a life sentence at Kembangkuning Prison on Nusakambangan Island since 2014 for narcotics trafficking. Indonesian authorities said he suffers from severe skin and mental health conditions.

The transfer agreement follows months of diplomatic discussions between Jakarta and London. Talks began in January 2025 and culminated in a formal request from the UK’s Justice Secretary in April. The process included document verification, medical assessments, and intergovernmental coordination.

British Embassy officials in Jakarta said they were coordinating closely with Indonesian authorities to ensure the repatriation proceeds smoothly but declined to provide a transfer timeline.

Since taking office in October 2024, President Prabowo Subianto’s administration has repatriated several foreign inmates convicted of drug offenses, including Mary Jane Veloso of the Philippines and Serge Atlaoui of France.

Indonesia has not carried out an execution since 2016, when it executed four prisoners, one Indonesian and three Nigerians, for drug trafficking. However, more than 90 foreign nationals remain on death row in the country, mostly for narcotics crimes.

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