RI-Netherlands Sign Practical Regulations For Repatriation Of 2 Prisoners

Coordinating Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra and Dutch Ambassador to Indonesia Marc Gerritsen (right fourth) (ANTARA/Fath Putra Mulya)

JAKARTA - The governments of Indonesia and the Netherlands have officially signed a practical arrangement regarding the repatriation of two Dutch convicts, namely Siegfried Mets (74) and Ali Tokman (65) who are currently being held in Indonesia.

The practical arrangement was signed by the Coordinating Minister for Law, Human Rights, Immigration and Corrections Yusril Ihza Mahendra and Dutch Foreign Minister DM van Weel on Tuesday.

Yusril said the Dutch King Willem-Alexander had previously submitted a request to President Prabowo Subianto, as had the Dutch Foreign Minister who wrote to the Indonesian government.

"We will immediately process the repatriation of these two prisoners, in the not too distant future we have completed negotiations and signed an agreement with the Dutch government which was signed," said the Coordinating Minister as quoted by ANTARA, Tuesday, December 2.

He explained that Siegfried Mets was a death row convict who violated Article 59 of Law Number 5 of 1997 concerning Psychotropics. Currently, Mets is being held at the Class I Cipinang Penitentiary (Lapas) Jakarta and has served a 17-year detention period.

Meanwhile, Ali Tokman is a life convict because he was proven to have violated Article 113 paragraph (2) of Law Number 35 of 2009 concerning Narcotics. Tokman is being held at the Class I Prison in Surabaya with a period of detention that has been served for 11 years.

According to Yusril, Mets is in poor health, while Tokman is experiencing some disease disorders. Therefore, both of them will be transferred to their home country next week.

Ali Tokman, who is in Surabaya, will soon be taken to Jakarta and then temporarily placed in Cipinang Class I Prison ahead of departure. From Jakarta, Tokman together with Mets will be flown to Amsterdam.

"God willing, on December 8, 2025, both of them will be flown to the Netherlands using the KLM aircraft at 19.25 from Soekarno-Hatta International Airport," explained the Coordinating Minister.

The practical arrangements signed by Coordinating Minister Yusril and Foreign Minister Weel regulate the technical and administrative frameworks for the transfer, including implementation procedures, logistics arrangements, handling of the health condition of prisoners, and financing fully borne by the Dutch government.

"By handing over to the officers appointed by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the responsibility has been transferred to the Dutch government," he said.

Meanwhile, the Dutch Ambassador to Indonesia Marc Gerritsen expressed his gratitude to the Indonesian government for agreeing to transfer the two prisoners from the Netherlands.

"I am very grateful that Indonesia has allowed these two Dutch prisoners to be closer to their families, and we are begging for this on humanitarian grounds," he said at a press conference.

According to Gerritsen, the transfer of prisoners illustrates the strong relationship and excellent cooperation that has existed for a long time between Indonesia and the Netherlands in the field of judiciary and the global world.

"Today is an important moment in the relationship and I hope to further strengthen it in the future," he added.