REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Indonesia has taken measures to sort out bilateral relations with countries whose citizens were executed recently to prevent the issue from prolonging, Commission I of the House of Representatives (DPR) said.

"The president and the Foreign Ministry have taken diplomatic measures in the wake of countries protesting the execution of their citizens," Chairman of Commission I Mahfudz Siddiq stated here on Wednesday.

He added that the government had explained the urgency of the situation to the nations that protested the step, wherein Indonesia executed their citizens over drug-related crimes on Sunday (January 18).

According to him, these countries (the governments of the Netherlands and Brazil) must respect laws enforced in Indonesia, particularly those related to drug abuse.

Moreover, he pointed out that Indonesia was not worried about the Dutch and Brazilian ambassadors being recalled by their respective countries as a sign of protest.

"The ambassadors were called back for consultation; diplomatic ties have not been severed," Siddiq affirmed.

Indonesia had hoped that its decision to execute six drug convicts, including five foreigners, would not damage cooperation and diplomatic relations with the respective countries.

"It is too early to speculate over the impact (of the execution); let us just wait and see.

However, we hope our cooperative relations with other countries will not be affected," Director General for America and Europe of the Foreign Ministry Dian Triansyah Djani remarked here on Monday.

She made the statement in response to the decision of the Dutch and Brazilian governments to recall their ambassadors following the execution of their citizens over drug-related crimes on Sunday.

The Indonesian Foreign Ministry received an official notification about the recalling from the Brazilian government early on Sunday and from the Dutch government later that evening.

In addition, spokesman for the ministry Arrmanatha Nasir noted that the two ambassadors were recalled temporarily and only for consultation purposes.

"The Foreign Ministry believes that the governments concerned have the right to order their ambassadors back," he added.

According to him, Indonesia will continue to consider the Netherlands and Brazil as friendly countries and will keep its diplomatic channels open.

Nasir further noted that Indonesia remained committed to strengthening its bilateral relations with all countries, including Brazil and the Netherlands.

With regard to the execution, he emphasized, "It must be seen within its context. In terms of law, an execution is only carried out against a heinous crime, which, in this case, is trafficking of narcotic drugs."

He pointed out that as a sovereign democratic country that respected the supremacy of the law, all legal processes were followed prior to the executions, and that they were also carried out in line with the principles of international law.

"The foreign ministry is of the view that the issue must be seen in a broader context, and not subjectively.

 The destruction that the crime has brought on Indonesians, as well as the global community, should be considered," Nasir observed.

"In Indonesia, drug abuse has already reached a level of emergency, with some 40 to 50 people dying every day from the use of narcotic drugs," he revealed.

According to data, there were around 4.5 million drug abusers in the country in 2013, and their number is expected to increase to 5.8 million in 2015.

The spokesman also noted that the execution was not a diplomatic issue, but one related to law enforcement.

"The Indonesian government enforced the existing law according to international principles. The execution also affected an Indonesian citizen, so we were not discriminatory," he affirmed, adding, "This is not a diplomatic incident.

This is a law enforcement action taken within the country's national law corridor."

Six drug convicts, including five foreigners from Brazil, the Netherlands, Vietnam, Nigeria, and Malawi, were executed early on Sunday morning.

According to him, as doing away with narcotic drugs was no easy task, the Indonesian government issued law number 35 of 2009 on narcotics and also established the National Anti-Narcotic Agency.

However, he said, the law will be futile unless it is accompanied by the will of law enforcers to implement it firmly.

He also lamented that Indonesia was not only a country with users but had also become a producer, as was proven by the detection of a number of factories indulging in large-scale production of narcotics in the last few years.

The purpose of "megaphone diplomacy," he stated, was to avoid the possibility of Indonesia being deemed a country that pays little attention to human rights.

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