Execution delay for Bali bombers

The execution of three men for their roles in the first Bali bombing has been delayed after defence lawyers indicated they would lodge a final application for judicial review.

Imam Samudra, Amrozi and his older brother Ali Ghufron were due to face a firing squad at dawn tomorrow (22 August) for organising the October 2002 attacks.

The Attorney General's spokesman I Wayan Pasek Suartha told the AAP newsagency: "Now the convicts and the lawyers have proposed to appeal ... and although it has not been registered to the district court, the process of judicial review is ongoing. That is the factor that delays execution," the attorney general's spokesman.

The appeals are expected to argue that the anti-terror laws under which they were convicted were applied retrospectively.

The three have been edging closer to execution since April, when the Attorney-General's Office asked the men's families if they intended to apply for clemency.

Victim's father opposes executions
Australian former magistrate Brian Deegan, whose 21 year-old son Josh was killed in the attack, said he still opposed the death penalty, even though the delay also affected grieving for his son.

"From a legal point of view, I am happy about the decision because everyone has the same rights as everyone else regardless of the crime so their right to appeal should be respected," he told AP.

"From a philosophical point of view, I'm totally against capital punishment.

"The only downside is that this for me delays the grieving process. I just wish it could be all put to rest so that I could put it behind me," he said.

'Poso 3' may still die
Speculation is mounting that the Indonesian government may execute three Catholics as early as tonight, for their alleged roles inciting violence between Christian and Muslim communities in central Sulawesi.

Fabianus Tibo, Dominggus da Silva and Marinus Riwu were less than an hour away from being shot by firing squad on 12 August, when they were granted a repreive until after Independence Day celebrations on the 17th.