Indonesia execution: Australia will suffer more in diplomatic row, say Indonesian leaders

Jakarta, April 29: Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla on Wednesday said that diplomatic rows with Australia over their country's decision to execute eight drug smugglers will hurt the latter more in terms of economic consequences, a report in the Jakarta Post said. [Indonesia executes 8 drug convicts]

President Widodo said other countries should respect Indonesian law just like Indonesians respect sovereignty of law in other nations. [How Indonesia executes]

Earlier, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said his government would withdraw its ambassador to Indonesia after two of its nationals were executed in a prison on Nusakambangan Island in Central Java. Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan were executed along with six other drug convicts from Brazil, Nigeria, Indonesia and Ghana. One woman from the Philippines got a reprieve. [Indonesia execution: Unravelling the drug racket]

Abbott though said the executions of Sukumaran and Chan saw a dark moment in the bilateral relationship between Australia and Indonesia but the Indonesian vice-president said such things are normal in diplomatic relations.

He said Indonesia had also recalled its ambassador to Australia. He was referring to the 2013 incident when Jakarta withdrew its ambassador in Canberra after allegations that the Australian government had spied on the then president, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, and other top officials surfaced.

Abbott had then said that it was a routine information-gathering practice.

Kalla said prolonged diplomatic row between the two island-nations will have a bigger impact on the Australian economy. Indonesia is the dominant partner in trade with Australia as it has bought more goods from Australia in the first three months of this year.