INTERNATIONAL SUNDAY, MAY 3, 2015

Bodies of executed in arrive home : Prime Minister said he was ‘Rebuild the relationship’ confident could restore its relationship But the prime minister said yesterday that it with Indonesia despite anger over the execution of remained important for the country’s future that the two drug convicts, whose bodies reportedly relationship with Jakarta be restored. “I am confident returned home yesterday. , 31, and that we will be able to rebuild the relationship,” Myuran Sukumaran, 34, were killed by firing squad Abbott said. “It’s important to Australia, it’s important on Wednesday over their role in a plot to bring hero- to Indonesia and it’s important to the wider world in to Australia from the Indonesian resort island of that Australia and Indonesia’s friendship is strong and , despite international pleas to Jakarta for growing in the months and years ahead.” Australia clemency. and Indonesia are key allies in counter-terrorism Abbott said he understood the dismay and anger efforts, while Indonesia is also a significant economic over the executions but respected Indonesia’s sover- partner. eignty. “It really was terrible that these cruel and Earlier, Abbott had he described as “odd” a deci- unnecessary executions went ahead,” he told sion by Catholic University (ACU) to reporters in Sydney. “Our anger and our grief, sadly, introduce scholarships in memory of the executed is not going to bring those two young men back. pair for Indonesian students wishing to study in “The important thing now is not to do any thing that Australia. “We did this because ACU is committed to would make a difficult situation worse.” The the dignity of the human person, and that applies Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade was unable equally to all human beings: victims as well as to to confirm reports that the men’s bodies were on a SYDNEY: Flower bouquets are seen in front of the home of the parents of executed Australian drug convict those who have been convicted of crimes,” Vice flight which touched down early yesterday in Andrew Chan in Sydney yesterday. — AFP Chancellor Greg Craven said. Abbott said the men Sydney. The flight was carrying Sukumaran’s parents, unable to due to a hold-up with the repatriation. of smugglers, during which time Chan had become a had met their deaths with a “kind of nobility”, but he brother and sister and Chan’s wife Febyanti Herewila, They returned on Friday. Chan and Sukumaran were Christian pastor and Sukumaran had studied art. The questioned whether that justified establishing schol- who married him on the eve of his execution. among seven foreigners and one Indonesian execut- executions have cast a shadow over Australia’s rela- arships in their name. “I know part of Christian faith is The Australian Broadcasting Corporation said ed in Indonesia in the early hours of Wednesday. The tionship with its important neighbor Indonesia, with forgiveness, but another part of Christian faith is call- Chan’s mother and brother were understood to have Australians had spent a decade in prison for their Abbott withdrawing ’s ambassador to ing people to be their best selves,” he told commercial wanted to travel back with his body, but were role in masterminding the so-called ‘’ group Indonesia. radio late Friday.— AFP Five swept away in Australian floods ‘Off-the-scale’ deluge hit Queensland

SYDNEY: Five people have been swept to their deaths by flash flood- ters. “It’s unfortunate that with events like this, we again need to ing in northeastern Australia, officials said yesterday, after what the highlight to the community the dangers of entering flooded road Queensland state premier described as an “off-the-scale” deluge. State waters. If it’s flooded, forget it,” Queensland Police Inspector Lee Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk had warned that the weather bureau Jeffries said. “The reports that I have is that the roads were well- had forecast extremely heavy weather for southeast Queensland on and-truly flooded at the time and vehicles have entered flooded Friday afternoon. But in announcing the first three deaths late Friday, roads.” Southeast Queensland was lashed by the storm, which Palaszczuk said that a deluge of 277 millimeters of rain fell in the area forced the postponement of a rugby league Test between Australia where the deaths occurred in just three hours. “This is off the scale,” and New Zealand in Brisbane. Torrential rains closed roads, she said. prompted dozens of rescues and cut power to thousands of Police said four of the deaths occurred when two 4-wheel drive homes. Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the federal government vehicles were swept away from the same bridge in Caboolture, some would assist Queensland in the wake of the deadly storms. 44 kilometers north of Brisbane on Friday afternoon. In the first acci- “Obviously our thoughts and our prayers are with the families of dent, a 74-year-old man, a 39-year-old woman and a five-year-old boy those who have suffered,” he said. all died. In the second, two passengers-a 21-year-old woman and a The weather bureau said yesterday that the worst of the storm PADANG BESAR: Thai police officials measure a shallow grave in Padang Besar, Songkhla province, southern boy aged 16 - managed to escape. The body of the driver, a 49-year- was over for Queensland, and the weather was weakening as it Thailand yesterday. — AP old man, was found yesterday. moved south into New South Wales state. “Apart from still some In a third fatal incident involving vehicles being swept away, a 75- pretty wild surf conditions along the coast, apart from that the year-old man died in nearby Burpengary but police were able to res- event is pretty much over for us in southeast Queensland,” Bureau Thailand exhumes remains cue a 68-year-old woman found clinging to a tree. “We are devastated,” of Meteorology spokesman Jonty Hall told the Australian said Queensland’s Police, Fire and Emergency Minister Jo-Ann Miller as Broadcasting Corporation. New South Wales was hit by wild she revealed that authorities had received some 4,000 calls for assis- weather last month that left four people dead and caused millions of migrants at mass grave tance over a five-hour period on Friday afternoon. Almost 60 swift of dollars in damage across Sydney and surrounding areas. In that water rescues were conducted as the storm hit, she said. event, relentless gale force winds and torrential rain brought down PADANG BESAR: Thai authorities yesterday slippery 40-minute hike from the nearest road, is trees and power lines, many crushing houses and cars, with a resumed the excavation of a mass grave site in a likely to be just one of dozens in the area as the ‘Well and truly flooded’ handful of homes washed away in what was described as a once- remote patch of jungle where migrants believed to rewards of trafficking continue to outweigh the But police warned again of the dangers of driving into floodwa- in-a-decade storm.— AFP be from Myanmar and Bangladesh were held for risks of being caught. A rescue worker told AFP months by people smugglers in appalling condi- that four of the dead were “skeletons” while the tions. Eight bodies have been recovered so far from fifth died just a few days ago, seeming to indicate the abandoned camp in Sadao district, in Songkhla the camp had been in existence for some time. province, a few hundred meters from the border Tens of thousands of migrants from Myanmar, with Malaysia. mainly from the Rohingya Muslim minority but The grim discovery has once again exposed also increasingly from Bangladesh, make the dan- Thailand’s central role in a regional human traffick- gerous sea crossing to southern Thailand, a well- ing trade. Four shallow holes in the dirt a short worn trafficking route often on the way south to walk behind the camp mark where the bodies were Malaysia and beyond. retrieved, an AFP reporter at the scene said, while The exodus of Rohingya-described by the UN as white ribbons tied to a few dozen bamboo poles one of the world’s most persecuted minorities-has delineated suspected new graves. The cause of the followed deadly communal unrest in western migrants’ deaths is not yet clear, but details Myanmar’s Rakhine state since 2012. Thailand says emerged yesterday of the conditions they it is cracking down on the trafficking networks on endured, in what Thailand’s police chief has its soil after revelations that government officers, described as a “virtual prison camp”. Doctors treat- police and navy officials have been involved in the ing the two sole survivors-men aged 25 and 35 — lucrative trade in humans fleeing poverty and per- told AFP their patients were suffering from a range secution. “We will go after the people responsible of ailments. (for the grave site) no matter how powerful they “Both are malnourished, have scabies and lice,” may be,” General Aek Angsananont, national police doctor Kwanwilai Chotpitchayanku said at Padang deputy commissioner, told reporters in Padang Besar hospital. “The older man could not walk, he Besar. “We care about our image, when people say had to be carried off the mountain. He hadn’t eat- we’re not doing anything about it, it’s not true it’s a en anything for two days before he was found. He national agenda.” told the translator he had a fever in the jungle for In June the United States dumped Thailand to two months.” Doctors said the men had not been the bottom, or “Tier 3”, of its list of countries fully identified but were from either Bangladesh or accused of failing to tackle modern-day slavery. Myanmar. Both were rigged to IV drips and Activists say traffickers are changing their tactics as appeared frail as they lay in their ward beds. The the crackdown bites and are also holding thou- border zone with Malaysia is criss-crossed by traf- sands of migrants at sea for endless weeks await- ficking trails and is notorious for its network of ing payment before releasing them. Thailand’s secret camps where smuggled migrants are held, human trafficking problem is “out of control”, usually against their will, until relatives pay up according to Brad Adams, Asia director of Human hefty ransoms. Rights Watch. “The finding of a mass grave at a traf- ficking camp sadly comes as little surprise,” he said, GUADALAJARA: The shell of a torched passenger bus is parked on the side of a road after it was extinguished by firefighters in Trafficking ‘out of control’ urging the UN to join the probe to bring those Guadalajara. — AP Rights groups say the camp, which is a steep, responsible to justice.— AFP Gunmen hit army chopper in US rejects China’s offer Mexico, three troops killed

GUADALAJARA: Gunmen forced down a mili- tary helicopter, carrying 18 security forces, was to thwart police and military operations. over disputed islands tary helicopter in western Mexico on Friday, hit on its tail rotor and forced to make an emer- Authorities urged residents of Guadalajara to killing three troops as violence escalated across gency landing Friday morning, Rubido said. stay indoors. No shootouts were reported in WASHINGTON: The United States on Friday the Chinese admiral was quoted as saying. State Jalisco state during a new operation against a Ten soldiers and two federal police officers the city. “Remain calm. If you have any reason swiftly rejected a suggestion by a top Chinese Department acting deputy spokesman Jeff powerful drug cartel. Seven people were killed were injured in the incident, which took place to leave your house, don’t go out,” the Jalisco military official who said that disputed South Rathke said Washington was not interested. across Jalisco, including the three soldiers and a when the aircraft spotted carloads of gunmen state prosecutor’s office said on Twitter. The US China Sea islands could be used for international “Building facilities on reclaimed land in disputed state police officer, while 19 people were on a road between the towns of Casimiro consulate issued a security message advising rescue and relief operations. Beijing has been areas will not contribute to peace and stability in wounded, officials said. Three gang suspects Castillo and Villa Purificacion. President Enrique its employees “to remain in their homes until roundly criticized by the West for construction the region,” Rathke told reporters. “This is true were killed in the fighting, authorities said. Pena Nieto said in brief remarks to reporters the situation is resolved” and its citizens to work on islands in the South China Sea, including even if, as some Chinese officials have stated, the Three-dozen vehicles were set on fire or used that the operation was “in combat against a avoid traveling to the area. By early evening, the building of an airstrip and other structures. facilities in question were used for civilian disas- as roadblocks in 39 spots affecting 25 towns, highly dangerous criminal organization.” Governor Aristoteles Sandoval told reporters The Wall Street Journal and other US news ter response purposes.” He added: “If there is a including the Pacific resort town of Puerto Officials say the New Generation cartel, led by that the situation was “calm” across Jalisco, organizations, citing a report on the Chinese desire to reduce tensions, China could actively Vallarta and Guadalajara, Mexico’s second Nemesio Oseguera, alias “El Mencho,” has though authorities remained under “code red.” Defense Ministry website, said Admiral Wu reduce them by taking concrete steps to halt biggest city, where residents were urged to stay grown so powerful that it has produced its own Shengli made the offer to his US counterpart, land reclamation.” indoors during the May Day holiday. assault rifles in makeshift gun assembly shops New Generation Admiral Jonathan Greenert, in a video confer- Beijing should “work with existing multilateral Banks and gasoline stations were torched and has forged ties with gangs worldwide. The The New Generation is a rising power of ence. Wu said China’s reclamation work on the mechanisms for humanitarian and disaster relief,” and numerous people were detained as vio- New Generation cartel has violently defied Mexico’s underworld that had been overshad- disputed islands “will not threaten freedom of such as one under the umbrella of the lence flared on the day that the military and authorities this year, killing 20 police officers in owed by other groups such as the Sinaloa, navigation and overflight” and will enhance the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). federal police launched Operation Jalisco to two ambushes in March and April. Zetas, Gulf and Knights Templar cartels. The capacity for weather forecasting, maritime search ASEAN issued a statement Monday at the close of crack down on the Jalisco New Generation gang has even recruited military deserters, and rescue and other public goods, and help to a summit in Malaysia expressing “serious con- Drug Cartel. Another 15 vehicles were torched ‘Don’t go out’ including foreign ones, security officials say. protect international maritime security, The cerns” over China’s land reclamation on reefs in the neighboring states of Colima, Michoacan The helicopter attack was near the town of The cartel has drawn the attention of the US Journal said, quoting the Chinese defense min- whose sovereignty is contested. Beijing insists it and Guanajuato, said National Security Autlan, where a state police officer died in a government, which has funded Mexico’s battle istry report. has sovereignty over almost all of the South Commission Monte Alejandro Rubido. “In reac- clash with gang suspects. Shootouts were against drug traffickers by providing equip- “We welcome international organizations, the China Sea, parts of which are claimed by several tion to the federal presence, members of the reported in three other towns. Starting in the ment, training and intelligence. Last month, the US and relevant countries to use these facilities, other Asian nations. The construction work has criminal group began several actions in a bid to morning, buses and trucks were torched in US Treasury Department slapped financial when conditions are ripe, to conduct coopera- triggered fears of tightening Chinese control over thwart the actions of the security agencies,” more than a dozen streets of Guadalajara. The sanctions on the New Generation and its leader tion on humanitarian rescue and disaster relief,” the seaway.— AFP Rubido told a news conference. Three more sol- fires were put out hours later. Such tactics have Oseguera, as well as its allies, the Los Cuinis car- diers remained missing after the Cougar mili- been used by gangs elsewhere in Mexico to try tel.— AFP