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Australia says the five remaining members of the Balinese Nine drug gang have returned home after nearly 20 years in an Indonesian prison.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese wrote on social media: “I am pleased to confirm that Australian citizens Xi Yi Cheng, Michael Chugai, Matthew Norman, Scott Rush and Martin Stevens have returned to Australia this afternoon.”
He thanked Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto “for his compassion.”
The high-profile case began in 2005 when nine young Australians were caught in Indonesia trying to smuggle 8.3kg (18lb) of heroin out of Bali.
Getty ImagesIt made news around the world when the two ringleaders of the gang, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, were shot in 2015which caused a row with Australia.
After the execution, Australia recalled its ambassador to Indonesia to protest the death, but he returned to Jakarta five weeks later.
Others were sentenced to life imprisonment.
The case has drawn attention to Indonesia’s strict drug laws, some of the strictest in the world.
One of the nine, Thanh Duc Thanh Nguyen, died of cancer in 2018. Soon after, 41-year-old Renee Lawrence was commuted to a more lenient sentence after she spent nearly 13 years in prison.
The Australian government said of the five men’s return: “The men will have the opportunity to continue their personal rehabilitation and reintegration in Australia.”
He expressed his “deep gratitude” to Indonesia for allowing them to return home on humanitarian grounds.
It was not yet clear whether the men would be required to continue serving their sentences in Australia under the terms of the agreement.
