Australia asks Indonesia for mercy for 2 death row prisoners

Indonesian human rights activist, Matius Arif Mirdjadja holds a letter from death-row prisoners Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan that asks the Indonesian government to spare their lives, in front of Denpasar's prison in Bali, Indonesia, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2015. Australia's prime minister on Thursday said his government had done everything it could to save the lives of two Australian heroin traffickers on death row in Indonesia. Sukumaran and Chan learned this week that their applications for judicial reviews of their death sentences have been rejected. AP/Firdia Lisnawati

CANBERRA, Australia — Australia's foreign minister has called on the Indonesian government to show the same mercy to two Australian drug traffickers on death row as Indonesia seeks from other countries where Indonesian citizens face execution.

Foreign Minister Julie Bishop moved a motion in Parliament on Thursday calling for clemency for the Australians. The opposition party supported the motion, in a show of bipartisan support for saving the heroin smugglers.

Indonesia says it will soon execute eight drug smugglers, including the Australians.

Bishop said the Indonesian government was committed to seeking the release of more than 200 Indonesians currently facing execution overseas.

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