Napalm Death frontman Barney Greenway has reached out to Indonesian president Joko Widodo – an avid metalhead and Napalm fan – in a letter asking him to spare the lives of two drug smugglers awaiting the death penalty. The letter asks that they be punished through a non-violent sentence to push for our betterment as a society. Here’s his letter which surfaced over at Metal Injection:
“Dear Mr. Widodo,
I am appealing directly to you to please spare the lives of Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, the two Australian citizens who are currently awaiting the death sentence in Indonesia for heroin smuggling. As a follower of our band Napalm Death, you would appreciate that our lyrics and ethos challenge the unbroken cycle of violence in the world, whether it comes from a state or as an individual. If these things are not challenged and ultimately changed, I believe we will never truly move forward as humankind.
I understand that you are standing as a leader determined to change things for the better, and so I believe granting clemency would be a major step forward in this pursuit of betterment. I appreciate that heroin can be damaging on many levels, but I believe that this is a much deeper issue that cannot be changed or altered by simply taking away the lives of people.
Again, I respectfully ask that you make a real difference and overturn these sentences.
In hope and peace
Mark ‘Barney’ Greenway (Napalm Death)”
Good on him for taking action in what he believes in.