After over a decade in an Indonesian prison, British citizen Lindsay Sandiford has returned to the UK alongside Shahab Shahabadi, following an agreement reached between the Indonesian government and UK government.  

The news of the return of Lindsay, 69, and Shahab, 35, is very much welcomed by Prisoners Abroad, as prison conditions in Indonesian prisons are notoriously challenging and it is one of 55 remaining countries where the death penalty is still used. The emotional toll being on death row can have on people is enormous, and the relief involved with release will be extraordinary, so our thoughts are with Lindsay, Shahab and their families at this time.

There is hope that this will help steer a formal prisoner transfer agreement with Indonesia that will enable British nationals to complete their sentence in the UK. That would help protect minimum standards of health and welfare, as well as bringing people closer to their families and making the release and resettlement process more successful. We would like to see more Prisoner Transfer Agreements between the UK and other countries.

Our chief executive, Christopher Stacey says:

It is wonderful news that an agreement has been reached that means Lindsay and Shahab have returned to the UK.

Lindsay has spent over a decade in prison in incredibly difficult conditions - they can be significantly overcrowded, there is little access to basic levels of food and medical treatment seems virtually non-existent unless you can pay for it.

People that Prisoners Abroad have supported in prison in Indonesia have not survived their sentence. Only last year, Andrea Waldeck died in prison in Indonesia, aged just 53, after serving over 10 years and being only months away from release. We know that Andrea's sisters Angie and Cath wanted the UK government to make dedicated efforts to repatriate British people imprisoned overseas. 

We hope that this news will help lead to a formal prisoner transfer agreement with Indonesia that will enable British nationals to complete their sentence in the UK. It would help protect minimum standards of health and welfare, as well as bringing people closer to their families and making the release and resettlement process more successful.

More broadly, we know how important transfers can be to British people in prison abroad that consider the UK to be their home. But unfortunately, the number of Brits transferred has been steadily declining. Last year there were only 22 repatriations, the lowest in the 15 years that records are available for. Back in 2010, there were 87.

It’s testament to the hard work of UK government officials that have helped make this news happen today, and we hope the government can build on this to help reverse that decline in numbers by formally requesting transfers to the UK of British nationals serving sentences in prisons overseas where there are significant concerns about their health or welfare, so that wherever possible British people can be transferred back to the UK to complete their sentence; closer to their family and giving them the best possible chance of a positive future on release.

This news coincides with a period of increased coverage of drug smuggling arrests involving British nationals overseas. The reasons behind this startling increase in arrests are still developing, but we hope the coverage will highlight the reality of poor conditions many are facing in a range of countries worldwide, where the support of Prisoners Abroad is greatly needed.