Bali Nine: Lawyers for Andrew Chan, Myuran Sukumaran welcome Indonesia's delay to executions
A lawyer for condemned Australian drug smugglers Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran says a government delay on their executions is "encouraging".
The Indonesian attorney-general's office on Friday said it would let all legal processes run their course before carrying out the executions.
Chan and Sukumaran's lawyers are challenging an administrative court ruling that it did not have the authority to examine president Joko Widodo's decision-making process over their clemency bids and an investigation into claims that officials had sought bribes.
Michael O'Connell, one of the lawyers for the two Australians, said the delay was a "welcome development" as it represented "a shift in the previous position" adopted by Indonesian attorney-general Muhammad Prasetyo.
"Up until now, really, his position had been that clemency had been refused and so, therefore, Andrew and Myuran should be executed and they weren't really paying any regard to the other legal avenues that we had been pursuing," he said.
"We've been saying all along that what has to be done here is that the process should be respected and that the rule of law should be respected.
"The indications that we've had yesterday are encouraging because there does now appear to be some regard to those principles.
"And that's very important and it does ... perhaps give Andrew and Myuran just a little bit of breathing space."
Prominent lawyer Todung Mulya Lubis also said he was pleased with the delay, because it showed the Indonesian government was abiding by the law and recognised that the legal process was ongoing.
He said heexpected their latest legal challenge would return to court again this week.
Lawyers for French and Brazilian nationals facing execution are also waiting for appeals to be resolved.
Government spokesman Tony Spontana said he could not put a timeframe on how long the process of review might take.
He also mentioned technical reasons behind the delay.
"There is a facility that is not ready yet in Nusakambangan. We want everything to be 100 per cent ready," he said.
"We also pay attention and give respect to the legal process that is currently occurring."
He said it was important for everyone to have clemency properly considered.
Meanwhile, consul-general to Bali, Majell Hind, and lawyer Julian McMahon, made their second visit to the condemned pair at the prison island on Saturday.
Chan and Sukumaran will be visited by their families on Monday.
Bishop hopes for a 'change of mind'
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said she hoped the delay represented "a change of mind".
"There could be other reasons for the delay [but] I hope, in my heart, that it's a change of mind," she said.
Meanwhile, Ms Bishop's Indonesian counterpart Retno Marsudi has spoken about their phone conversation last week in which Australia offered a prisoner exchange to spare the lives of Chan and Sukumaran.
Ms Marsudi said she told Ms Bishop that Indonesia was not legally able to partake in the proposed prisoner swap.
She said while Indonesia understands Australia's efforts, it would also like its legal sovereignty to be respected.
Federal Labor MP Chris Hayes, who is a co-chair of the parliamentary group against the death penalty, welcomed the delay but said if the executions went ahead, they could affect diplomatic relations.
"I know there's legal proceedings afoot in Indonesia and that's one of the concerns we have had, that the sentences should not be carried out while there are still legal avenues being carried out legitimately in the courts," he said.
"Indonesia's a very close neighbour of ours, one which is absolutely important that we have good diplomatic relations with, but I suspect if the executions do go ahead it will make some difficulties ... with Indonesia itself."
