JAKARTA ~ The authorities are making the final preparations for the execution by firing squad of two convicted drug traffickers, an official said on Wednesday.

“We are currently preparing the execution of two people who have been sentenced to death for drug offences,” Attorney General’s Office spokesman Bonaventura Daulat Nainggolan said.

He declined to name the two but said they had exhausted all avenues of appeal and their demand for clemency had been rejected by the president.

Records show that two Thai nationals have had their appeals and demands for clemency rejected. The man and woman have been on death row in Medan since 1994 for smuggling 12 kilograms of heroin into the country.

There are 57 people, including at least 27 foreigners, on death row in Indonesia over drug law violations, Nainggolan said.

The last person to be executed for a drug offence in Indonesia was an Indian national in 2004.

Executions in Indonesia are by firing squad, usually carried out at night in isolated and undisclosed locations. The prisoner is notified of his execution date at least 72 hours beforehand.