Abbott calls for Indonesia to "reciprocate" tsunami generosity with death row pair

Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott has called on Indonesia to "reciprocate" for Australia's aid package following the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami by granting clemency to two citizens on death row in Bali.

Australia donated around 780 million U.S. dollars in aid and assistance following the 2004 tsunamis, which killed in excess of 130,000 people across Indonesia.

Now, Abbott is urging Indonesia to remember Australia's generosity when deciding on the fate of two of its citizens, Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, who have been sentenced to death for a 2005 plot to smuggle 8.3 kilograms of heroin from Indonesia to Australia.

"Let's not forget that a few years ago when Indonesia was struck by the Indian Ocean tsunami, Australia sent a billion dollars worth of assistance," Abbott said in a press conference on Wednesday.

"We sent a significant contingent of our armed forces to help in Indonesia with humanitarian relief and Australians lost their lives in that campaign to help Indonesia."

"I would say to the Indonesian people and the Indonesian government: we in Australia are always there to help you and we hope that you might reciprocate in this way at this time."

While the pair is set to face the firing squad imminently, it was revealed by Indonesia's attorney general on Wednesday that it was "almost certain" they would not be executed this month, following a postponement.

Abbott said the delay was an "encouraging straw in the wind" and reiterated that efforts to spare their lives would continue, suggesting political backlash if Indonesia follows through with the executions.

"(Australia does not want) to prejudice the best possible relations with a very important friend and neighbor, but I've got to say that we can't just ignore this kind of thing if the perfectly reasonable representations we are making to Indonesia are ignored by them."

Abbott did concede that both Chan and Sukumaran deserved lengthy prison sentences, but said the death penalty was too severe for a pair who have shown signs of reforming behind bars.

"In fact, they have become, it seems, thoroughly reformed characters in prison in Bali and they are now helping the Indonesian fight against drug crime, so it's much better to use these people for good than to kill them," Abbott said.

Earlier, Australia's Foreign Minister Julie Bishop had also welcomes the delay in Chan and Sukumaran's transfer to Nusakambangan Island prison, where they will face the firing squad. Endi