[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Oct. 21



PAKISTAN:

Church to appeal Asia Bibi death penalty


Catholic leaders in Pakistan will appeal to their country's Supreme Court after 
a lower court upheld the death penalty for a blasphemy ruling against a 
Christian mother of 5 children.

"Like it or not, we have to accept the court order," Father Emmanuel Yousaf 
Mani, director of the National (Catholic) Commission for Justice and Peace, 
told Catholic News Service.

4 days earlier, the Lahore High Court upheld the death sentence handed to Asia 
Bibi in 2010. "The only option before us now is to appeal against the verdict. 
We have applied for a certified copy of the verdict. We will appeal against it 
in the Supreme Court," Father Mani said, adding Christians were praying for an 
acquittal.

A statement from the Cecil & Iris Chaudhry Foundation, a Catholic group named 
for a critic of Pakistan's blasphemy law, expressed disappointment in the 
ruling.

"Bibi has wrongly been convicted of blasphemy. We remain optimistic that the 
rule of law will prevail and justice will be done (when the appeal is heard in 
the Supreme Court). For now that is our only hope," said the statement by the 
Catholic advocacy group.

Bibi, an "untouchable" low caste, was accused of blasphemy after an argument 
with her Muslim neighbour over a drinking glass in the fruit field where they 
worked together. She was the 1st Christian woman convicted under the blasphemy 
law that provides for mandatory death sentence even for unintentional acts or 
words of blasphemy.

2 prominent critics of the blasphemy law lost their lives in their bid to get 
Bibi released on bail following her conviction.

Salman Taseer, a Muslim and governor of Punjab province, was shot dead on 
January 4, 2011, by his Muslim body guard after he initiated a clemency 
petition.

Shahbaz Bhatti, a 42-year old Catholic and federal minister for religious 
minorities who closely worked with Taseer with the clemency petition, was 
killed 2 months later in Islamabad.

More than 96 % of Pakistan's population of more than 180 million people are 
Muslims. While Christians and Hindus account for over 1.5 % each, Ahmadis, 
Sikhs, and tribals account for the remaining 1 %.

(source: Catholic Herald)






EGYPT:

Diplomatic talks continue concerning the fate of 3 Seychellois nationals on 
death row in Egypt


All diplomatic avenues are being engaged in an attempt to save the lives of 3 
Seychellois nationals whose time is running out after having been sentenced to 
death in Egypt for drug trafficking, says the Seychelles government.

The Seychelles President James Michel this morning conveyed a letter addressed 
to his Egyptian counterpart, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi pleading for clemency for the 
3 men.

The letter was handed to the new Egyptian Ambassador to Seychelles Mahmoud Ali 
Talaat after he presented his credentials to the Seychellois Head of State this 
morning.

The matter relating to the death penalty imposed on the 3 Seychellois men was 
the main topic of discussion.

Talaat told journalists in an interview at State House that the Seychelles 
President had expressed the grief that the people of Seychelles and the 
families of the 3 men are currently going through.

"The President (James Michel) expressed how important it is to the Seychellois 
people and for the families of the 3 who are sentenced to death," he said 
adding that he will convey the message to Cairo as soon as he arrives in 
Nairobi where he is based.

"I will convey his message to his excellency the President of Egypt and to the 
government. I'm not a law expert so I do not know what could be done about it 
but I will convey the message...Let's hope for the best. As I said I have to 
convey the message to my president and we will see from there, but normally the 
Egyptian government never gets involved in the judiciary."

The Seychelles Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Barry Faure 
is currently in Cairo where he yesterday discussed the matter with the Egyptian 
Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

It was on Wednesday last week that it was confirmed that the Egyptian Court of 
Cessation had upheld the death penalty imposed on Ronny Norman Jean, Yvon John 
Vinda and Dean Dominic Loze, rejecting their appeal.

The 3 men were sentenced to death by execution on April 7, 2013 and the 
sentence was confirmed on June 3, 2013.

They men were arrested on April 22, 2011 by the Egyptian police onboard a boat 
near the Red Sea coastal town of Marsa Alam. They were together with a British 
national identified as Charles Raymond Ferndale, who is said to be the owner of 
the vessel and another Pakistani national.

They were accused and charged for attempting to smuggle 3 tonnes of cannabis 
packed in 118 bags into Egypt.

The Seychelles Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Paul Adam who was also present at 
the State House meeting, said Seychelles has made several diplomatic 
representations since the 3 men were sentenced to death on April 7, 2013.

He said the 1st was to the former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi after they 
were sentenced. Morsi was ousted by the military in July 2013.

Adam noted that another appeal was also made after the death sentences were 
upheld by the Egyptian Court of Appeal.

Then there was the final appeal to the Court of Cassation, which is the last 
legal recourse. Now that the court has pronounced itself and upheld the death 
penalty the Egyptian president has 1 month during which he may intervene on the 
matter.

Nevertheless Adam said it is a very difficult situation as questions may be 
asked to the Egyptian authorities as to "why this case and not others" while 
adding that "if the appeals are unsuccessful, we must prepare ourselves for 
what can happen."

"....Egypt has shown that it is very open to listen to Seychelles and I think 
this is the mark of the strength between the 2 countries. But we are also 
conscious that like in Seychelles the executive cannot interfere in the 
judiciary," said Adam.

"Because Seychelles is not a country that applies the death penalty we are 
appealing for clemency in that their sentence could be reduced to life 
imprisonment....but it will be a question for the Egyptian legal authorities to 
look at. We hope for a positive answer but we have to be respectful of the 
Egyptian justice system."

The Seychelles Foreign Affairs Minister said his ministry is in contact with 
the families of the condemned men adding that "the 3 are in a very difficult 
and emotional situation."

Adam also told journalists that a possible execution date has not yet been 
confirmed and that they await to hear from the lawyers on the matter.

He also said that negotiations for clemency are being coordinated with the UK 
Government since a Briton was also arrested together with the 3 Seychellois and 
subsequently sentenced to death for drug trafficking.

The Seychellois public have also expressed concern about the fate of the 3 
Seychellois nationals in Egypt while several efforts are ongoing to plead for 
mercy on social media sites and newspapers.

The former Seychelles President James Mancham has also added his voice to the 
plea for clemency for the three Seychellois men. Mancham has also sent a letter 
to the Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi calling on him to show mercy on 
them.

Seychelles and Egypt established diplomatic ties in 1976.

While the situation of the 3 men on death row dominated discussions during 
talks between the newly accredited ambassador and Michel the possibility to 
enhance cooperation between the two countries were also highlighted.

"We discussed different matters in the trade field, how trade could be doubled 
or even tripled or quadrupled, we should make more efforts in that respect 
using what we have now which is the COMESA. There are lots of agreements that 
could be signed between both countries. Egypt can supply various experts in 
different fields especially in the health field," said Talaat.

Apart from increasing trade and cooperation in the health sector, tourism is 
another area which the two sides feel can be explored further.

(source: Seychelles News Agency)

***********************

Egypt court upholds death penalty for militant----Ansar Bait Al Maqdis have 
claimed responsibility for a number of attacks


An Egyptian military court on Tuesday confirmed death sentences against 7 
Islamist militants convicted of attacking and killing army officers, the 
semi-official newspaper Al Ahram reported online.

The confirmation was made after the tribunal received a report from the 
country's chief legal Islamic authority, the Grand Mufti, on an initial ruling 
issued by the court in August, according to the paper.

Under Egypt's criminal law, civil and military courts have to refer preliminary 
death sentences to the Grand Mufti for an advisory opinion.

The military court also handed down life imprisonment to 2 defendants in the 
same case related to the killing of 2 army officers during a security crackdown 
on an arms cache manned by suspected Islamist insurgents in the province of 
Qaliubia earlier this year.

The defendants are members of Ansar Bait Al Maqdis, a Sinai-based militant 
group that has claimed a series of deadly attacks against Egyptian security 
forces since the army deposed Islamist president Mohammad Mursi in mid-2013.

(source: Gulf News)






NIGERIA:

Yero Removes Ebhos From Death Row


The governor of Kaduna State, Alhaji Ramalan Yero has signed a release order 
for Thankgod Ebhos, an inmate on death row in Benin City prison after 19 years 
on death row.

The governor signed the release in exercise of his power of Prerogative of 
Mercy as outlined under section 212 of the Nigerian constitution.

The long winding road to Thankgod Ebhos' release began with the intervention of 
the international human rights organisation, Avocats Sans Frontieres France 
(ASF France) on the platform of their death penalty project, Saving Lives 
(SALI). The pro bono team of SALI lawyers forestalled further threat of 
execution by immediately filing for an injunction at the ECOWAS community court 
of justice.

In a statement by Miss Esther Akpa, Avocats Sans Frontieres (ASF) France, Mr 
Ebhos is one of nine prisoners whose release order was approved to commemorate 
Nigeria???s 54th Independence Day celebration.

According to the statement, Mr Ebhos came into the limelight in June 2013 when 
he narrowly escaped execution alongside the famous four inmates of Benin prison 
after their death sentence warrants were signed by the Edo State government. 
Thankgod, the 5th inmate, was actually taken to the gallows but was not hanged 
unlike the four who did not escape the hangman's noose.

"In February this year the ECOWAS court ruled in Thankgod's favour by granting 
the injunction and ordering the federal government to remove his name from the 
death row list. The final judgment from the same court on the 10th of June, 
2014, reiterated the order to take off Thankgod's name from death row.

(source: Leadership Nigeria)

*******************

Reprieve for Death Row Inmates in Kaduna


In an unprecedented turn of events, reprieve has eventually come the way of 
Thankgod Ebhos and Sunday Eze Onyeabor, 2 death row inmates formerly in Benin 
prison, following the signing of their release order by the governor of Kaduna 
State, Ramalan Yero.

The governor signed their release in exercise of his power of Prerogative of 
Mercy as outlined under Section 212 of the Nigerian Constitution. Ebhos is one 
of the nine prisoners whose release order was approved to commemorate Nigeria's 
54th Independence Day celebration.

Onyeabor was sentenced to death in 1994 and had been on death row for 20 years, 
while Ebhos was sentenced to death by a military tribunal in 1995 and has been 
on death row for 19 years.

The duo, who have appeals pending at the Court of Appeal are beneficiaries of 
Avocats Sans Frontieres France's Saving Lives (SALI) project initiated in 2011, 
which has since recorded the release of 48 inmates from prison.

Ebhos came into the limelight in June 2013 when he narrowly escaped execution 
alongside the famous 4 inmates of Benin prison after their death sentence 
warrants were signed by the Edo state government.

Ebhos, the 5th inmate, was actually taken to the gallows but was not hanged 
unlike the 4 who did not escape the hangman's noose.

The long winding road to Ebhos release, however, began with the intervention of 
the international human rights Organization, Avocats Sans Frontieres France 
(ASF France) on the platform of their death penalty project, Saving Lives 
(SALI).

The pro bono team of SALI lawyers forestalled further threat of execution by 
immediately filing for an injunction at the ECOWAS community court of justice.

In February this year the ECOWAS court ruled in Ebhos' favour by granting the 
injunction and ordering the federal government to remove his name from the 
death row list.

The final judgment came from the same court on June 10, 2014, which reiterated 
the order to take off Ebhos' name from death row.

The court at that time stressed that any attempt to execute Ebhos, while his 
appeal was still pending at the Court of Appeal, would be a gross violation of 
his right to appeal as contained in section 6(4) of the International Covenant 
on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

Ebhos' son, Ebhodaghe Solomon, who spoke to ASF France about the challenges he 
went through in the process of appealing for help with his father's case, 
expressed joy at the news of his release.

"It has been a very long process,' he said. "Some lawyers and organizations 
that I took my father's case to promised to help and nothing came out of it 
even after they had collected money. ASF France handled my father's case like 
it was a family matter. The way someone would fight for their family, that is 
the way they took my father's case."

Also Oneyeabor's niece, Arinze Georgina, who was appreciative of the governor's 
gesture, commended ASF France's effort in handling her uncle's case.

Meanwhile, Avocats Sans Frontieres France has commended the governor of Kaduna 
State, Ramalan Yero for this gesture and urged the Katsina State government to 
consider following suit in the case of Maimuna Abdulmumini, who was sentenced 
to death as a minor.

According to ASF France Head of Office, Angela Uwandu, "The death penalty is 
absolutist in nature, and should be totally expunged from our laws."

"Thankgod's release today underscores the impact that the decision of the 
ECOWAS court could have on the status of death row inmates. If Thankgod Ebhos 
had been executed prior to the judgment of the ECOWAS court, his execution 
would have been irrevocable and the chance to experience this freedom would 
have been lost," she added.

(source: The Guardian)






IRAN----executions

13 executed in a day, 6 inmates die in a prison due to dire conditions


The Iranian regime's henchmen hanged at least 13 prisoners on Sunday October 
19, 2014 in Ghezel-Hessar Karaj Prison, Tabriz Central Prison and Rasht Central 
Prison.

18-year-old Fardin Jaafarian was hanged in Tabriz prison for allegedly 
committing a crime when he was 14.

A group of 8 inmates hanged in Ghezel-Hessar prison while another group of 4 
executed in Rasht prison.

Meanwhile, at least 6 inmates lost their lives due to the excruciating 
conditions at a death camp and inhumane pressures by henchmen.

The men arrested in city of Bandar Abbas as a part of mass arrests carried out 
in the city October 12-17 under the pretext of fighting against drugs. They 
were all imprisoned in Camp Jabal-Bor in Bissim area of the city,

Also at least 5 death row prisoners in Urumyeh Central Prison have been 
transferred to solitary confinement since October 18 to await their execution.

Meanwhile, Iranian regime officials continue to pledge to continue on 
violations of human rights in Iran.

Commenting on the latest reports by international bodies on the violation of 
human rights in Iran, Sadegh Larijani, the head of the mullah's Judiciary, said 
on October 15: "The more they attack us on the issue of human rights, the more 
we become determined to carry out sentences," IRGC affiliated YJC website 
reported.

(source: Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran)






THE MALDIVES:

High Court grants Humam a month to appoint lawyer in death penalty appeal


The High Court has granted a man convicted of killing MP Dr Afrashim Ali one 
month to appoint a lawyer.

Hussein Humam had requested the period at the first hearing of the appeal at 
the High Court this morning.

The Criminal Court sentenced Human to death on January 16, finding him guilty 
of intentional murder, stating Humam had assaulted the ruling Progressive Party 
of the Maldives (PPM) MP with a sharp object and intentionally killed him.

Dr Afrasheem was found brutally murdered in the stairwell of his apartment 
building on October 1, 2012.

Humam gave contradictory statements in court regarding his involvement in the 
crime. Although he initially confessed to the crime, he later retracted his 
statement claiming the statement had been given under duress.

He appealed the death sentence in May, just before the 90 day appeal period for 
lower court rulings was about to expire.

Death penalty

Shortly after the Criminal Court sentenced Humam to death, Minister of Home 
Affairs Umar Naseer announced plans to implement the death penalty ending an 
unofficial sixty year moratorium on the practice.

Speaking on a show on state broadcaster TVM on Sunday night, Naseer said the 
incumbent government will not "shy away" from implementing the death penalty 
despite pressure from foreign countries and human rights organizations.

"We are not one to shy away from implementing the death penalty by showing 
various excuses. Nothing will stop us from implementing the death penalty as 
planned," Naseer said.

He said that while he respected the views of European countries which are 
calling on the government to continue with the moratorium on the death penalty, 
he believed that the decision lies solely with the Maldivian government.

"While European countries are speaking against the death penalty based on their 
set of principles, the US, Indonesia, China are not, even though they are by 
far the more populated countries. Each country has a separate viewpoint on it, 
and I understand and respect that. However, I believe there is a need for the 
death penalty to be implemented here, and come what may, we will implement it".

The decision to reintroduce implementation of the death penalty has given rise 
to public debate.

While Islamic groups have said that capital punishment is a crucial aspect of 
the Islamic Shari'ah, Mauhadini Sanawi and Azhar University graduate Scholar Al 
Usthaz Abdul Mueed Hassan previously told Minivan News that Islam is a religion 
of forgiveness first, and called on the state to abolish the death penalty.

"In taking qisaas, it is prescribed that it must be done in the manner that the 
crime was committed. Like the metaphor an eye for an eye. Taken in the exact 
same manner. How can this be done in cases of murder? How can the life of the 
murderer be taken in the same manner as that of the murdered? This is 
prescribed so as to discourage the taking of qisaas," Mueed said at the time.

The government has previously announced that lethal injection is the state's 
preferred method of implementing capital punishment.

(source: Minivan News)






ZIMBABWE:

High Court Rules Out Capital Punishment


The High Court cannot impose the death penalty on murderers in Zimbabwe until 
the legislature enacts a law spelling out the circumstances under which one can 
be hanged, Justice Charles Hungwe has said.

The landmark ruling spared Jonathan Mutsinze of the Jerusalem Church of 
Marondera the hangman's noose for killing a policeman and a security guard in 
the course of an armed robbery.

Justice Hungwe said there was no law defining "aggravated circumstances," a 
condition for one to be hanged.

In the absence of the Act, Justice Hungwe said, the courts cannot impose 
capital punishment.

He said life imprisonment was appropriate in Mutsinze's case.

Justice Hungwe ruled that the new Constitution under Section 48(2) stated that 
death penalty could only be imposed on a person who commits murder under 
"aggravated circumstances" but there was no Act defining the aggravated 
circumstances or setting out the conditions under which capital punishment can 
be imposed.

Justice Hungwe said before the introduction of the new Constitution, the death 
penalty would be imposed after the court found no extenuating circumstances and 
the extenuating circumstances were well-defined.

"Section 48 of the new Constitution brings in a new legal terrain, which 
recognises everyone's right to life including prisoners.

"Section 48 (2) of the Constitution permits death penalty to be imposed on a 
person convicted of murder committed with aggravated circumstances and that the 
law must allow the court a discretion on whether or not to impose the penalty.

"In my view what the Constitution has done is to unfetter the exercise of the 
discretion which was previously fettered under Section 337 of the Criminal 
Procedure and Evidence Act.

"The omission of reference to extenuating circumstances and the introduction of 
aggravated circumstances, in my view, must be interpreted to mean that what is 
envisaged in an Act of Parliament, will define the term (aggravated 
circumstances) or set out conditions on which the court will impose death 
penalty," he said.

"Alternatively, and in any event, the absence of the definition of the term or 
what constitutes aggravated circumstances, must mean that they were to be 
defined in the envisaged law."

Justice Hungwe interpreted the situation to mean that Zimbabwe was moving away 
from the death penalty.

"I interpret the legal position to be that in keeping with its international 
obligations and best practices, Zimbabwe intends to move away from death 
penalty," he said.

Justice Hungwe's ruling confirms an argument by prominent Harare lawyer 
Advocate Thabani Mpofu in a separate case in which the National Prosecuting 
Authority was seeking an order barring the High Court from imposing the death 
penalty on Zimbabwean murder suspects extradited from countries that do not 
recognise death sentence.

Countries like South Africa are holding on to murder suspects for fear they 
will be executed when extradited to Zimbabwe.

When Adv Mpofu was asked to give his own analysis of the law as a friend of the 
court, he said while the old Constitution specifically made provisions for the 
death penalty, the new order left that decision to the legislature.

Mutsinze, who had been in remand prison for 10 years awaiting sentence, was 
finally sentenced after the Constitutional Court dismissed his application for 
stay of prosecution.

He was convicted of murder with actual intent, which usually attracts the death 
penalty, but the loophole saved him and he was slapped with a life sentence.

(source: The Herald)