[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

July 30



NORTH KOREA----execution

Hyon Yong Chol disparaged Kim Jong Un prior to execution, analyst 
says----Hyon's execution is part of Kim???s larger strategy of reducing a 
bloated military elite, a South Korean analyst said Wednesday.


Former North Korean Defense Minister Hyon Yong Chol was executed for making 
disparaging remarks about Kim Jong Un, and the North Korean leader poses a 
greater threat than his father to South Korea, an analyst said Wednesday.

Chung Sung-jang, a researcher at South Korea's Sejong Institute said 
intelligence gathered from a defector indicated the purged Hyon often referred 
to Kim as a "young person," Yonhap reported.

Hyon also held several other grievances toward Kim and had criticized him for 
neglecting his duties, according to a Seoul spy agency report in May.

Hyon's complaints eventually reached Kim, and they factored into the North 
Korean leader's decision to eliminate his defense minister.

But Kim's purge of Hyon was not an impromptu gesture that emerged from a 
personal vendetta, South Korean outlet Newsis reported.

According to Chung's analysis, Hyon's execution is part of Kim's larger 
strategy of reducing a bloated military elite, a plan that includes the ongoing 
personnel changes and demotions taking place within the elite ranks of North 
Korea's military.

There are signs, however, other government offices remain relatively stable, 
Chung said.

Chief of the Korean People's Army General Staff Ri Yong Gil has "safely 
maintained his position" since August 2013, the analyst said, and no 
high-ranking officer at Pyongyang's national security apparatus has been 
rotated out.

Among the core military elite, only Hyon's execution is confirmed, but 
executions employ cruel methods, Chung said.

"It would be realistic to see Kim Jong Un as more threatening than [his 
father,] Kim Jong Il," Chung said.

In May, sources in North Korea said Hyon may have been executed with 
anti-aircraft machine guns, a few days after he was last seen in public in late 
April.

(source: United Press International)






BANGLADESH:

Killing of Natun ---- Ordered by father, executed by son


It was a summer morning in April 1971.

Natun Chandra Sinha -- a social worker, entrepreneur and philanthropist -- was 
offering his morning prayers at a temple in his house in Chittagong's Raozan.

Those present at the Gohira village house -- known as Kundeshwari Complex -- 
had been hearing intermittent gunshots from adjoining areas for quite a while.

Suddenly, several vehicles carrying arms-wielding Pakistani army men stopped 
outside the house.

As the Pak soldiers, who already had gained notoriety for butchering the 
Bangalees, hopped off the vehicles and approached the house, everyone either 
fled the house or hid themselves. Only Natun stayed behind at the temple.

The army men, led by Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, stormed inside the house and 
found septuagenarian Natun, owner of herbal medicine manufacturer Kundeshwari 
Owshadhaloy.

They had a brief conversation with him and left. Natun resumed his prayers.

But Salauddin and the Pak soldiers returned there in a short while. They 
dragged Natun out of the temple.

He cried out in protest but in vain.

"I have an order from my father to kill you," shouted Salauddin, son of Fazlul 
Quader Chowdhury who was the chief of Convention Muslim League which actively 
opposed the Bangalee's bid for independence.

The soldiers then opened fire on Natun. But he was not dead yet.

As Natun was groaning in excruciating pain, Salauddin shot him 2 to 3 times to 
ensure his death.

Those who witnessed the bloodcurdling killing from hidden places left the house 
in fear.

Natun's blood-stained body had been lying in front of the temple for 3 days 
until some locals performed the last rites.

4 prosecution witnesses, including 1 eyewitness, narrated this brutal killing 
before the tribunal. Prosecution's documentary evidence also backed the 
accounts.

44 years later, Salauddin finally met his karma. The Supreme Court yesterday 
upheld the death penalty, handed down by the International Crimes Tribunal-1 in 
October 2013, in 4 counts of war crimes charges, including the killing of 
Natun.

Natun had become a target of Salauddin and his father Fazlul as they accused 
the Hindu community there of not voting for Fazlul that led to his defeat in 
1970 elections.

Fazlul had even visited Natun's home thrice before the elections and threatened 
him not to vote against him. After his defeat, Fazlul's men started torturing 
the Hindus.

Natun was an immensely popular personality. He played a vital role in fostering 
education and social services in his locality by establishing a number of 
educational institutions, a post office and a herbal medicine factory -- all on 
his own.

During the Liberation War, many people including teachers of Chittagong 
University and their families took shelter at the schools and colleges 
established by him.

"It is crystal clear evidence along with common knowledge that Natun Chandra 
Sinha was a very popular man in the country, especially in Chittagong, who by 
giving his efforts established many institutions including school, college and 
also a renowned Kundeshwari Owshadhaloy," said the Tribunal-1 in its verdict.

Gopal Chandra Das, former principal of Kundeshwari Girls' College established 
by Natun, witnessed the murder from a window at the first floor of Natun's 
home. He gave a vivid description of the event in his deposition against 
Salauddin at the tribunal.

Natun's family including two sons -- Satya Ranjan Sinha and Prafulla Ranjan 
Sinha -- had gone to India days before the incident. Natun had been advised to 
move to safety even on that fateful morning, but he had declined, according to 
the witness.

Gopal told the court that he had seen "with his own eyes" that Salauddin shot 
Natun "2 to 3 times" after the Pak soldiers sprayed bullets on him.

Natun's son Satya Ranjan filed a case against Salauddin, his father Fazlul and 
some others with Raozan Police Station in January 1972, but the case did not 
proceed.

Instead, all that the families of the victims of Salauddin's cruelty saw is the 
infamous razakar gaining immense influence in his area and in the national 
politics following the 1975 changeover. He went on to become a member of 
parliament for 6 times. He also served as a minister in the '80s.

Natun's other son Prafulla shared his pain before the tribunal this way: "I am 
such an unfortunate son that I could not even light the funeral pyre of my 
father."

But over 4 decades of wait of the justice-seekers has finally come to an end.

As the SC upheld his death penalty yesterday, Prafulla said: "This is the 
verdict I have long been waiting for. Now I am waiting to see the quick 
execution of the verdict."

(source: The Daily Star)



IRAN:

As EU officials visit Tehran, juvenile offenders are facing execution


European diplomats flocking to Iran, including German Vice-Chancellor Sigmar 
Gabriel, EU High Representative Federica Mogherini, and French Foreign Minister 
Laurent Fabius, have chosen economic interests over human rights, especially 
considering the ongoing and imminent illegal execution of several juvenile 
offenders, denounced FIDH, DHRC, and LDDHI.

"While we believe that dialogue is the way forward, states cannot ignore the 
fact that Iran is the world???s second greatest executioner and is currently 
threatening juvenile offenders with the death penalty." stated Karim Lahidji, 
FIDH President.

The use of the death penalty in Iran has been increasing over the past several 
years, with 2015 slated to witness a record number of executions in the country 
since 1989 [1], if executions continue at the present rate. Iranian authorities 
have officially acknowledged 246 executions between 1 January and 15 July 2015, 
although credible sources have reported a further 448 executions. This is only 
slightly below the number of executions reported for the entire year in 2014, 
indicating a very worrying trend of increasing executions. Several thousand 
others are believed to be on death row in Iran at present, for crimes ranging 
from murder to drug trafficking to blasphemy.

In addition to the disturbingly high number of executions, Iran ranks first 
among the few countries that execute juvenile offenders. At least 160 of those 
currently on death row in Iran are believed to have been under 18 years old at 
the time they allegedly committed their crimes, which is a direct violation of 
international law, including the Convention of the Rights of the Child which 
Iran has signed and ratified.

"Despite the execution of juvenile offenders being forbidden under 
international law, Iran continues this practice today in the face of warming 
relations with the West," declared Karim Lahidji. "The international community, 
including the EU, has a responsibility to make human rights a central component 
of their relations with Iran and to insist that these violations stop 
immediately."

On 15 April of this year, Iran executed Javad Saberi for murder, despite having 
been only 17 years old and suffering from a serious mental illness when he 
allegedly committed his crime. There are several other juvenile offenders who 
await a similar fate: Salar Shadizadi is due to be executed on 1 August 2015 
for a murder he supposedly committed when he was 15 years old. Hamid Ahmadi is 
also at imminent risk of execution, even though there are doubts about his age 
when he allegedly committed murder; some reports indicate he was 15 years old 
at the time, others register him as 16 years old. Saman Naseem, also sentenced 
to death for a crime he allegedly committed when he was 17 years old, was 
thought to have been secretly executed 5 months ago, and only just resurfaced 
in Zanjan prison. [2]

Our organisations urge the Iranian Government to immediately halt the execution 
of all juvenile offenders and to repeal the death penalty for minors, in 
accordance with international law, as a first step toward the full abolition of 
the death penalty. Furthermore, we implore the international community to 
insist that any economic and political relations with Iran must be contingent 
on the latter's respect for human rights and its compliance with its 
obligations under international law.

(source: FIDH)

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

2 Prisoners Charged with Murder Saved from Execution by Plaintiffs


2 prisoners charged with murder and sentenced to death were pardoned by the 
plaintiffs on their cases, according to official and unofficial reports in 
Iran.

The website of the Prosecutions Office in Kerman reported on a young prisoner 
who was sentenced to death 6 years ago for murder and was recently pardoned 
from execution by the murder victim's family. The prisoner's age and name was 
not published in the report.

Close sources have reported about another prisoner charged with murder who was 
saved from execution last week. Iranian authorities reportedly took the 
prisoner, Davoud Alambeigi, along with 13 other prisoners to be hanged to 
death, but he was saved last minute by the plaintiff on his case file. 
According to the close sources, 12 of the prisoners taken for execution along 
with Alambeigi were executed.

(source: Iran Human Rights)






PAKISTAN:

Church urges Pakistan to renew moratorium on death penalty


The Catholic Church in Pakistan has urged the government to reinstate its 
moratorium on the death penalty a day after 8 more convicts were executed in 
Punjab province on July 29.

Some 188 people have been hanged in Pakistan since the lifting of a 6-year 
moratorium on capital punishment in December last year following a massacre at 
a Peshawar school in which 145 people were killed, 132 of them children.

Rights groups, the United Nations and the Church have criticized the move, 
saying most executions fall short of international norms. Trials often do not 
follow due process, they say.

"We strongly oppose capital punishment, especially so since the legal system in 
Pakistan is flawed," said Cecil Chaudhry, executive director of National 
Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), the Pakistan Church's human rights 
body.


"The Catholic Church values human sanctity and believes nobody should have the 
right to take life," he added.

He lamented the execution of Aftab Bahadur Masih, a Christian death row inmate 
who was hanged just before the start of Ramadan last month despite serious 
doubts about his age. The dead man's family says Masih was just 15 when he was 
alleged to have committed murder.

The Church's call to halt executions echoed a similar appeal made by the United 
Nations shortly before the 8 convicts were put to death on July 29.

The UN also called for Pakistan to commute without delay the sentences of those 
awaiting execution. Over 8,000 people are currently on death row across the 
country.

"The death penalty is an extreme form of punishment and, if used at all, should 
only be imposed for the most serious crimes, after a fair trial that respects 
the most stringent due process guarantees as stipulated in international human 
rights law," said Christof Heyns, the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, 
summary or arbitrary executions.

"I reiterate my previous call to Pakistan to continue the moratorium on actual 
executions and to put in place a legal moratorium on the death penalty, with a 
view to its abolition," he said.

The Special Rapporteur also drew attention to the case of Shafqat Hussain, 
whose trial, he says, fell short of international standards. Convicted for a 
crime reportedly committed as a child, Hussain is scheduled to be executed on 
August 4.

(source: ucanews.com)

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

Voicing concern: EU renews call for restoring ban on executions


The European Union has renewed its call for reinstating the moratorium on death 
penalty in Pakistan as the country resumed executions following a break in 
Ramazan. The EU call coincided with the execution of 8 convicted murderers 
across Punjab on Wednesday.

In a statement, the 28-nation bloc noted that this week executions had been 
resumed in Pakistan following a temporary suspension during the holy month. 
"More than 170 people have been executed in Pakistan since December 2014, when 
the government lifted a moratorium on executions in place since 2008," the 
statement said.

"The EU is deeply concerned by Pakistan's decision to lift the moratorium on 
executions in place since 2008 and to resume executions at an alarming pace. 
The EU is strongly opposed to capital punishment in all cases and has 
consistently called for its universal abolition," it added.

The EU urged Pakistan to reinstate the moratorium immediately to commute the 
sentences of persons sentenced to death as first steps towards the abolition of 
the death penalty and to respect fully all its international obligations.

"Pakistan is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political 
Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the Convention against 
Torture, which affirm the right to fair trial, prohibit the death sentence for 
crimes committed by persons under 18 years of age and require prompt and 
impartial investigation where there is reasonable ground to believe that 
torture has been committed. Effective implementation of these conventions is a 
requirement under the GSP+ scheme," the EU statement said.

Pakistan lifted the moratorium on death penalty following the massacre at the 
military run school in Peshawar in December last year. Islamabad has insisted 
that its decision was not in violation of any international law.

(source: The Express Tribune)