[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 5


INDIA:

When India's 'Jack the Ripper' terrorised Mumbai


Nearly 50 years after Raman Raghav terrorised Mumbai (then Bombay) by murdering 
41 people, there's renewed interest in the serial killer - a film made for 
television in 1991 had its first public screening a fortnight ago and Raghav is 
also the subject of a feature film being made by indie director Anurag Kashyap.

The BBC's Geeta Pandey travels to Mumbai to piece together the story of the man 
described as India's "Jack the Ripper".

Raman Raghav went on a killing spree over 3 years in the 1960s, casting a spell 
of fear over the city.

His victims were all poor people who either slept on the pavements or lived in 
ramshackle huts and temporary shanties in the northern suburbs of the city. 
They included men, women and children - even infants.

They were attacked at night while they slept, and all of them died after their 
heads were smashed with "a hard and blunt instrument", writes Ramakant 
Kulkarni, the young police officer who took over as the head of the crime 
branch in 1968 and whose team eventually captured Raghav on 27 August 1968.

Mr Kulkarni, who retired in 1990 as the head of Maharashtra police and died in 
2005, wrote detailed accounts of the case in two books: "Footprints on the 
Sands of Crimes" and "Crimes, Criminals and Cops".

"The murders were motiveless ... if any petty gain had been achieved in the 
process, the violence inflicted on the victims was totally disproportionate to 
any such gain," he wrote.

As new murders were reported almost daily, rumours began circulating about "a 
mysterious assailant... gifted with supernatural powers" who could "assume the 
shape of a parrot or a cat" and the press dubbed him "India's Jack the Ripper", 
according to Lily Kulkarni, Mr Kulkarni's wife.

More than 2,000 policemen patrolled the streets at the time, but the city was 
in the grip of panic, especially in the suburban areas, Mrs Kulkarni says.

For all his murders, Raghav used an iron rod, shaped like the number 7

Parks and streets emptied out at dusk and in many areas, nervous residents 
carrying sticks patrolled the streets.

There were several incidents in which beggars and homeless men were badly 
assaulted by panicky crowds.

The murders took place in 2 lots - the 1st between 1965 and 1966 when 19 people 
were attacked. Raghav, who was found loitering in the area, was picked up then 
as well, but let off because police couldn't find any evidence against him.

The 2nd round of killings took place in 1968, and on 27 August, a sub-inspector 
from Mr Kulkarni's team recognised him from photographs and descriptions given 
by those who had survived his attacks.

Most of his victims lived in ramshackle huts which he could enter easily.

"As the news of the arrest spread, a large crowd gathered outside my husband's 
office. People celebrated," Mrs Kulkarni remembers.

There is little known about Raghav's childhood or early life. Reports from the 
time describe him as a Tamilian, who was tall and well-built, had little school 
education and was homeless.

During interrogation, he proved to be "a tough nut" who refused to say anything 
for two days, but the police had a breakthrough on day 3.

Mr Kulkarni's book describes how one of Raghav's interrogators casually asked 
him if there was something which he really wanted and "without a moment's 
thought", he said "murgi" - chicken.

After he was fed a dish of chicken, he was asked if he wanted something else.

He asked for more chicken.

Next, he said he would "like to have a prostitute, but I guess the law does not 
permit that while one is in custody" - so he settled for hair oil, a comb and a 
mirror instead.

"He massaged his whole body with the coconut oil, appreciating its fragrance, 
combed his hair and looked admiringly at his own face in the mirror."

Then, he asked the police what they wanted from him.

"We want to know about the murders," one officer said.

"Well I shall tell you all about them," he said, and led the policemen to the 
bushes in Aarey Colony where he had hidden his tools - an iron crowbar, knives 
and other weapons.

During his confession before the magistrate, Raghav admitted to killing 41 
people, though police say they believe the numbers to be higher.

In his confession, he said he had done it voluntarily and that he had been 
instructed by "God" to do so.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Other Indian serial killers

'Auto' Shankar: Convicted of killing 6 people in the late 1980s in the southern 
state of Tamil Nadu. His real name was Gowri Shankar, but he was called Auto 
Shankar because he drove an autorickshaw. He and his group were found guilty of 
transporting illicit liquor, abducting women and running a prostitution racket, 
besides brutal murders. He was hanged in 1995.

'Cyanide' Mohan: Convicted in the southern state of Karnataka of killing 20 
women. Born in 1963, Mohan Kumar preyed on women looking to get married - he 
would give them cyanide pills claiming they were contraceptives and rob them of 
their jewellery. He was arrested in 2009 and given the death sentence in 
December 2013.

Surinder Koli: Worked as the servant for businessman Moninder Singh Pandher in 
Nithari village in the Delhi suburb of Noida. The servant and the master were 
accused of killing, raping and dismembering at least 19 young women and 
children. Koli was accused even of cannibalism. The deaths were discovered in 
December 2006 after body parts and children's clothing were found blocking the 
sewer running in front of the house. While Mr Pandher was later freed on bail 
for lack of evidence, Koli has been found guilty of 5 murders. He is on death 
row.

The Stoneman: Nine people were killed in Mumbai in 1989 and each victim was 
found with their head bludgeoned by a stone or a heavy blunt object. The case 
remains one of the most famous unsolved murders in India as the killer was 
never caught.

The Beerman: 6 people were killed in Mumbai between October 2006 and January 
2007 and in each case, a bottle of beer was found beside the body. Police 
arrested Ravindra Kantrole and accused him of being the Beerman, but he was 
freed due to lack of evidence.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

During his trial, Raghav's lawyers pleaded insanity - they said he did not know 
that killing people "was wrong or contrary to law".

But the "police surgeon" certified him as "neither suffering from psychosis nor 
mentally retarded", and the court gave him the death penalty.

In his order, Judge CT Dighe described him as a "psychopath, extremely wicked 
man with depraved or brutal mentality" and said his crimes were "unparalleled 
and unsurpassed in brutality".

Media reports at the time said a large crowd outside the court greeted Raghav 
with "shouts, whistles and jeers" - and he "replied with equal energy". Despite 
the ruthlessness of his crimes, and the fact that Raghav did not appeal, he 
escaped the gallows.

The high court, which had to confirm his death sentence, ordered a 
re-evaluation of his sanity and put his sentence on hold after a panel of 3 
psychiatrists said he was schizophrenic and suffered from delusions and hence 
was "incurably mentally ill".

"We got lots of calls from the public, mostly women, asking my husband why he 
was not being hanged," Mrs Kulkarni said.

Raghav was lodged in Yerwada jail in the city of Pune.

In 1987, after he had spent 18 years in solitary confinement, the high court 
commuted his death sentence to life in jail, and he died from a kidney ailment 
the same year.

Today, nearly 50 years later, not many in Mumbai know about Raman Raghav.

Perhaps the 2 films will help revive the interest in the psychopath who once 
terrorised the city.

(source: BBC news)






PAKISTAN----execution

Double murder convict hanged in Bahawalpur


A double murder convict was executed in the New Central Jail Bahawalpur early 
Wednesday morning.

Irshad had shot dead 2 people in 1999. Irshad's dead body was handed over to 
his heirs after the execution.

Nearly 300 death row prisoners have been hanged so far since the government 
lifted a 6-year moratorium on death penalty on December 17, 2014.

(source: Pakistan Today)






IRAN----executions

3 Prisoners Hanged in Northern Iran


On the morning of Wednesday October 4, 2 prisoners were reportedly hanged to 
death at Rajai Shahr Prison on murder charges. On the same day another prisoner 
charged with murder was reportedly hanged at Tabriz Central Prison.

On Sunday the 2 prisoners from Rajai Shahr Prison had been transferred to 
solitary confinement along with 5 other prisoners in preparation for their 
executions. According to close sources, the 5 other prisoners were returned to 
their prison cells after the plaintiffs on their case files allowed for the 
execution orders to be postponded.

According to the Kurdistan Human Rights Network, Biyuk Mohebbi, the prisoner 
from Tabriz Central, had been detained in prison for 13 years before he was 
executed.

Iranian official sources have not reported or commented on these 3 executions

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

Girl on Death Row Since Age 12 Saved from Execution


Somayeh was 12 years old when she was arrested by Iranian authorities for 
allegedly participating in the murder of her father. She along with her mother, 
Tahereh, were transferred to prison and sentenced to death.

Now, after 7 years of enduring prison, Somayeh is no longer living in the 
shadow of death. According to reports, the teenager was saved from execution 
and released from prison after Article 91 of the revised Islamic Penal Code was 
implemented on her case. The news was announced by Iran state run media outlet, 
Farheekhtegan.

According to the report, Somayeh's mother is still imprisoned and on death row. 
The report also claims that Somayeh said in one of her court hearings: "I was 
only 12 years old and was under the influence of my mother." Somayeh was 
reportedly sentenced to death twice by Branch 74 of Tehran's Criminal Court, 
the 2nd time her sentence was confirmed by Iran's Supreme Court.

Article 91 states: "In the cases of offenses punishable by hadd or qisas, if 
mature people under 18 years do not realize the nature of the crime committed 
or its prohibition, or of there is uncertainty about their full mental 
development, according to their age, they shall be sentenced to the punishments 
prescribed in this chapter."

(source for both: Iran Human Rights)

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

Call to save 7 Sunni political prisoners on verge of execution


The Iranian Resistance urges immediate action by the UN Secretary-General, the 
Security Council, the Human Rights Council, relevant UN Rapporteurs, and all 
human rights agencies throughout the world to save the lives of seven Sunni 
political prisoners on the verge of execution.

The Iranian Resistance also calls on religious leaders and scholars worldwide, 
as well as Muslim clerics, Sunni or Shia, to join the campaign against these 
criminal executions.

6 of these prisoners, Messrs. Kaveh Vaissi, Pouria Mohammadi, Taleb Maleki, 
Mohammad Yavar Rahimi, Kaveh Sharifi and Bahman Rahimi were transferred on 
November 1 to Ward 4 of Gohardasht (Rajai Shahr) Prison in Karaj that is 
controlled by the Revolutionary Guards. All of these prisoners have been 
sentenced to death on the mullah-fabricated charge of "propaganda against the 
system, corruption of earth, and Moharebeh (enmity against God)."

There is no news on the condition of Mr. Haidar Rashidi, another Sunni prisoner 
that was transferred to Ward 4 of Gohardasht along with the other six, and 
there is also concern for his life.

Similarly, on March 4, 2015, 6 other Sunni political prisoners Messrs. Hamed 
Ahmadi, Jahangir and Jamshid Dehghani (2 28 and 29 year old brothers), Kamal 
Molai, Sediq Mohammadi, and Hadi Hosseini, 31, were hanged while they were on 
hunger strike and injured because of their battering by the Revolutionary 
Guards.

The Iranian regime, especially following its 1 step involuntary retreat in its 
nuclear weapons project, is facing increasing domestic and international 
crises. In order to prevent a widespread popular uprising and an explosion of 
ire of a fed up population, it has found its only resort in further suppression 
and massacre of defenseless prisoners, atrocities that more than ever betray 
the myth of moderation of this oppressive regime.

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






GLOBAL:

UN: 28 % increase in the number of people condemned to death----In 2014 the 
number of people sentenced with the death penalty increased by 28 %. According 
to the UN the penalties were imposed for terrorism and drug charges.


In 2014, there had unfortunately been a 28 % increase in the number of people 
condemned to death, according to data presented by the UN Assistant 
Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic.

The increase in death sentences, "represents an overall increase in Member 
States resorting to death penalty to prevent terrorism or drug related 
offences," the UN official explained.

Simonovic spoke at a press conference in the UN Headquarters in New York, and 
said that according to the book, Moving Away from the Death Penalty: Arguments, 
Trends and Perspectives, in 1975, about 97 % of countries were executing 
criminals, but in 2015, only 27 % of countries resorted to the death penalty. 
However, the UN official warned that even though there is a drop in the number 
of documented executions, there is a possibility of several executions being 
conducted which are not registered or reported accurately.

The UN official stressed that while it is instinctive for some people to stand 
against death penalty, there is a large group of people who need arguments that 
can convince them that the practice must end.

Simonovic said that one of the biggest drawbacks of death penalties is the 
"wrongful conviction" of suspects. He added that advancement in the field of 
investigation, such as DNA testing, has shown evidence that wrongful 
convictions do happen "as there is no perfect justice system."

He said that the biggest challenge of death penalty is its finality; as there 
is no way of rectifying the verdict even after the person is found innocent 
after execution.

Moreover, Simonovic said that according to several studies, there is no 
convincing evidence of any deterring effect death penalty has on crimes 
committed. "However, there is conclusive evidence that there is a correlation 
between death penalty and discrimination and unequal treatment against 
vulnerable groups," he added.

The UN official also said that in most cases, people who end up getting 
executed are poor, belong to vulnerable groups or socially disadvantaged 
minority groups or have mental disabilities.

Further, he addressed the issue of certain Member States that still sentence 
people to death for apostasy or homosexuality and questioned the legitimacy of 
such verdicts.

At the same time, Simonovic said that his Office will hold a joint meeting with 
the Ministers of Justice of the African Union on 12 November, about "moving 
away from death penalty."

He said that out of 54 African Union (AU) countries, 18 have abolished death 
penalty and nearly 19 are de facto not executing, totalling 2/3 of the AU 
choosing to end death penalty as a verdict. The UN official expressed hope that 
the rest of the continent could learn from these countries and put an end to 
death penalty in judicial systems.

(source: neurope.eu)

**********

There is no evidence of the deterring effects of the death penalty, Simonovic


At a press briefing at the UN the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights 
told reporters "there is no convincing evidence of the deterring effects of the 
death penalty".

Ivan Simonovic said some improvements on the issue of the death penalty had 
been registered globally. "In 2014 there was the same number of executing 
states as in 2013. However, there was a drop of 22 percent of registered 
executions," the UN Human Rights official said.

However, he also noted a 28 % increase of people condemned to the death 
penalty, which "reflects an overall increase of member states that are trying 
to use death penalty to prevent terrorism or drugs-related offences."

Simonovic told reporters of the lack of "convincing evidence of the deterring 
effects of the death penalty. There were many researchers conducted and there 
is no conclusive evidence. However, there is conclusive evidence that there is 
a correlation between death penalty and discrimination and unequal treatment 
against vulnerable groups."

Among these groups, Simonovic said there were those who are "socially 
disadvantaged such as migrant groups, or quite often, in contrary to 
international law, people with mental disabilities."

When asked whether he would like to see the institution of a moratorium on the 
death penalty, Simonovic said "I would definitely love it even one year 
moratorium would help. Especially because experience of different member states 
who introduced moratorium was that there was no increase in violent crimes, in 
murders or other crimes."

(source: cihan.com.tr)



PHILIPPINES:

House panel OKs bill seeking death for foreign drug traffickers


The House of Representatives' committee on dangerous drugs has approved and 
endorsed the passage of a measure that seeks stiffer penalties, including 
death, for foreigners convicted of drug offenses.

House Bill 1213 "allows the imposition of the death penalty if prescribed under 
the national laws of the alien offender," the bill's authors, Cagayan de Oro 
Representative Rufus Rodriguez and his brother, Maximo, representative of 
Abante Mindanao party-list, said.

"This means that the imposition of the penalty for drug offenses as prescribed 
under the national law of the foreign national or the penalty under Republic 
Act 9165, whichever is higher, is the rule to follow," they said.

The Cagayan de Oro lawmaker originally introduced the bill during the 15th 
Congress, where "it was approved on 2nd and 3rd reading by the House of 
Representatives ... but, unfortunately, was not acted upon by the Senate."

While acknowledging that the death penalty had been abolished in June 2006, the 
Rodriguez brothers said "there are some sectors of society who believe that 
this law is not just and equitable because while foreigners may not be executed 
in the Philippines for drug trafficking, Filipinos who commit the same are 
executed in other countries."

They added that the abolition of capital punishment has emboldened foreigners 
to establish drug factories in the country.

They cited China, a number of whose citizens have been arrested and jailed for 
drug trafficking or manufacturing, but which has executed several Filipinos 
caught transporting drugs.

"While there is no reason to question the laws of foreign countries, we must 
however, ensure that our countrymen do not suffer the short end of the stick," 
the Rodriguez brothers stressed.

(source: Philippine News Agency)






INDONESIA:

BNN Chief Budi Waseso wants drug traffickers to eat their drugs as punishment


As if the death penalty isn't excessive enough, the National Narcotics Agency 
(BNN) Chief Budi Waseso wants to introduce his own brand of demeaning 
punishment for convicted drug traffickers.

Speaking during a drug incineration event at the BNN headquarters in East 
Jakarta yesterday, Budi said he thinks there's a better way to get rid of the 
drugs the BNN confiscates than using an incinerator.

"It's better if they (the traffickers) get rid of [the drugs]. They can eat 
[the drugs] so they'll regret [their actions]. Their actions destroy the young 
generation," Budi said, as quoted by Warta Kota.

"So if [a trafficker] is caught with tens of kilograms [of drugs], make him eat 
all of it. There'll be no need for the death penalty because he will certainly 
die from consuming all of his drugs."

We can't really tell if Budi is speaking figuratively or if he is actually that 
psychotic when it comes to drug dealers.

At least we can take comfort in the fact that a BNN chief doesn't actually have 
the power to create laws and punishments for drug convicts.

(soure: Coconuts news)






SINGAPORE:

Sarawakian on death row in Singapore gets stay of execution


A Sarawakian, who was to be executed in Singapore for murder on Friday, has 
been granted a stay of the execution.

Kho Jabing, 31, was granted the stay to allow the Court of Appeal to hear a 
case brought by his lawyer, according to anti-death penalty advocacy group, We 
Believe in Second Chances, in a Facebook post.

Jabing was convicted of killing a Chinese construction worker in 2008 with a 
tree branch while robbing him and was sentenced to death in 2010.

In August 2013, following revisions to Singapore's mandatory death penalty 
laws, the High Court gave him a life term instead.

Last year, the prosecution challenged the decision before the Court of Appeal 
which sentenced Jabing to the death penalty.

In October, Jabing's appeal for clemency was turned down by the Singapore 
President on the advice of the Cabinet.

It is learnt that Jabing's lawyers on Wednesday filed a criminal motion at the 
Court of Appeal to request a remittance of his case.

(source: The Star)