[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 22



PAKISTAN:

Pakistan army chief Raheel Sharif confirms death sentence of 10 
terrorists----The 10 condemned terrorists were given capital punishment by 
special military courts set-up after the 2014 Peshawar school attack for speedy 
trial of terrorists.


Ahead of his retirement, Pakistan Army chief General Raheel Sharif Tuesday 
confirmed death sentence handed down to 10 "hardcore terrorists" by military 
courts for their involvement in killing 4 commandos and other heinous offences 
related to terrorism. The 10 condemned terrorists were given capital punishment 
by special military courts set-up after the 2014 Peshawar school attack for 
speedy trial of terrorists.

"Today, Chief of Army Staff confirmed death sentences awarded to another 10 
hardcore terrorists who were involved in heinous offences related to terrorism, 
including killing of innocent civilians," army said in a statement.

The militants had also slaughtered Special Services Group's 4 commandos who had 
been captured and mercilessly killed during Swat operation of 2009.

Army said the convicts also planned and executed attacks on Armed Forces and 
Law Enforcement Agencies of Pakistan which resulted in deaths and injuries to 
several soldiers.

They were also involved in destruction of educational institutions and 
communication infrastructure. Fire-arms and explosives were also recovered from 
their possession.

The military courts were set up in Pakistan to expedite the trial process for 
terror-related offences following the December 2014 Taliban's massacre at an 
army-run school in Peshawar in which over 150 people, mostly school children, 
were killed.

Following the attack, the government had lifted the moratorium on the death 
penalty and the Parliament passed the 21st amendment which established military 
courts which was challenged in the Supreme Court.

The apex court ruled in favour of setting up of the courts in August last year.

It is not known where the trial was held and when the verdict of conviction 
announced, as the military courts work in secrecy due to fear of backlash by 
militants.

Raheel will end his 3-year term as army chief on November 29.

(source: indianexpress.com)






SOUTH AFRICA:

Should criminals be hanged by the neck?


Should violent criminals in our ravaged society be hanged by the neck to pay 
for their crimes?

For some, this is justice.

For others, it's an act of barbarism that simply reinforces the violence in a 
society.

And still for others, it is a hideous ghost from the gallows of apartheid where 
people were hanged simply for their political affiliation.

It is not a comfortable question, but one which sits on the lips of many South 
Africans outraged by how murder, rape, gang rape and violent assault have 
become a norm in society.

Now, the Institute for Race Relations has just released a report that says 4 of 
the 5 main arguments against capital punishment can be debated without 
conclusion - but it is the "possibility of error" that really cements capital 
punishment as a "no go" area.

IRR security analyst Kerwin Lebone said: "Almost 500,000 people have been 
murdered by violent criminals since 1994. Many more have been maimed, otherwise 
injured, or traumatised. It must be expected that the society might ask 
questions of the wisdom of having abandoned the death penalty."

In its research, the IRR tested 5 objections to the death penalty: That it is 
cruel and unusual, that it is a form of retribution, that it is arbitrary, that 
the penalty is not a deterrent to crime, and that an irreversible error can be 
made.

According to a statement released by the IRR, it was "able to overcome the 
first 4 objections. It found that the death penalty is not necessarily cruel 
and unusual. Society is entitled to a measure of retribution. The arbitrariness 
is not unique to that form of punishment. The international evidence is mixed 
but, in South Africa's unique circumstances, the death penalty could well be a 
deterrent to the commission of the most cruel and violent of crimes."

But, the IRR found that "the most compelling argument against the punishment 
was the possibility of error" - particularly in the case of the South African 
criminal justice system. The IRR said that, while a case could be made to 
reopen a debate into the death penalty, this debate would have to overcome the 
5th objection to that penalty.

Barend van Niekerk, a fervent death penalty abolitionist, said in 1967 that 
"47% of the executions in the world were carried out in South Africa". 
According to the IRR, it is a figure that was "questioned but never refuted".

Up until 1989, when executions were stopped in SA, around 4,000 had been 
capitally punished in the country in the 80 preceding years. Today, 
"technological advances (like DNA testing)" could reduce the risk of error, as 
could "better police and prosecutorial procedures".

However, even if all precautions were taken, "the risk of error might be 
lessened but could never be completely avoided".

In conclusion, the IRR said that British politician Gerald Gardiner had summed 
up in 1964 a principle which still sticks: "Human beings who are not infallible 
ought not to choose a form of punishment which is irreparable."

***********

Crimes like Rhodes Park murder case prompt report into reintroduction of death 
penalty: IRR


The "most compelling argument" against the reintroduction of a death penalty is 
"that an irreversible error can be made", the Institute for Race Relations 
(IRR) said on Tuesday.

The think tank said it had compiled a report on the controversial topic 
"against a context of rising levels of serious and violent crime, often 
characterised by extraordinary cruelty and violence on the part of 
perpetrators".

"The current Rhodes Park murder and rape case would be an example, " an IRR 
statement said.

That refers to the ongoing trial of Thabo Nkala, Admore Ndlovu and Mduduzi 
Mathibela, who are accused of being part of the gang of men that killed Sizwe 
Tyeke and Zukisa Kela, and raped their female partners in Kensington October 
2015.

Said IRR CEO Dr Frans Cronje: "We were asked to look into the death penalty as 
a way to deter the most cruel and violent crimes - such as the Rhodes Park 
murders. These are crimes characterised by gratuitous violence in which victims 
are tortured, family members raped or executed in front of their loved ones, 
and children harmed. South Africa has far too many examples of such crimes."

IRR security analyst Kerwin Lebone said that, considering "almost 500 000 
people have been murdered by violent criminals since 1994 ... it must be 
expected that the society might ask questions of the wisdom of having abandoned 
the death penalty".

The IRR said its research "tested 5 objections to the death penalty". They 
were: "that it is cruel and unusual; that it is a form of retribution; that it 
is arbitrary; that the penalty is not a deterrent to crime; and that an 
irreversible error can be made".

"The IRR was able to overcome the first 4 objections," the statement said. "It 
found that the death penalty is not necessarily cruel and unusual. Society is 
entitled to a measure of retribution. The arbitrariness is not unique to that 
form of punishment. The international evidence is mixed but, in South Africa's 
unique circumstances, the death penalty could well be a deterrent to the 
commission of the most cruel and violent of crimes."

But, the statement added, "the most compelling argument against the punishment 
was the possibility of error - particularly in the case of the South African 
criminal justice system" and that "while a case could be made to reopen a 
debate into the death penalty, this debate would have to overcome the 5th 
objection to that penalty".

(source for both: timeslive.co.za)






BANGLADESH:

N'ganj 7-murder: Prosecution seeks death penalty for accused


Prosecution today appealed before a Narayanganj court to hang all accused of 
the sensational 7-murder case.

The prosecution made the plea before the District and Sessions Judge Syed 
Enayet Hossain, reports the Bangla daily Prothom Alo.

After hearing arguments from prosecution and defence sides, the court fixed 
Tuesday for hearing on the appeal, Public Prosecutor Wazed Ali Khokon said at a 
press conference on the court premises.

On February 8, the same court indicted 35 people including prime accused Nur 
Hossain and 3 former Rab officials - Tareque Sayeed, Arif Hossain and Masud 
Rana - in 2 cases filed for killing 7 people in the district in 2014.

Today was the 34th working day since the charges were framed against the 
accused of the case, he added.

A total 20 witnesses of the case have so far given their testimony against 21 
accused under section 164 of the Criminal Proceeding Code.

The state side presented 164 witnesses before the court. Of them, 60 are 
eyewitnesses.

7 people, including Narayanganj City Corporation councillor Nazrul Islam and 
senior lawyer Chandan Sarker, were abducted from the Dhaka-Narayanganj link 
road on April 27 in 2014.

Later, their bodies were found floating in the Shitalakkhya River.

Nazrul's father-in-law Shahidul Islam alleged that Rab personnel abducted and 
killed Nazrul in exchange for Tk 6 crore from local ward councillor Nur 
Hossain.

(source: The Daily Star)






PHILIPPINES:

Religious groups give opposing views on death penalty


Religious groups on Tuesday gave contrarian opinions to lawmakers on the 
morality of imposing death penalty even on the most heinous of criminals.

Various religious groups read out their position papers during the House 
justice subcommittee on judicial reforms hearing, which discussed the bill 
seeking to reimpose capital punishment.

Grecor "Butch" Belgica, a murder convict turned evangelist, told the committee 
that even the Bible condones capital punishment on people who have sinned 
against the commandments of God.

Belgica is the father of defeated senatorial candidate Greco Belgica.

"Biblical law pities the offended and not the offender, and sympathizes with 
the aggrieved and not with the aggressor ... Biblical law assures 'due process' 
to the offender but bequeaths justice to the offended. In short, justice for 
the aggrieved, and due process for the aggressor," Belgica said.

Belgica said capital punishment would ensure the cleansing of the world from 
sinners.

"God's law establishes the responsibility of civil rulers to act as 
representatives of the people in doing what is right in the sight of the Lord 
to cleanse the land of innocent blood. Therefore, we vote for civil rulers who 
actively support capital punishment for murderers," Belgica said.

"A magistrate (candidate) who opposes the death penalty for murder is a 
dangerous man for he stands against the only penalty that will cleanse the land 
of innocent blood, and therefore, he willfully contributes to the pollution of 
the land by blood," he added.

For his part, Father Eli Rowdy Lumbo, executive director of the Philippine 
Jesuit Prison Service Foundation, opposed the death penalty because it rules 
out the chance for reformation even to the most heinous criminal.

Lumbo shared his experience of dealing with convicts who regretted committing 
heinous crimes, and those wrongfully accused of the crime but acquitted after 
years in detention.

"How do we see such persons? Is it not incumbent upon society to form or reform 
those who have gone astray, to teach those who were not taught and guide those 
who have made wrong decisions?" Lumbo asked the lawmakers.

"We make a stand against the restoration of the death penalty. It is not the 
solution to the criminality that confronts our country and the death of the 
offender is not the answer to senseless deaths of the innocent. We stand for 
reformation and rehabilitation of the offender," he added.

Leyte Rep. Vicente "Ching" Veloso, the chairperson of the House justice 
subcommittee, said this issue has divided the nation, but he takes courage from 
the children of the nation whose future is at stake.

"Listening to both parties, I am in a bind ... If I would say I am not in 
favor, what would my children say? ... The issue has divided the great minds of 
our society," Veloso said.

It was Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez who first filed the bill seeking to reimpose 
death penalty after former president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo abolished capital 
punishment in 2006 for its failure to deter crime.

Alvarez filed the bill to reinstate death penalty, pursuant to President 
Rodrigo Duterte???s campaign promise of returning capital punishment against 
heinous criminals.

Alvarez's bill sought to reimpose death penalty on heinous crimes listed under 
Republic Act 7659, including murder, plunder, rape, kidnapping and serious 
illegal detention, sale, use and possession of illegal drugs, carnapping with 
homicide, among others.

In the bill he co-authored with deputy speaker Capiz Rep. Fredenil Castro, 
Alvarez said there is a need to reimpose death penalty because "the national 
crime rate has grown to such alarming proportions requiring an all-out 
offensive against all forms of felonious acts."

"Philippine society is left with no option but to deal with certain grievous 
offenders in a manner commensurate to the gravity, perversity, atrociousness 
and repugnance of their crimes," according to the bill.

Duterte has won the elections in a campaign promise to restore death penalty by 
hanging, even making a snide remark that the convicts??? head should be severed 
from the hanging.

Alvarez said Congress would look into the cheapest way for death penalty, 
either by firing squad, lethal injection, or by hanging.

(source: inquirer.net)

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

Solon fears railroading of death penalty bill


Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman warned the public that the Lower House may be seeking 
to railroad the passage of a law reimposing the death penalty.

Lagman pointed out that the House Justice Committee has been conducting 
marathon hearings on the measure, which is one of the priority bills of the 
administration of President Rodrigo Duterte.

"Today the committee on justice set a whole-day meeting. Again, tomorrow, it's 
a full-day meeting. Prior to that, there was also another meeting. That will 
only show to you how they will like to railroad the passage of the bill," 
Lagman said.

Lagman, nonetheless, held out the possibility that the proposed measure will 
face significant opposition at the plenary of the lower chamber.

"They should expect opposition from members of the House, also coming from the 
supermajority. There are many members who are against the re-imposition of the 
death penalty. There are I think 14 members who were also part of the 13th 
Congress when this was abolished and 12 of them of them are still steadfast in 
supporting the non-reimposition, There are 26 members of the House who voted 
for the abolition of the death penalty," he said.

"I think we will have that close to our chest. We don't want to unduly alarm 
the leadership of the supermajority. We have significant numbers."

The bill is authored by no less than House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez, Majority 
Leader Rodolfo Farinas and Deputy Speaker Fredenil Castro.

Alvarez had reportedly expressed his intention to have the Lower House approve 
the bill by Christmas.

Lagman, meanwhile, noted that the proponents want to impose the penalty for 
narcotics offenses.

"I think they will like it easier to pass by limiting the imposition of death 
penalty on a particular set of crimes. It's a way of hastening the passage of 
the bill because some might agree to just limit it to drug-related offenses. 
But to those who are against the death penalty, it is immaterial," he said.

"What is important is there should be no imposition. It's against human rights. 
It's not a deterrent. All empirical studies would show that death penalty has 
no deterrent effect."

President Duterte earlier said that death penalty is not necessarily for 
deterring crimes but for retribution.

Lagman's ally and member of the so-called "Magnificent 7", Akbayan Rep. Tom 
Villarin, meantime, cautioned the House majority against railroading the bill.

"This is a public issue. Definitely there would be mobilization against this 
proposal," Villarin said.

"We remind the House leadership that the public is watching. There are 
stakeholders and its the future of our country that we are discussing here. 
Death penalty belongs to the dark ages."

(source: abs-cbn.com)