[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide----NIGER., S. ARAB., TAIWAN

[Rick Halperin]

September 3






NIGERIA:

Death penalty: Why govs should give approval for execution — Lawmaker


TO avoid congestion of prisons across the country, a member of Oyo State House 
of Assembly, Mrs. Adekemi Felicia Opatunde, has said it is incumbent on state 
governors assent to death warrants of condemned criminals to allow the 
criminals pay the capital punishment as stipulated by law.

Mrs. Opatunde, an aspirant to Akinyele State Constituency II on the platform of 
All Progressives Congress, APC, in the 2019 general elections said no sentiment 
should be allowed in dealing with the condemned criminals. She said this at the 
launch of Initiative for Social and Community Value Enhancement International, 
a non-governmental organization based in Ibadan, noting that no nation could 
rise beyond its level of fairness, equity and justice. According to her, 
whoever commits a crime and the courts adjudge him or her for death should face 
the prescribed penalty.

She explained that the idea of bringing religion into such matters could not be 
explained as there should not be a confusion of religion with the state of the 
law, adding, “religion is very clear about offence and punishment and none of 
our religions supports a man or woman killing a fellow human being.” She said: 
“In the Old Testament in the Bible, the injunction is so clear that whoever 
kills by the sword shall die by the sword and even, in the New Testament, to 
show that God disapproves of a person killing a fellow being is the creation of 
heaven and hell by God Himself. Anybody that is found under the law to have 
killed deserves no mercy.

“I’m not a lawyer and I don’t claim to be one, but, I’m sufficiently aware and 
informed that a lot of cases are lost from the process of investigation through 
loss of evidence, suppression of facts and other malpractices on the part of 
the investigators. We need to have a rethink on our judicial system towards 
attaining a level of judicious discharge of justice for equity and fairness.”

On her ambition, the aspiring lawmaker said her coming into politics is not 
only to satisfy her personal ambition but to also encourage other women to be 
passionate about politics towards driving women and family issues so as to 
generally improve the society.

(source: vanguardngr.com)




SAUDI ARABIA:

Female Activist Faces Death Penalty in Saudi Arabia, Setting a New Precedent


Saudi rights activist Israa al-Ghomgham went to trial this week and will return 
on October 28, facing the death penalty and if she is found guilty, she will be 
the 1st woman to be beheaded in Saudi Arabia. According to the Washington Post, 
Ghomgham faces charges of participating in protests, “provoking” young people 
to join the protests, instigating a “soft revolution” as the authorities 
referred to it, and going to Iran where she “learned how to create chaos”, 
according to authorities. Ghomgham was arrested in a house raid back in 
December of 2015, according to International Business Times (IBT), and has been 
detained along with her husband Moussa al-Hashem ever since. After being 
brought before Saudi Arabia’s specialized criminal court, they both face the 
death penalty along with 4 other activistis according to the Washington Post. 
They are being tried under Saudi Arabia’s terrorism tribunal by the public 
prosecutor, according Aljazeera, though IBT reports that Ghomgham is facing an 
unfair trial and this process is simply a “show trial.” Preparing to face court 
again in October, the victims on trial have been held for three years now with 
no legal representation, according to Aljazeera, and Ghomgham was unable to 
afford a private lawyer until her father petitioned one, as reported by IBT.

Human rights groups around the world are horrified by the country’s treatment 
of Ghomgham and her fellow activists. The Institute for Gulf Affairs director 
Ali al Ahmed reported to IBT that Ghomgham “the Saudi government is clearly 
trying to use [her protesting history] to send a message that we will not spare 
anyone, woman or not.” Hiba Zayadin a researcher for Human Rights Watch Saudi 
Arabia told NBC “it is unprecedented that they would seek the death penalty for 
a woman.” Direcotor of Campaigns for Amnesty International in the Middle East, 
Samah Hadid, said that the death sentence would “send a horrifying message that 
other activists could be targeted in the same way for their peaceful protest 
and human rights activism,” as reported by NBC. Saudi authorities have yet to 
respond to this international outrage and it may be because “every day, the 
Saudi monarchy’s unrestrained despotism makes it harder for its public 
relations teams to spin the fairy tale of ‘reform’ to allies and international 
business,” according to Sarah Leah Whitson of Human Rights Watch for the Middle 
East, as reported by the Washington Post.

Though Ghomgham is not the 1st Saudi activist to wrongfully face the death 
penalty for peacefully protesting, her death could open door for even further 
human rights violations in the country. It is unforgivable and inhumane that a 
peaceful activist could face these charges and furthermore, undergo an entirely 
rigged and unjust trial. Thanks to human rights watch groups, Ghomgham has the 
world’s attention and now it is time for the appropriate forces to intervene. 
Though this change has to come from within and saving Ghomgham’s life will not 
put an end the unjust and sexist system that she has fallen victim to, saving 
Ghomgham and the five other activists she stands with could be the first step 
to save a lot more lives in the future. This execution must be prevented with 
political and peaceful intervention in order to create a country that people 
like Ghomgham fight for.

Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, and supposedly the real power 
behind the throne is bringing in an era of change, trying to liberalize the 
country’s social order and lessen religious extremism while still maintaining 
an absolute monarchy, according to the Guardian. Salman has lifted the ban on 
women drivers, imprisoned some fellow members of the royal family to weed out 
corruption, and introduced economic reforms, the Guardian continues. But 
alongside many of Salman’s liberal and feminist changes, he is still a 
politically restrictive force–before lifting the female driver ban, officials 
arrested the very activist who were protesting to lift the same ban. CNN 
reports that crown prince speaks for a predominantly Sunni Muslim Kingdom and 
activists such as Ghomgham were in fact speaking out for minority rights for 
Shia Muslims such as themselves, when they were arrested. Thus, despite 
Salman’s liberal reforms, he has still placed Ghogham under the death penalty 
for peacefully speaking out for minority as well as women’s rights. And though 
Ghomgham may be the first woman to be beheaded in Saudi Arabia, the Washington 
Post reports that the country uses the death penalty more than almost any other 
country, committing 146 executions just last year.

As Ghogham and her fellow activists wait for the trial in October, human rights 
groups are continuing to speak out for the human rights violations that she 
faces. The Middle East Director of Human Rights Watch put it simply to the 
Washington Post–”any execution is appalling, but seeking the death penalty for 
activists like Israa al-Ghomgham, who are not even accused of violent behavior, 
is monstrous.” And as Salman and authorities continue to remain silent on the 
matter, Ghogham gains more and more support and solidarity from international 
forces.

(source: theowp.org)



TAIWAN:

Tsai Administration Carries Out Politically-Motivated Use Of Capital Punishment


MAKE NO MISTAKE: The execution of a 39-year-old man in Kaohsiung last Friday is 
a political killing. In all probability, the Tsai administration went ahead 
with the execution as a way to score political points for the DPP in the 
lead-up to 2018 local elections and in order to counter criticisms that it has 
been lax on violent crime.

Lee Hung-chi, 39, was executed by firing squad last Friday. Lee was on death 
row for stabbing his ex-wife to death in 2014 and attempting suicide with their 
eldest daughter, drugging his daughter with sleeping pills while attempting to 
asphyxiate himself by burning charcoal in his car. Although Lee was found and 
rescued, his eldest daughter died a month later while hospitalized. Lee seemed 
to have been motivated by anger against his wife for divorcing her and had a 
history of domestic violence; Lee also reportedly vowed revenge against his 
wife’s family in court.

Lee’s execution is first execution which has taken place under the Tsai 
administration in its 2 years in office. As such, Lee’s execution was the 1st 
execution to take place in 2 years, the last execution in Taiwan taking place 
during the Ma administration’s final days in office. The Ma administration 
ordered the sudden execution of Cheng Chieh, 23, who had stabbed 4 to death and 
injured 24 in a May 2014 subway stabbing incident.

Cheng’s execution was the shortest period of time between a crime committed and 
execution in the post-martial law period, at 23 months. The execution also took 
place only 19 days after sentencing, which was quite unusual, leading to 
accusations that the Ma administration executed Cheng Chieh on its way out of 
office in order to go out on a high note.

Namely, despite strong opposition to the death penalty from youth activists, 
the death penalty is popularly supported in Taiwan, with the view that it is a 
deterrent to violent crime. Presidential administrations are frequently accused 
of using the death penalty to try and prop up their popularity because this 
will be seen as being tough on crime. Presidential administrations have also 
been accused of using the death penalty to distract from other political 
events, such as with a series of executions which occurred in the immediate 
aftermath of the 2014 Sunflower Movement.

In all probability, this is why the Tsai administration decided to execute Lee 
Hung-chi, one of 42 prisoners on death row. Namely, a series of murder 
incidents involving dismemberment of the body after death have proven shocking 
to Taiwanese society in the past several months, and the Tsai administration 
has faced criticisms from society that these murders are because the Tsai 
administration has been lax on crime. As the majority of these cases were 
murders of women by men, it seems quite likely that Lee was chosen for 
execution because the crime he committed resembled these murder incidents in 
the past few months despite taking place in 2014, and the Tsai administration 
faced calls to use the death penalty to prevent future incidents.

The Tsai administration would be following the pattern of its predecessor, the 
Ma administration, which reinstated the death penalty in 2010 after an 
unofficial moratorium on the death penalty. Apart from executing Cheng Chieh 
shortly before it left office, the Ma administration carrying out a series of 
executions shortly after the Cheng Chieh subway stabbing as a way of pacifying 
society.

In particular, Taiwanese civil society groups opposed to the death penalty were 
outraged by the fact that the Tsai administration gave little advance warning 
of its plans to execute Lee in order to minimize protest or legal actions that 
civil society groups could take to try and halt the execution. This also 
continues a Ma era tactic.

As pointed out by the European Union in an official condemnation and by 
Taiwanese civil society groups, as the evidence stands, the use of the death 
penalty does not prove a deterrent for violent crime in Taiwan. In fact, there 
are cases of individuals seeking methods of suicide that deliberately commit 
violent crimes with the intent of being executed. It also proves a problem in 
Taiwan that the death penalty is sometimes misapplied, with cases in which 
confessions were secured by police through force, in which the mentally ill are 
put on death row, or in which both the defendant and prosecution agree that the 
defendant is not guilty, but lawyers retained by the family of the victim are 
intent on pursuing charges.

Unfortunately, the majority of social attitudes towards the death penalty in 
Taiwan being what they are, one does not expect the death penalty to be phased 
out anytime soon in Taiwan. And the Tsai administration, which currently seeks 
the death penalty for some of the culprits of recent dismemberment incidents, 
has made clear that it is fully willing to use the death penalty as a political 
tool. It will continue to be an uphill struggle for civil society groups 
against continued use of the death penalty in Taiwan.

(source: newbloommag.net)