[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

March 31




PHILIPPINES:

VACC: Road-rage crimes call for revival of death penalty



The founding chairman of the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) on 
Saturday again pushed for the reimposition of the death penalty in the 
Philippines over the recent spate of road-rage crimes in different areas in the 
country.

Dante Jimenez cited the killing of road-rage victim Larry Fortaleza, 54, who 
was gunned down in Pasay City last March 17.

Police identified the suspect, who is still at large, as Rey Dongon, aged 
between 24-26 years old, and a resident at Upper Narra Street, Barangay Payatas 
B in Quezon City.

Jimenez, who was at the victim’s wake at the Santa Rita de Cascia Chapel on 
Quirino Avenue, Baclaran in Parañaque City on Friday, decried the apparently 
unchanging trend in violent crimes committed by perpetrators.

The victim will be interred at Providence Park in Dasmariñas, Cavite on March 
30, after a Mass at the same chapel at 1:30 p.m.

Having just attended the burial of 16-year-old Christine Silawan, who was 
violently murdered in Lapu-Lapu City in Cebu also this month, Jimenez expressed 
serious concern over the killing of Fortaleza, and aired his urgent appeal for 
legislators, especially those running for reelection in the midterm elections 
on May 13, to seriously consider the implications of the incident in terms of 
law and order and public safety.

“I hope that legislators, especially during this election season, will give 
particular attention to the reimposition of the death penalty for heinous 
crimes. We believe that since there is no clear substitute that would give 
justice to victims’ lives, the death penalty is the closest we can muster to 
get justice for victims of heinous crimes,” he said in a statement.

Jimenez exhorted the public to support the crusade for the reinstatement of 
capital punishment, saying the murder of Fortaleza exposes a looming breakdown 
of law and order.

“This outrageous incident should now send the message for government to draw 
the line and put an end to such heinous crimes. It is now time to reinstate the 
death penalty and restore public order and sanity in society,” he said.

(source: The Manila Times)








MALAYSIA:

Malaysia urged to abolish death penalty by inmates’ families



Malaysia-urged-to-abolish-death-penalty-by-inmates’-familiesFamilies and 
friends of death row inmates petitioned the Malaysian government to repeal its 
mandatory death penalty on Friday. Earlier this month, the government 
backtracked on its decision to scrap capital punishment in the country.

Friends and kin of more than 20 death row inmates gathered in Putrajaya and 
sent a memorandum to the Malaysian Home Ministry, calling on the government to 
repeal mandatory capital punishment, and to pardon the inmates, some of whom 
have been in jail for decades.

“They are feeling very sad,” one friend of a death row inmate told Arab News. 
“Every family member was expressing their feelings about living without a child 
or a husband (to the government).”

The man, who asked to remain anonymous, is a friend of Mainthan, a death row 
inmate convicted of murder who has served 14 years in jail. Mainthan has 
maintained his innocence throughout his sentence and exhausted multiple avenues 
of appeal. “I’ve known him for the past two years,” his friend said. “I was 
really heartbroken — nobody should live like that. We are in 2019, not the 
1990s.”

“The family is getting worse day by day,” he continued.

“It’s a family without a father. Even though the father is alive, he is not 
there to guide the family. It’s like there’s food in front of you, but you are 
not allowed to taste it. The kids are there (at the prison), but they are not 
able to hug … their father.”

In October last year, the Malaysian government announced it would abolish the 
mandatory death penalty for 33 offenses. However, in early March, Mohamed 
Hanipa Maidin, deputy minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, told 
Parliament that the government would instead push for the abolishment of the 
mandatory death penalty for 11 offenses.

Those offenses include nine that fall under the Penal Code involving terrorism 
and serious crimes, including murder, hostage-taking, organized crime, offenses 
against the constitutional monarch, and the use of firearms.

Friends and kin of more than 20 death row inmates gathered in Putrajaya and 
sent a memorandum to the Malaysian Home Ministry

Hanipa Maidin said that courts would be authorized to decide whether a person 
who had committed a serious crime should face capital punishment.

The March announcement met with criticism from human rights groups. The 
Malaysian Coalition Against the Death Penalty released a statement 
acknowledging the progress made by the government in abolishing the death 
penalty for 11 offenses, but expressing its concern over Malaysia’s justice 
system.

“We are concerned that, at the moment, there is still no developed 
jurisprudence, protection for the vulnerable, and no sentencing guidelines for 
the court to consider in exercising its discretion over whether to hand down a 
death sentence,” the group said.

Kasthuri Patto, a politician from the Democratic Action Party who attended last 
month’s World Congress Against the Death Penalty in Brussels is an advocate for 
the abolition of the death penalty, but emphasized the need for awareness and 
education on the matter.

“It is important to remember that … the death penalty cannot simply be 
(phrased) as a yes or no question,” Patto told Arab News. “There must be a 
series of questions that empower the person answering them with knowledge about 
the death penalty.”

She added: “We need to away from a retributive approach and move toward 
forgiveness and providing a second chance to death row convicts.”

The government has told Patto, she said, that the moratorium on executions 
would remain indefinitely, but that the final decision over prisoners’ fates 
lies with the Pardons Board. “While no government should discount the emotional 
argument, as a government, we must also do what is right as per Article 5 of 
the Federal Constitution, the supreme law of the land, that the right to life 
must reign paramount to the act of extinguishing lives,” she said.

(source: dailytimes.com.pk)








BRUNEI:

Brunei defends tough new Islamic laws against growing backlash



Brunei has defended its right to implement Islamic laws that would allow death 
by stoning for adultery and homosexuality against growing global criticism.

Brunei, a Muslim-majority former British protectorate with a population of 
around 400,000, will implement the Sharia laws from April 3, punishing sodomy, 
adultery and rape with the death penalty, including by stoning, and theft with 
amputation.

The laws, elements of which were first adopted in 2014 and which have been 
rolled out in phases since then, will be fully implemented from next week, the 
prime minister’s office said in a statement on Saturday.

“The (Sharia) Law, apart from criminalizing and deterring acts that are against 
the teachings of Islam, also aims to educate, respect and protect the 
legitimate rights of all individuals, society or nationality of any faiths and 
race,” the statement said.

Some aspects of the laws will apply to non-Muslims.

Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, 72, is the world’s 2nd-longest reigning monarch and is 
prime minister of the oil-rich country. He ranks as one of the world’s 
wealthiest people.

Brunei, which neighbors 2 Malaysian states on Borneo island, already enforces 
Islamic teachings more strictly than Malaysia and Indonesia, the other majority 
Muslim countries in southeast Asia. The sale of alcohol is banned and 
evangelism by other religions is forbidden.

The country does not hold elections, but any discontent is assuaged with 
generous government polices including zero taxes, subsidized housing, and free 
healthcare and education.

The expected implementation of the strict Islamic laws has drawn widespread 
criticism. Politicians in Europe and the United States have attacked the plans 
and raised concerns with Brunei.

“Stoning people to death for homosexuality or adultery is appalling and 
immoral,” former U.S. vice president Joe Biden said in a Twitter post on 
Friday. “There is no excuse - not culture, not tradition - for this kind of 
hate and inhumanity.”

Oscar-winning actor George Clooney has called for a boycott of luxury hotels 
owned by The Brunei Investment Company, such as the Beverly Hills Hotel, the 
Dorchester in London and the Plaza Athenee in Paris.

(source: Reuters)

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

Elton John backs boycott of Brunei hotels ahead of anti-gay law



Elton John has backed calls to boycott hotels owned by the Brunei Investment 
Agency as the country prepares to introduce the death penalty for gay people on 
3 April.

The popstar posted about Brunei’s new laws—which will also see adultery 
punishable by death—on Twitter where he said that being able to choose who we 
love is “a basic human right.”

“Wherever we go, my husband David and I deserve to be treated with dignity and 
respect—as do each and every one of the millions of LGBTQ+ people around the 
world,” Elton John said.

He continued: “I commend my friend, George Clooney, for taking a stand against 
the anti-gay discrimination and bigotry taking place in the nation of Brunei—a 
place where gay people are brutalized, or worse—by boycotting the Sultan’s 
hotels.

“Our hearts go out to the good, hardworking employees of properties owned by 
the Sultan of Brunei, many of whom we know to be gay.

“We must send a message, however we can, that such treatment is unacceptable. 
That’s why David and I have long refused to stay at these hotels and will 
continue to do so.

“We hope you will join us in solidarity.”

He then tweeted a list of the hotels that people should boycott. Elton John and 
George Clooney have led calls for a boycott of Brunei owned hotels

Elton John’s calls for a boycott come just days after George Clooney penned an 
op-ed for Deadline in which he said that he would be boycotting the hotels—and 
called on others to do the same.

He wrote: “Every single time we stay at or take meetings at or dine at any of 
these nine hotels we are putting money directly into the pockets of men who 
choose to stone and whip to death their own citizens for being gay or accused 
of adultery.”

“Brunei is a Monarchy and certainly any boycott would have little effect on 
changing these laws. But are we really going to help pay for these human rights 
violations? Are we really going to help fund the murder of innocent citizens?”

“We must send a message, however we can, that such treatment is unacceptable. 
That’s why David and I have long refused to stay at these hotels and will 
continue to do so.”– Elton John

It emerged just last week that Brunei—an Asian country with a population of 
just 500,000 people—was set to introduce whipping and death by stoning for gay 
people and those accused of adultery.

The country first introduced elements of Islamic criminal law in 2014 and said 
that they would be implementing it fully over the course of three stages.

Last week, human rights group The Brunei Project said that the government was 
now “rushing through the final 2 phases concurrently.”

Brunei has said the law will ‘deter’ people from acts that are ‘against the 
teachings of Islam’

The prime minister’s office in Brunei yesterday confirmed to Reuters that the 
new laws will be coming into effect in due course, and defended their actions.

“The (Sharia) Law, apart from criminalizing and deterring acts that are against 
the teachings of Islam, also aims to educate, respect and protect the 
legitimate rights of all individuals, society or nationality of any faiths and 
race,” the statement said.

Homosexuality was already illegal in Brunei but was previously punishable by up 
to 10 years in prison.

On Friday (29 March) the UK government warned British citizens travelling to 
Brunei of the potential impact of the new laws.

“Corporal and capital punishment goes against our national values and has been 
banned in the United Kingdom for decades,” a Foreign and Commonwealth Office 
spokesperson told PinkNews.

“The Minister for Asia and High Commissioner have raised their concerns in 
person, and we have updated the travel advice to warn British citizens of the 
new local laws in Brunei.”

The Foreign Office also confirmed to PinkNews that minister of state Mark Field 
has written to Dato Erywan, Brueni’s minister for foreign affairs, to reiterate 
the department’s concerns over the anti-LGBT+ legislation.

(source: pinknews.co.uk)








SAUDI ARABIA:

Saudi Arabia Seems Headed for Highest Execution Rate in Over 20 
Years----Foreigners account for vast majority of executions, where the most 
frequent method is believed to be beheading



With Human Rights Watch (HRW) saying that Saudi Arabia has already put to death 
49 people this year, the Gulf kingdom is apparently on track to register one of 
its highest execution rates – certainly, the highest in more than 2 decades.

By this time last year, the Saudis had executed 39 people, according to HRW. If 
Riyadh keeps up the current rate, close to 180 people will have been executed 
by the end of 2019, compared to 148 in 2018.

The Qatar-based Gulf News has placed the number of executions so far this year 
at 43. The record was set in 1995, with 192 people put to death.

Beheading is believed to be the most frequent method of implementing the death 
penalty in the kingdom, and eligible offenses include murder, rape, drug 
smuggling, apostasy and the practice of magic.

“The Saudis don’t reveal specific information,” Adam Coogle, a Middle East 
researcher at HRW, told The Media Line. “We assume [the executions] to be 
beheadings, although another method they occasionally use is firing squads. 
Occasionally, they’ll announce executions.”

Another method is stoning, usually for adultery. On occasion, the body of 
someone who has been executed has been crucified and placed on display.

Coogle said that the vast majority of those put to death in Saudi Arabia are 
foreigners, with 33 out of the 49 people executed so far this year being 
non-Saudis. He added that Pakistan tends to be the country of origin for most 
of these foreigners. Further, he said, it’s believed that non-violent drug 
offenses have accounted for 26 of this year’s executions, compared to 20 at 
this time last year.

“Ninety-nine percent of capital punishment cases are for murder and drug 
smuggling,” Coogle told The Media Line. “Its use for murder is due to the 
application of Shari’a Law’s ‘eye for an eye’ punishment, but drug smuggling is 
where [the authorities] have discretion.”

According to Andreas Krieg, an assistant professor at King’s College London’s 
School of Security Studies and a fellow at the college’s Institute of Middle 
Eastern Studies, the regime overseen by Mohammad bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s 
crown prince and often referred to simply as MbS, has charged people for 
capital crimes such as treason and espionage without bringing evidence in order 
to clamp down on political opposition.

“MbS’s regime has developed an allergy against any form of potential dissidence 
that could turn against it, thereby using any means necessary to repress 
activism,” Krieg told The Media Line. Charges punishable by death, he added, 
were “being used to suppress civil society and ensure that MbS’s regime can 
consolidate its power amid a highly contested political environment in Saudi 
Arabia.”

Saudi Arabia is third in the world for executions, behind China and Iran. 
According to Amnesty International’s figures from 2017, Iran accounted for 60% 
of the capital punishment applied in the Middle East and North Africa, with 
Saudi Arabia at 17%.

According to Krieg, despite the crown prince’s declared modernization campaign, 
which includes permitting women to drive, the number of executions in Saudi 
Arabia has increased dramatically under his reign, which began in June of 2017.

“Under MbS, Saudi Arabia has not really become more liberal except from some 
social changes,” Krieg said.

According to the human rights organization Reprieve, there were 67 executions 
in the 8 months leading up to MbS’s rule compared to 133 during the first 8 
months of his tenure.

“Saudi society is worse off than before MbS took office because decisions were 
made by the whole family. Now they’re made by just 1 person,” Mohammed 
Almahfali, a researcher at Lund University’s Center for Middle Eastern Studies 
in Sweden, told The Media Line. “MBS wants to… show the West that Saudi laws 
and society are becoming more modern when they’re really based on terror. At 
the end of the day, Saudi Arabia is not a democracy.”

The Saudis have never been forthright about why the number of executions has 
increased, but HRW’s Coogle suspects it has to do with the overall political 
situation in the Middle East.

“There has been a regional movement of states back to the death penalty,” he 
told The Media Line, and these country’s “want to look tough in the face of 
regional insecurity.”

Pakistan resumed use of the death penalty in 2015, with Jordan following suit 
in 2017.

In this way, it appears that Saudi Arabia will not be cutting its beheading 
rates anytime soon.

(source: themedialine.org)