[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Oct. 30



AUSTRALIA:

Dilemma of being left at death's door


With Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's last days in office passing without an act of 
presidential clemency, 2 of Australia's "Bali 9" convicted drug smugglers, 
Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran, remain on death row in Indonesia. They are 
liable to be taken out in the early hours any day to be shot by firing squad.

But even if the new president, Joko Widodo, commutes their sentences, Australia 
and New Zealand seem likely to remain quite isolated in our region in calling 
for abolition of the death penalty. So how should this sometimes forlorn 
argument be carried forward?

Frontal attacks on the "barbarity" of capital punishment only harden attitudes 
in foreign governments, if the Barlow and Chambers case in Malaysia (1986) and 
the Nguyen Tuong Van case in Singapore (2005) are a guide.

By contrast, about 35 Australians have faced court in Vietnam since 2001 for 
serious drug offences and 6 got the death penalty, as the Asian Law Centre's 
Professor Pip Nicholson told a recent forum held in Melbourne by the 
anti-capital punishment group Reprieve Australia. All 6 received presidential 
clemency.

Why did these cases not become a public cause in Australia? Professor Nicholson 
thinks it's partly due to the absence of Australian media in Vietnam, the 
closed nature of many trials, and language difficulties. More critically, 
Vietnam's leaders were given space.

"Those who have been involved in assisting with the defence or working with 
local lawyers in Vietnam on these cases are anxious to let the clemency process 
run its course without necessarily seeing that upset by the intrusion of a 
counter narrative from a Western media source about the inappropriateness of 
the death penalty," Prof Nicholson said.

"It is very helpful to run a moral narrative about a defendant facing serious 
charges in the local press," she added. "So, for example, if your defendant has 
been coerced or manipulated into offending, it is good to get that story out 
there in the Vietnamese press, but it is unhelpful to have Western media or 
foreign media 'sandwiching' the leadership which is minded to consider 
seriously clemency applications from a range of governments."

Lex Lasry, now a judge in the Victorian Supreme Court, acted for Nguyen Tuong 
Van in 2005. "The reality is, looking back at it, I think Van Nguyen was dead 
from the time he was arrested," he told the Reprieve gathering.

But there were lessons to be learnt for future cases. "The most 
counter-productive thing you can do is be insulting," Judge Lasry said. "It 
really ill behoves Australians to be too insulting about countries that have 
the death penalty because, after all, until the 1970s we had a mandatory death 
penalty too."

Another lesson was that there was the start of a debate in Asia which Australia 
could join.

Several countries have already shifted position. Notably, the Philippines 
abandoned capital punishment in 2006. Although they retain the penalty in their 
laws, South Korea has not carried out an execution since 1997, Thailand since 
2009. Rather oddly, Myanmar has not carried out a judicial execution since the 
1980s, Sri Lanka since 1976; although extra-judicial killings have been rife in 
both countries.

Perhaps as a delayed effect of its embarrassment in 2005, Singapore modified 
its law 2 years ago to give judges discretion not to apply the death penalty in 
cases like Nguyen's.

Indonesia, too, is in a bind. It has nearly 200 citizens facing the death 
penalty in Saudi Arabia and Malaysia mostly, many of them female domestic 
workers who struck out against abusive employers.

"The double standard is they defend Indonesian citizens against the death 
penalty overseas, but at the same time in Indonesia they apply the death 
penalty," said Todung Mulya Lubis, a leading Jakarta lawyer who tried in 2007 
to get capital punishment ruled unconstitutional.

China is, of course, the elephant in the debate, almost too big to grapple 
with. According to the Dui Hua Foundation, which helps political prisoners, 
China carried out 2400 executions in 2013. This actually represents a "steep 
decrease" over the last decade or so, says Elisa Nesossi, an expert on the 
Chinese judicial system at the Australian National University's College of Asia 
and the Pacific. In 2002, for example, there were an estimated 12,000 
executions, and further back in 1983 in a "Strike Hard" campaign against crime, 
about 20,000 were put to death.

The drop came after the chief justice of the Supreme People's Court, Xiao Yang, 
called in 2005 for a "Kill Fewer, Kill Cautiously" approach. In 2007, the state 
ordered all death sentences to be referred to the apex court by lower courts. 
"The number of reviews has increased and a lot of cases are sent back to the 
provinces for review," Ms Nesossi said.

A debate continues with some Chinese legal scholars and non-government groups 
arguing for a reduction in the number of crimes bringing the death penalty. 
"But numbers and processes remain opaque," Ms Nesossi said, "with the impact of 
the current campaigns against corruption and unrest in Xinjiang still unclear."

Criminology is part of the debate. Executions have little correlation to the 
rate of crimes they are supposed to deter. Drug seizures are rising in 
Singapore. Hong Kong's murder rate has fallen since it stopped hangings in 
1966.

The possibility of wrong conviction is also too high to allow a penalty that 
cannot be reversed, especially in judicial systems like that of Japan which 
place a high value on confessions, and allow police to isolate and pressure 
suspects into making them.

But there's a moral argument that might be hardest to win. In many Asian 
countries (and the United States), politicians agree with majority public 
opinion that certain convicts deserve to die.

Pointing to a recent opinion poll showing 85 per cent support for the death 
penalty, Japan's then justice minister, Midori Matsushima, declared last month: 
"Japan currently has no intent to change its position on this issue."

Andrew Horvat, of Tokyo's Josai International University, says this stern 
morality quickly leads to criminals being judged incorrigible. "After that, it 
is quite easy to accept the idea that there are people who are so thoroughly 
evil or selfish that they no longer have the right to live," he said.

This also dispatches the idea of redemption, and the lessons it can give. The 
case of Norio Nagayama, convicted for a series of spree killings, is 
illustrative.

As a recent documentary film showed, psychiatric evidence about the effects of 
his abandonment as a child by a mother who was herself abused was kept away 
from the court by prosecutors. In jail, Nagayama became a noted novelist, came 
to terms with the gravity of his crimes and regularly wrote to the families of 
his victims, sending them funds from the royalties for his novels. Nonetheless, 
he was hanged in 1997.

(source: Hamish McDonald is Journalist-in-Residence at the Australian National 
University's College of Asia and the Pacific; Canberra Times)






SOUTH KOREA:

Soldiers jailed over South Korea bullying death Military conscription is 
compulsory in South Korea for males who are able bodied between 18-35


A military court in South Korea has given prison sentences ranging from 25 to 
45 years to 4 soldiers involved in the death of a junior soldier.

Private Yoon Seung-joo, 23, died in April after being beaten and denied food 
and sleep.

Prosecutors had sought the death penalty for a sergeant accused of being the 
main offender.

The case caused anger over the treatment of conscripts and led to the 
resignation of the army chief of staff.

The army said Private Yoon died after being hit in the chest by 6 men while 
eating a snack. The attack caused a piece of food to obstruct his airway 
leading to asphyxiation, it said.

He was also repeatedly beaten in the month before his death.

The judge, quoted by Yonhap news agency, said "no signs of remorse" had been 
found, as the behaviour of the group became "brutal as time went by, and they 
even tried to conceal their wrongdoing".

2 others were charged with assault.

After the verdict, the victim's relatives reacted angrily to the fact that the 
most serious verdict of murder was not given to any of those involved.

A panel of 3 military judges sentenced the sergeant, thought to have led the 
attack, surnamed Lee, to 45 years in prison.

Another sergeant, surnamed Ha, was given 30 years in prison; 2 corporals 
received 25 years; a staff sergeant 15 years, and a private was given three 
months.

"It is inevitable to hand them down severe punishments as what they had done 
constitutes an act similar to homicide," the judge said when delivering the 
verdict.

The case is among a series of incidents that have highlighted problems of 
bullying in the military in South Korea, which has conscription under which all 
young men must serve about 2 years.

In June, a sergeant who said he had been bullied, turned his weapon on his 
fellow soldiers at a border outpost near North Korea, killing 5 of them.

There have also been a series of suicides in recent months involving young 
conscripts.

(source: BBC News)






NIGERIA:

Nigerian child bride accused of murder could receive death penalty


A 14-year-old Nigerian girl accused of murdering her 35-year-old husband by 
putting rat poison in his food could face the death penalty, Nigerian 
prosecutors said today.

The trial of Wasila Tasi'u, from a poor northern Nigeria family, has sparked a 
heated debate on the role of underage marriage in the conservative Muslim 
region, especially whether an adolescent girl can consent to be a bride.

Prosecutors at the High Court in Gezawa, outside Nigeria's second city of Kano, 
filed an amended complaint that charged Tasi'u with 1 count of murder over the 
killing of Umar Sani 2 weeks after their April wedding in the village of 
Unguwar Yansoro.

Lead prosecutor Lamido Abba Soron-Dinki said that if convicted, the charge is 
"punishable with death" and indicated the state would seek the maximum penalty.

Nigeria is not known to have executed a juvenile offender since 1997, when the 
country was ruled by military dictator Sani Abacha, according to Human Rights 
Watch.

Tasi'u entered the court wearing a cream-coloured hijab and was escorted by 2 
policemen.

Her parents, who have condemned their daughter's alleged act, were in the 
public gallery - the 1st time the 3 were in the same room since Tasi'u's arrest 
in April, her legal representatives said.

The English-language charge sheet was translated into Hausa for the accused by 
the court clerk.

Tasi'u refused to answer when asked if she understood the charges.

The case was adjourned for 30 minutes so the charges could be better explained 
to the defendant, but when the alleged offences were read again Tasi'u stayed 
silent, turned her head to the wall and broke down in tears.

"The court records (that) she pleads not guilty," Judge Mohammed Yahaya said, 
apparently regarding her silence as equal to a denial of the charges and 
adjourned the case until November 26.

Activists, including in Nigeria's mainly Christian south, have called for 
Tasi'u's immediate release, saying she should be rehabilitated as a victim and 
noting the prospect that she was raped by the man she married.

But in the north, Islamic law operates alongside the secular criminal code, a 
hybrid system that has complicated the question of marital consent.

The affected families have denied that Tasi'u was forced into marriage, arguing 
that girls across the impoverished region marry at 14 and that Tasi'u and Sani 
followed the traditional system of courtship.

According to Nigeria's marriage act, anyone under 21 can marry provided they 
have parental consent and so evidence of an agreement between Tasi'u and her 
father Tasiu Mohammed could undermine claims of a forced union.

But defence lawyer Hussaina Aliyu has insisted the case is not a debate about 
the role of youth marriage in a Muslim society.

Instead, she has argued that under criminal law a 14-year-old cannot be charged 
with murder in a high court and has demanded that the case be moved to the 
juvenile system.

Nigeria defines the age of adulthood as 17 but the situation is less clear in 
the 12 northern states under Islamic law, where courts theoretically have the 
right to consider people under 17 as legally responsible.

Guidelines for how courts should blend Islamic and secular legal codes have not 
been well defined.

(source: 9news.com)






VIETNAM:

Philippine woman's death sentence scrapped in Vietnam, fresh investigation 
underway


Vietnam's Supreme People's Court ordered a fresh investigation on Wednesday 
into the conviction of a Philippine woman who was sentenced to death for 
smuggling 1.5 kilograms of cocaine into the country.

Following her appeals trial held in Ho Chi Minh City, the court annulled the 
death sentence handed down to Dona Buenagua Mazon, 39, by the HCMC People's 
Court during her 1st trial on August 13, news website VnExpress reported.

The new investigation will be conducted to determine the exact amount of 
cocaine that Mazon brought into Vietnam.

According to the indictment handed down by the HCMC People's Court, Mazon was 
arrested at Tan Son Nhat International Airport at 7:30pm on December 31, 2013 
shortly after she arrived.

Vietnamese customs officers found 2 plastic bags containing 1.5 kilograms of 
cocaine hidden in her hand bag.

Mazon told police she had been hired by an African man known only as Rudica to 
transport drugs. In December 2013, Rudica paid her US$1,500 and asked her to 
enter Vietnam.

He then bought her a plane ticket to Brazil, where she received a bag from 
Rudica's accomplices which she then took to HCMC where customs officials placed 
her under arrest.

Vietnam has some of the world's toughest drug laws. Those convicted of 
smuggling more than 600 grams of heroin or more than 2.5 kilograms of 
methamphetamine face the death penalty.

The production or sale of 100 grams of heroin or 300 grams of other illegal 
narcotics are also punishable by death.

(source: Thanh Nien News)


SAUDI ARABIA:

Saudi Arabia and its merciless judges----60 people have been executed in Saudi 
Arabia since the start of 2014. Even religion-related crimes can carry the 
death penalty, because the kingdom sees itself as the protector of Sunni Islam.


The punishment was harsh, but for some it wasn't harsh enough. Writing on his 
website "Free Saudi Liberals," Raif Badawi had criticized leading Saudi 
scholars and the role of Islam in public life in Saudi Arabia. The judge called 
that "offending faith," and went on to accuse Badawi of ridiculing Islamic 
dignitaries and crossing "the boundaries of obedience." Later, a charge of 
apostasy was also added to the list, which carries the death penalty in Saudi 
Arabia. In July 2013, the sentence was passed - 600 lashes and 7 years in jail. 
Badawi appealed, and in May this year the judge announced a new sentence: 1,000 
lashes and 10 years in jail, plus a fine equal to 195,000 euros ($250,000).

Badawi was sentenced to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in jail

Badawi's fate is no isolated case. In Saudi Arabia, human rights activists and 
critics of the establishment are regularly sentenced to draconian punishments. 
In July this year, one court sentenced the activist Walid Abu al-Khair to 15 
years in jail. According to an Amnesty International report, the judge found 
him guilty of "disobedience to the ruler," "attempted questioning of the 
legitimacy of the king," "damaging the reputation of the state by communicating 
with international organizations," and the "preparation, possession, and 
passing on of information that endangered public order." Al-Khair is also a 
human rights activist who earns a living as a lawyer, and one of his most 
prominent clients is Raif Badawi.

Flexible law

In his ruling, al-Khair's judge also made use of a new anti-terrorism law, even 
though that was not in force when al-Khair was charged. The law, which came 
into force in February 2014, was meant to give the state a weapon against 
"terrorist crimes," a catch-all term that the legislature used to encapsulate 
the following crimes: attempts to "disturb public peace," to "destabilize the 
security of the population of the state," to "threaten national unity," or to 
"damage the reputation or the image of the state." The Saudi judges are now 
basing a number of their rulings on these flexible terms.

In the last 2 years in particular, several Saudi human rights activists and 
bloggers have been sentenced to long jail terms, which has led to a severe 
limitation of press freedom in the country. Saudi Arabia currently occupies 
number 164 out of 180 countries in the press freedom index published by 
Reporters Without Borders.

Meanwhile, the country is close to the top of the table when it comes to 
capital punishment. According to Amnesty, at least 79 people were executed in 
the country in 2013, and 60 in 2014 so far.

Blasphemy

The death penalty is mainly imposed for murder and drug-dealing, but it can 
also be imposed for "crimes against religion." The Shia cleric Nimr Bakir 
al-Nimr was sentenced to death in mid-October for allegedly stirring up 
violence between faiths and organizing protests, as well as disobedience to the 
king.

Saudi Arabia sees itself as the protector of Islam's holy sites

The conviction sent out a signal, according to Menno Preuschaft, Islamic 
studies professor at the University of M???nster in Germany. "It demonstrated 
that they are not willing to tolerate any formof, or tendencies toward, 
revolution or transition," he told DW.

Preuschaft said it was not surprising that so many rulings are based on 
religious laws. The ruling family in Saudi Arabia draws its political 
legitimacy from its role protecting Islam and its holy sites. That role 
justifies its theological leadership position within Sunni Islam both 
nationally and internationally. "From the monarchy's point of view, any 
criticism of religion is a criticism of its own leadership," said Preuschaft. 
"That's also how it defends its own monopoly on power."

Diplomatic challenge

The disastrous human rights situation in Saudi Arabia represents a diplomatic 
challenge for German foreign policy. Saudi Arabia is an important international 
player, both strategically and economically, explains parliamentarian Ralf 
Mutzenich, who sits on committees on both foreign policy and human rights in 
the German Bundestag.

That leads to strains in the relationship, because of the human rights 
situation and the death penalties. "Of course, it raises difficult questions," 
said Mutzenich. "But we can't ignore those. We have to address them openly."

(source: Deutsche Welle)






IRAN----executions

5 executions at Uromiyeh Central Prison


During the last 3 days 5 prisoners were hanged at Uromiyeh Central Prison 
(Darya).

According to the report of Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), at the 
early hours of this morning (Wednesday 29 October, 2014) a death row prisoner 
who was charged with murder and was suffering from serious mental and 
psychological disorder was hanged at Uromiyeh Central Prison area.

This Prioner who was named "Ibrahim Chopani" was a local from Yousofkand 
village located at 3 kilometres from Mahabad city.

A well informed source told HRANA Reporter: "Ibrahim Chopani committed homicide 
in a Tribal brawl. He was carrying a red card and was absolutely insane."

Also at the early hours of Monday 27 October, 2014, 4 other prisoners were 
hanged at Uromiyeh Central Prison.

These prisoners who were named "Latif Mohammadi", "Salah-o-din Molaee", 
"Mahmoud Hassan Pour" and "Rashid Alizadeh" were hanged on Narcotics related 
charges.

(source: Human Rights Activists News Agency)

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

EU Appeals To Iran To Halt All Executions


The European Union expressed its deepest regret over the execution of the young 
Iranian woman Rehanna Jabbari and sent its "deepest condolences to Jabbari's 
family especially her mother". The EU called on Iran to suspend all executions.

The EU's statement went on to explain that Rehanna Jabbari killed Dr Morteza 
Serbandi (aged 26) after he tried to rape her and expressed its growing sense 
of concern of the general direction of court trials in Iran.

Catherine Ashton, the EU High Representative of the Union of Foreign Affairs 
and Security Policy, said in a press statement released on Tuesday, "The 
European Union deeply regrets the Iranian Judiciary's lack of forgiveness in 
their trial process despite Ms Jabbari???s insistence that she was merely 
defending herself in the wake of a sexual assault".

The statement went on to express the EU's, "Sense of concern over the 
increasing number of executions in Iran despite criticism from the 
international community and the debate as to whether or not execution is a fair 
punishment to begin with".

The statement also, "Calls on the Iranian authorities to suspend all executions 
and to consider banning the death penalty".

The US Department of State also condemned the Iranian authorities' decision to 
use the death penalty in Rehanna Jabbari's case.

The EU's statement went on to explain that Rehanna Jabbari killed Dr Morteza 
Serbandi (aged 26) after he tried to rape her and expressed its growing sense 
of concern of the general direction of court trials in Iran.

The US Department of State emphasised that the Iranian judiciary carried out 
the death penalty against Ms Jabbari despite the international community's 
objection to the ruling, as they question whether or not Iran was carrying out 
a fair trial.

The Iranian Revolutionary Court sentenced Ms Jabbari to death a few days ago 
after she had been held captive in prison for killing Iranian doctor and former 
Iranian intelligence employee, Moerteza Serbandi 7 years ago.

Rehanna Jabbari admitted to her crime by saying that she did kill Serbandi out 
of self-defence after he tried to rape her.

The court ruled Serbandi's murder as a pre-meditated attack based on an email 
found in Jabbari's inbox where she wrote, "I will kill him tomorrow", in 
reference to the doctor. The scene of the crime was allegedly open to the 
public.

It is important to note that Jabbari's case sparked an international outcry 
from both women's rights and international human rights organisations.

(source: Middle East Monitor)