[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Sept. 17



CHINA:

Former Housing Deputy Receives Death Penalty for Bribery Charges in China's 
Zhejiang Province


A former senior official of China's Hangzhou Housing Bureau has been sentenced 
to death on Tuesday after a court found him guilty of bribery and abuse of 
power.

Zhang Xin, former deputy chief of the housing authority, was given a death 
sentence with a two-year reprieve on Tuesday by the Hangzhou Intermediate 
People's Court in the province of Zhejiang.

A death sentence with reprieve gives the convicted individual time to make 
amends and show that he has changed his ways.

If the convict intentionally commits another crime during the period of the 
given reprieve, he will be executed. Otherwise, his sentence will then be 
reduced to lifetime imprisonment.

Zhang was accused of taking bribes with a total of 124 million yuan or US$20 
million-worth of vehicles, apartments and cash to aid some people in 
construction projects that involved the agency.

The former housing deputy has also been causing 89 million yuan-worth of public 
asset loses and has been caught embezzling about 10.5 million yuan while 
conspiring with another suspected economic criminal, Dong Yilin.

According to the Xinhua news report, Zhang's personal assets and properties 
will be confiscated while Dong was given a sentence of 10 years' incarceration. 
2 million-worth of assets has also been confiscated from the latter.

On the same day of the housing deputy's sentencing, Zhang Xiaodong, former 
secretary for the Communist Party of China in Henan Province's Anyang City 
stood trial for corruption allegations.

The former party secretary allegedly received bribes amounting to over 21 
million yuan or US$3.4 million for his assistance to some in the construction 
industry to be able to win construction projects and post delegations which are 
supposedly opened for bidding.

He was also accused of being involved in 36 other corruption cases tried in the 
Zhumadian City Intermediate People's Court.

During the trial, he had expressed his regret for committing such crime and had 
vowed to change his ways.

No verdict has been announced as of Xinhua's report on Wednesday.

(source: Chinatopix.com)

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

Top procuratorate wants pushback on death penalty cases


China's local prosecutors were encouraged by the country's top procuratorate on 
Monday to appeal court verdicts when they did not deliver a death sentence to 
criminals who committed capital crimes.

The Supreme People's Procuratorate (SPP) publicized a fifth set of guidelines 
clarifying appealing standards for local procuratorates on Monday.

The guidelines are aimed at curbing local prosecutors' tendency to pay more 
attention to public prosecution than to appealing improper court verdicts, a 
tendency that manifests itself in local prosecutors only appealing light 
sentences, the Legal Daily reported Tuesday.

In one of the three cases cited in the guidelines, the suspect was sentenced to 
death after the local prosecutors appealed a death sentence with reprieve 
imposed in the first trial, arguing that the suspect was a repeat criminal 
offender.

As debate on capital punishment heated up across China, in 2007 the Supreme 
People's Court claimed the right to review all death penalties handed down by 
lower courts. This move indicates that China is not currently considering an 
abolition of the death penalty, Hong Daode, a criminal procedure law professor 
at the China University of Political Science and Law, told the Global Times.

The encouragement by the top procuratorate was partly due to local courts' 
insufficient understanding of prudent judgment and standards for the death 
penalty, Hong said.

A criminal can only receive harsher sentences if prosecutors appealed a verdict 
in the belief that it was lighter than the law demanded, Hong said.

"There is a principle that courts shall not give heavier punishment if it is 
the accused that filed an appeal," Hong said.

But the move also reflects serious conflicts between local procuratorates and 
courts, since courts have increasingly handed down sentences that do not 
correspond with charges filed by prosecutors, Mo Shaoping, an experienced 
criminal defense lawyer, told the Global Times.

Mo said he disapproved of the new guidelines, as procuratorates that have 
already held a strong position during trial should not have their role 
strengthened further.

Courts support prosecutors' accusations in a majority of cases, although recent 
years have seen a slight increase in the number of cases in which courts 
dismissed charges, Mo said.

However, Mo admitted that some local procuratorates had no choice but to 
appeal, since local courts may in some cases be forced by some outside power to 
make an unfair judgment.

(source: People's Daily)

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

Lawyers hope Chinese university professor will be spared death penalty ---- 
China to make an example of Uighur university professor who dared to be a lone 
voice of criticism over its policies in the troubled region of Xinjiang


The only public figure inside China who dared to question Beijing's policy in 
the vast and troubled region of Xinjiang will hopefully escape the death 
penalty at his trial on Wednesday.

Ilham Tohti, a 44-year-old economics professor and ethnic Uighur, has spent 
nine months in detention, being placed in a cell with convicted Han Chinese 
rapists, drug dealers and thieves who are waiting for their appeal hearings.

After he allegedly "quarrelled" with his cellmates, the authorities placed him 
in leg shackles in August which have caused suppurating sores, his lawyer said.

On Wednesday, Prof Tohti will be put on trial for "separatism", accusing him of 
stirring up unrest between Uighurs living in Xinjiang and Han Chinese through 
his website, Uighurbiz, and his classes at a leading university in Beijing.

The case is being closely watched by British and foreign diplomats, and the 
United States has already called for his release.

His wife, Guzailai Nu'er, has travelled to Urumqi for the trial but said she 
has not told the couple's sons about their father's perilous situation.

"My sons asked me: 'Why you are leaving, Mum? When are you coming back? Is dad 
coming home soon?' I can only lie to them that I will come back and he will 
too. My first son was sick for three months after his father was taken away. I 
simply cannot tell them anything. But he is now in second grade in primary 
school and has sensed something when I talked about it on the phone. He heard 
his father was sick and cried," she said.

"I am especially worried about my husband's health," she added "I cannot eat. I 
cannot sleep at night."

There are fears that the Communist party is seeking to make an example of Prof 
Tohti after a spike in violence in Xinjiang since 2012.

After the European Union expressed its concern over Mr Tohti's detention 
earlier this year, Chinese officials wrote a letter suggesting that he had 
played a role in a terrorist attack in Selibuya town, near Kashgar, on April 23 
2013, in which 21 people died.

They also linked him to an attack in Lukqun town, Shanshan county, in which 2 
policemen and 22 civilians died.

In January, the public security bureau in Urumqi tweeted that Prof Tohti had 
called the participants in the 2 attacks "heroes" and had "incited students to 
hate the country and the government and to topple the government".

1 observer speculated that after a dramatic escalation in violence between 
2012, when 12 people were killed in attacks in Xinjiang, and 2013, when 126 
people died, the authorities began making a case against Prof Tohti, who is the 
most famous advocate of Uighur rights.

"Last summer when they went home to Xinjiang there were people following them, 
which did not usually happen," said the source. "And they apparently have five 
to six hours of videotape of his classes, which suggests they have been filming 
him for a while."

If the 2 attacks form part of the charges in court, Mr Tohti could face a death 
penalty.

However, his lawyers said there was no mention of a possible death penalty in 
his indictment and that the maximum sentence should be life imprisonment.

"I cannot see any possibility of the death sentence based on the charges we 
have seen so far," said Li Fangping, one of his lawyers. "I have not seen any 
specific charges linking him to a terrorist attack, except for one saying that 
some young people had read materials on his website and returned to Xinjiang in 
2009 and taken part in riots".

Maya Wang, a researcher at Human Rights Watch in Hong Kong, said it would be 
"hard to stick a charge like terrorism on him". She said: "Even calling him a 
separatist is a problem. He is known for his very measured, moderate criticism 
of government policy in Xinjiang, pointing out, for example, that the policy of 
Han Chinese migration needs to be re-evaluated in light of the unemployment in 
Xinjiang," she said.

1 former student of Prof Tohti wrote in an essay that she was "shocked and sad" 
at his arrest.

"He always expressed sincere but not radical opinions about ethnic minority 
policies and the development of Xinjiang. He sponsored several Uighur students, 
helping them to go to school and find jobs.

"He told us violence cannot solve any problems, including ethnic disputes and 
we should be filial to our parents and not waste our time."

In a lengthy biographical essay written in January 2011and recently translated 
by the China Change website, Mr Tohti pointed out that many of his family are 
Communist party cadres and that he loved "this land which has nurtured me".

He pointed out that he had deliberately avoided being involved with foreign 
organisations, aware that he could be painted as a traitor.

"Although some people today continue to describe me as a political figure, or 
hope that I will become one, from the start I have maintained that I am only a 
scholar, and harbour neither the intention nor the desire to be politicised," 
he wrote.

He added that his website, Uighurbiz, was a platform for exchanging ideas and 
opinions about Xinjiang and was carefully managed "to prevent any 
pro-independence, separatist, or irresponsible inflammatory postings, and it 
does not post anything subversive.

"However, it does not forbid posts that expose social ills in Xinjiang or 
elsewhere, so long as they show good intentions and the content is authentic."

7 of Mr Tohti's students were also detained by police in January and nothing 
has been heard of them since. Among them is Mutellip Imin, who helped to run 
the Uighurbiz website and was a student at Istanbul university.

Mutellip Imin

On his Twitter feedand blog, Mr Imin complained regularly about mistreatment by 
the police and highlighted cases of Uighurs who had been "disappeared" by the 
authorities.

Atikem Rozi

His girlfriend, 23-year-old Atikem Rozi, has also vanished into detention. She 
publicly questioned why her three applications for a passport had been 
rejected, earning herself a rebuke from the authorities and a summons for her 
parents to the local police station.

(source: The Telegraph)






MALDIVES:

Maldives slams Human Rights Council critics after death penalty remarks


The Maldives has accused critics in the UN Human Rights Council of making 
statements "rooted on misrepresentation and media speculation".

The response followed comments made by the Swiss delegation criticising the 
Maldives for its decision to allow the death penalty for minors.

"Switzerland condemns the recent decision of the Maldives Government to amend 
its legislation to permit the death penalty for children as young as 7 years 
old - this is a grave contravention of international law," said the Swiss 
during yesterday's session.

The Maldives has this year amended regulations regarding the death penalty as 
well as introducing a new penal code. Combined, the rules allow for the 
sentencing of a minor to death, though execution cannot be carried out until 
the offender is 18-years-old.

Using its right of reply, the Maldives pointed out that its new penal code - 
passed in April - granted the "immaturity excuse" to all those under the age of 
15.

"The Maldives once again would like to state on record that this Council is 
mandated to do serious work and it is appalling that statements made here are 
rooted on misrepresentation and media speculation," said the Maldivian 
delegation.

After announcing plans to end the 60 year moratorium on the death penalty in 
January, new regulations were finalised in April, enabling the state to carry 
out execution by lethal injection.

Legal sources have told Minivan News that, while the new penal code does 
include the "immaturity excuse" - removing criminal responsibility from those 
under 15, Article 15c still allows for minors to be held accountable for hadd 
offences.

The Maldives legal system follows a combination of common law and Islamic 
Sharia, with homicide considered a hadd offence warranting a sentence of death.

Informing the Human Rights Council of the new Penal Code, the Maldives 
delegation called it "a hallmark piece of legislation that is intended to 
modernise the criminal justice system of the Maldives and to bring it on a par 
with international best standards."

In response to the Swiss remarks made during the general debate section 
yesterday's session, the Maldives noted that it "holds the world's longest 
moratorium on the death penalty".

However, the government's decision to end the unofficial moratorium on the 
practice has been met with global condemnation, with both the EU and the Office 
of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights urging reconsideration of the 
decision.

"We urge the Government to retain its moratorium on the use of the death 
penalty in all circumstances, particularly in cases that involve juvenile 
offenders and to work towards abolishing the practice altogether," said Ravina 
Shamdasani, spokesperson for the OHCHR.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International has called such moves a "retrograde step and a 
serious setback for human rights in the country".

Following a wave of attacks in the country last month, resulting in 3 deaths, 
the Ministry of Home Affairs reiterated that it would not hesitate to implement 
the death penalty.

(source: Minivan News)






BANGLADESH:

Kamaruzzaman appeal verdict any day


The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court will deliver its verdict any day on 
an appeal filed by Jamaat-e-Islami Assistant Secretary General Mohammad 
Kamaruzzaman. The 4-member Appellate Division bench passed the order on 
Wednesday afternoon, keeping the case CAV meaning 'verdict would be delivered 
later'.

On May 9 of last year, International Crimes Tribunal 2 awarded death penalty to 
the Jamaat leader and also a former al-Badr leader on 2 out of the 7 charges 
brought against him.

He was given the death penalty for genocide at Sohagpur and murder of Golam 
Mostafa.

The tribunal said: "It would not be fair, if Kamaruzzaman was not penalised 
with capital punishment."

On June 6, Kamaruzzaman's lawyers filed an appeal petition, challenging the 
tribunal verdict.

(source: Dhaka Tribune)

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

Bangladesh court commutes top JI leader's death sentence


Bangladesh's highest court on Wednesday commuted the death sentence on a top 
Jamaat-e-Islami leader, triggering clashes between police and secular 
protesters who slammed the decision as too lenient.

In a surprise ruling, the Supreme Court said 74-year-old Delwar Hossain Sayedee 
should spend "the rest of his natural life" in jail for crimes during the 1971 
liberation war with Pakistan.

Sayedee's death penalty passed last year by a war-crimes tribunal triggered the 
deadliest political violence in the country's history, and thousands of police 
were deployed before Wednesday's ruling.

"We had expected that the court would uphold his death sentence," Attorney 
General Mahbubey Alam told, adding he was unhappy with the verdict.

Alam said Sayedee was a notorious war criminal and "torturer of women" who had 
forcibly converted Hindus to Islam during the nine-month war, which led to the 
creation of Bangladesh from the former East Pakistan.

Although the ruling was likely to appease hardliner blamed for last year's 
deadly clashes, violence erupted on Wednesday between police and hundreds of 
angry protesters.

Police fired tear gas and a water cannon at demonstrators who had converged on 
Dhaka University.

Armed with batons, police tried to disperse the protesters who shouted slogans 
and hurled stones at officers. Popular preacher - Sayedee was vice-president of 
Jamaat-e-Islami, the country's largest Islamist party, and a popular preacher 
when he was found guilty in February last year. Many supporters claimed to have 
seen his face on the moon in a mark of his "saintly" status.

His conviction on 8 charges of murder, rape and persecution of Hindus sparked 
riots by tens of thousands of supporters nationwide, leaving more than 100 
people dead. Sayedee's lawyer said he was dissatisfied with the latest ruling, 
adding his client should have been acquitted on all charges. "The evidence 
against him does not warrant conviction or sentencing even for a day," lawyer 
Tajul Islam told.

Sayedee is among about a dozen Islamic leaders to have been convicted by the 
much-criticised war crimes tribunal set up by the secular government to 
investigate atrocities during the 1971 conflict.

(source: The News)






ISRAEL:

Calls for Death Penalty Against Repeat Terrorist Murderer----Arutz Sheva speaks 
to family of superintendent Baruch Mizrahi, as trial starts on his murderer - a 
terrorist freed in the Shalit deal.


The military court at Ofer on Wednesday morning opened proceedings against the 
father and son terrorist duo that killed police Chief Superintendent Col. 
Baruch Mizrahi hy''d in April, as he drove to Kiryat Arba for a Passover seder 
meal with his pregnant wife and 3 of his children.

Mizrahi's murderer was Ziyad Awad, one of 1,027 terrorists freed in the 2011 
Gilad Shalit deal. In carrying out the attack the terrorist from the town of 
Idna, located to the west of Hevron, was aided by his 18-year-old Az a-Din who 
gathered up evidence after the shooting.

Members of the Almagor terror victims organization arrived at the court in the 
name of the bereaved family, and demanded the death penalty against the 
terrorist.

Given the nature of the crime and the fact that Awad returned to terror, 
Almagor argued he was deserving of the death penalty, and likewise called for 
life imprisonment for Az a-Din.

In the attack Mizrahi's pregnant wife Hadas was wounded, and a child in another 
car was also lightly wounded.

"I was unable to enter the discussion and so I stayed outside," said Hadas, 
noting that she was unable to look at the "monsters" who murdered her husband 
in cold blood. "I hope that the state of Israel will change its stance and rule 
the death penalty against the murderer."

Talking about the experience of her family since the brutal murder, Hadas noted 
"this is a huge difficulty that is impossible to describe. The children go to 
kindergarten and school without their dad who so wanted to accompany them for 
the first time. It's very hard for the family. We hope to rehabilitate, we will 
get up and try to be a happy family, despite the enormous difficulty."

If Israel used the death penalty, Mizrahi "would be alive"

Security forces demolished the home of the 42-year-old Awad in July, after a 
court overruled a petition against the move.

The judges noted that Az a-Din was involved "up to his neck" in carrying out 
the attack, and that Awad's wife was also well aware of the weapons stored in 
the home.

Police investigations revealed that Awad told his son Az a-Din that his motive 
for murdering Mizrahi was religious, and that "according to the religion of 
Islam, everyone who kills a Jews goes to paradise."

Awad was previously jailed for murdering Palestinian Arabs suspected of 
cooperating with Israel, before being released in the Shalit deal.

Hadas noted that if the terrorist had been handed a death sentence her husband, 
head of the Technology Division in the Sigint Unit, would still be alive today.

"Had they not had a bargaining chip, and had they not known that they can be 
freed - Baruch would have been alive," said Mizrahi. "A death sentence is the 
solution and we would like to hope that the state of Israel will give 
terrorists death sentences, not a prison sentence that is a 5-star hotel and 
not a university for training for the next terror attacks."

Reenacting the event, a tearful Hadas said "we were driving to the seder in our 
car when (the terrorist) shot at us, he hit Baruch in the head, I managed to 
hide our children." Hadas was able to regain control of the car and prevent it 
from crashing despite being shot in the back.

(source: Israel National News)