[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

Rick Halperin rhalperi at smu.edu
Wed Apr 15 12:47:27 CDT 2015





April 15


OMAN:

Medical report postpones death sentence in Oman ---- Family tells Gulf News 
they will not give up their quest for justice



An Omani family is waiting to bring the murderer who killed their father to 
undergo the death penalty after four years of crime investigation.

Despite the court ruling handing out the death penalty, the verdict is still 
pending as the court awaits a medial report which could possibly acquit him of 
the murder.

In 2012, the Salalah police station received a call from a national who found 
the victim wounded with a gunshot.

The Royal Oman Police (ROP), rushed to the incident spot and found that the 
victim sustained severe injuries in the back.

Later, the victim died on the way to Sultan Qaboos hospital in Salalah.

The accused handed himself over to the police and admitted to the crime. The 
victim was identified as Abdul Sharif Bait Marjan.

The accused admitted to the court that he was stalking the victim near his 
residence.

He followed him by car onto the main road and forced him to pull over and then 
shot Abdul Sharif after a heated argument.

In the court hearings, the accused was confirmed to hold a very decent 
government job, as well as being a business and family man.

The case was later referred to a technical medical committee to determine the 
pyschological and mental state of the accsued.

The family spoke to Gulf News and said they will not give up until the accused 
received the death penalty.

Very few murder cases take place in Oman, and most of the murder crimes are 
committed by expatriates in Oman.

(source: Gulf News)








AUSTRALIA:

Charles John Hall: the last man hanged at Bendigo



A link to one of Bendigo's most sensational murder trials can be still seen at 
Bendigo's historic Sandhurst Gaol, even though the complex's transformation 
into a theatre is nearly complete.

Partly hidden by a newly planted garden a stone with "CJH 13.9.97" carved into 
it marks the grave of Charles John Hall, the last man executed at Sandhurst 
Gaol, hanged in 1897 for the murder of his wife, Minnie.

Hall was a local golden boy. He was a popular football player, first for 
Eaglehawk and then North Bendigo, with offers from Melbourne clubs for him to 
come and play for them.

Although he was short, 5 foot 4 inches, he was known as a handy, quick player 
who could make the difference in a game. He was also a keen cricketer.

Minnie Truesdale (Truesdell in some newspaper accounts) was the daughter of a 
local family, nearly the same age as Hall.

The sole photograph of her used in newspaper accounts is blurred and 
indistinct, with no clear expression; she was petite and dark-haired.

Hall, her mother said, was Minnie's first sweetheart.

They were both 19 when they married in 1894. One can imagine a backstory based 
around Minnie's innocence and Hall's local fame on the football ground: 
flirtation, seduction, promises, then pregnancy and marriage.

The child, May, was born a few months after the marriage, but died after only a 
few hours.

A 2nd child, Willie, was born in 1895.

That year, Hall met a barmaid named Eva Scott at a local hotel. She was a few 
years older than he, tall and attractive - and in October of 1895, she fell 
pregnant to her employer.

Early in 1896, Hall lost his steady job at Windmill Hill gold mine for 
neglecting his duties; he had gone playing cricket rather than turning up to 
work. He did find some work tributing - working another's claim in return for a 
percentage of gold found - but could not find a permanent job.

Around the same time, Eva's acquaintance with Hall turned into an adulterous 
relationship. Hall began giving her money to pay her board as Eva was unable to 
work due to her pregnancy.

Eva had her child in July 1896, around the time Minnie fell pregnant with her 
3rd child.

Hall continued his relationship with Eva; when she gave her child to another 
woman to care for some 5 months later, Hall gave her money for the child's 
keep, and the relationship continued.

Meanwhile, Hall's relationship with Minnie deteriorated; he wanted out of the 
marriage, but didn't want to be the one to leave. As part of his campaign, he 
had Eva write a letter to Minnie falsely saying that Hall was the father of her 
child, and would pay for its care and upkeep. The intent was to make Minnie so 
disgusted with her husband that she would leave.

Imagine Minnie's state of mind: she had not long found out she was pregnant 
herself; her husband was not in steady work; and now she held a letter claiming 
her husband was not only unfaithful but would support his illegitimate 
offspring.

Perhaps she feared ridicule if she left; perhaps she feared being alone and 
unable to support herself and her children. For whatever reason, Minnie chose 
to stay, much to Hall's annoyance.

"I've tried everything to get rid of her," he said to Eva.

By the end of 1896, the shine was well and truly off the marriage. Hall wanted 
out; Minnie was angry at his affair and the lack of preparation for the new 
baby and, in December, Hall lost his tributing job.

Willie's cries go unattended

Elizabeth Gowland, who shared a back fence with the Hall family, was used to 
seeing Minnie up early every day, preparing breakfast for Hall and Willie, then 
not quite 2 years old.

On February 11, things were different.

Mrs Gowland woke at 6:30am, earlier than usual, and saw that the blinds on the 
Hall house were still drawn, the doors still closed. She did not see Hall leave 
the house; he had already gone out, seeking work.

Though it was unusual not to see Minnie up and about or hear her singing, Mrs 
Gowland continued with her morning, as did the rest of the neighbourhood.

The neighbours occasionally heard Willie crying, but that was not uncommon. The 
milkwoman came by. She saw a woman's bare legs on the floor in a small spare 
room visible from the kitchen and assumed Minnie was just lying down; she made 
her delivery and left.

The baker delivered a loaf of bread.

The doors stayed closed, the curtains stayed down.

At 11:30am, Hall returned home.

Within minutes, he ran outside to their next door neighbour's house, carrying 
baby Willie in his arms, and crying out, "Min's dead!"

Body found in a bath tub

Neighbour Maria Baxter took Willie from Hall's arms; her son William went back 
to the home with Hall.

They found Minnie's body in the little spare room off the kitchen. Her head and 
arms were underwater in a tin bathing tub; her left knee rested on the ground, 
with the right leg nearly straight. The right shoulders and hips were raised a 
little higher than the left; the exact position of the head was obscured by 
hair floating in the water.

Hall left to find a doctor.

William Baxter touched Minnie's leg, finding it cold and stiff; she had been 
dead long enough for rigor mortis to set in, but not long enough for it to 
pass.

He decided to go and get a constable. On his way out, he passed his mother 
coming in accompanied by Sarah Potts, who lived across from the Baxter family.

The women checked the body and then covered it, still in the tub, with a quilt.

When the police, Sergeant English and Constable McClelland, arrived, they 
removed Minnie's body from the water, finding that her forehead was resting on 
the bottom of the tub, and her abdomen was on its lip.

They moved the body to the bedroom, managing to straighten the arms and legs a 
little in the process, but not much. They noticed abrasions on the knees and 
marks on one upper arm, but no marks on the abdomen, where it had rested on the 
tub's side.

No Eaglehawk doctor could be found quickly, so Dr John Thom - Hall's regular 
doctor - came.

He conducted a quick examination. Seeing nothing unusual, he declared that 
Minnie must have either fainted or tripped, fallen into the tub and drowned.

A magisterial inquiry, convened that afternoon by a local Justice of the Peace, 
came to the same conclusion. Minnie was buried the next day at Eaglehawk 
Cemetery.

Rumours of foul play

The matter might have rested there if not for Minnie's family and neighbours.

They remembered Hall saying that he and Minnie had been out the night before - 
but Mrs Gowland had seen Minnie up late ironing.

Mrs Baxter and Mrs Potts recalled that there had been neither soap nor towel in 
the little spare room. And family members talked to police about Hall's 
infidelity and his borrowing money from them for Eva, and his lies about his 
whereabouts the night before Minnie's death.

Minnie's mother Jane Truesdale was the first to say outright - and to Hall's 
face - that she believed he had killed Minnie.

The colony's Chief Commissioner of Police sent Detective Sergeant Arthur Dungey 
and forensic pathologist Dr James Neild from Melbourne to investigate.

One of Sgt Dungey's first acts was to order Minnie's body be exhumed so Dr 
Neild could conduct a full post-mortem examination, rather than rely on Dr 
Thom's visual examination of the body. This happened on February 23, 1897.

Rumours flew anew when, after the post mortem, Sgt Dungey got a warrant and 
arrested Hall at his parents' home for the wilful murder of his wife.

Hall before the court

In March, police magistrate PJ Dwyer presided over Hall's murder trial at 
Eaglehawk court.

Public curiosity was at fever pitch, with hundreds of onlookers at the 
courthouse. Those few who made it into the courthouse each day witnessed fiery 
exchanges as prosecutor Mr JTT Smith tried to prove a prima facie case of 
murder, and defence solicitors Dr Quick and Mr B Hyett tried to prove Minnie 
had died by accident.

Eva testified that she wrote to Minnie and that Hall gave her money. She also 
said Hall had told her he wished he could be rid of his wife.

Forensic pathologist Dr Neild said Minnie had been murdered.

The cartilages of her nose had been crushed and her front teeth loosened as 
though a strong man had held his hand over her nose and mouth to suffocate her.

Further, he found no evidence of drowning: no water in the lungs or pleural 
cavity, or in the windpipe.

Neighbour Mrs Gowland, who laid out Minnie's body, said there were bruises on 
her face and her nose was no longer straight.

The undertaker also testified her nose was badly swollen.

By contrast, Dr Thom stood by his initial conclusion: death by fainting and 
drowning. He had seen no bruises on Minnie's face when he examined the body and 
the loose teeth were caused by her striking her face on the bottom of the tub.

He did concede that his examination of the body was short and he had not 
removed any clothing.

Members of Minnie's family testified that they had tried to replicate the 
position in which her body had been found: nobody was able to fall into it 
naturally or maintain it. This, the prosecution said, was proof that rigor 
mortis had already started to set in when Hall placed Minnie's body in the tub.

A commercial traveller named Llewellyn Williams said he visited the Halls 
several times in the months before Minnie's death. Over several visits, he 
heard Minnie call Hall "a scoundrel and a wretch" who "knocked her about". He 
saw him hit her on the shoulder hard enough to knock her down the few steps at 
the back door.

At the end of the 3-day hearing, Hall was committed to stand trial for Minnie's 
murder.

The Bendigo trial

Justice Thomas a Beckett brought the Supreme Court to order in Bendigo on June 
24, 1897 and the trial covered much the same ground as the committal hearing, 
with the same lawyers for prosecution and defence.

Again Dr Neild stated that he had no doubt that Minnie had been murdered; again 
Dr Thom said that Minnie's death was due to a mix of syncope (fainting) and 
suffocation by drowning.

The prosecution brought government medical officer Dr Shields to support Dr 
Neild; the defence brought new witnesses to prove Hall was not at home on those 
days when the salesman had said he had seen the couple arguing.

Eva repeated her evidence and added her letter to Minnie was not the first. In 
the past, she had sent a similar letter to the wife of her child's father.

During the trial Hall laughed at jokes and seemed to take the hearing less 
seriously than a man on trial for his life ought to do.

Aware that Hall might not have made the best impression on the jury, the 
defence team tried to repair the damage.

Dr Quick told the jury that Hall's conduct with Eva was not at issue. She was 
his "evil genius", the cause of matrimonial discord, who attempted to separate 
man and wife - but that didn't mean Hall had murdered Minnie.

In response Mr Smith said that Hall's conduct with Eva did matter. Money that 
should have gone to support his own child and pregnant wife had gone instead to 
Eva and her illegitimate child. Hall had convinced Eva to write a lying letter 
to Minnie with the aim of forcing her to leave.

These acts, Mr Smith argued, were proof that Hall had no love for his wife and 
wanted to be rid of her; that was the motive.

By the time the prosecution and defence were ready to sum up their cases, 3 
days had passed.

It was 11:00pm on a Saturday when the final submissions were made, much too 
late for the jury to begin deliberations, so the court adjourned until Monday.

In summing up the case for the jury Justice a Beckett said the initial 
magisterial inquiry was conducted with "a great want of care" and a proper post 
mortem could have resolved many of the questions now facing the jury.

The jury retired at 11:00am and hours later asked for another demonstration of 
the position Minnie's body had been found in, and a local boy of about her 
height was found to be put in the empty tub.

At 5:10pm, the jury returned to the courtroom - without a decision. The 
foreman, Mr Osborne, said they were hopelessly divided and had no chance of 
delivering a verdict.

Hall must be tried again.

The Castlemaine trial: sensational evidence from Eva Scott

Worried that the 1st trial's sensationalism would make it difficult to find an 
unbiased jury the prosecutor, Mr Smith, requested that the second trial be 
moved away from Bendigo.

Defence and the judge agreed.

Hall's next court appearance was before Justice Joseph Hood at Castlemaine on 
July 27.

When the trial started Mr Smith had another, more unusual, request. He wanted 
Justice Hood to caution jurors that, if they had qualms about the death 
penalty, they should say so and stand aside from the jury. He had heard that 
one juror at the Bendigo trial had refused to convict Hall not because he 
thought Hall was innocent, but because he opposed capital punishment.

For the defence, Dr Quick had no objections provided His Honour also delivered 
a similar caution that those who had already made up their minds based on 
"sensational reporting" should likewise relinquish their seat.

Justice Hood declined on both counts and the 2nd trial began.

The evidence was again repeated.

Once again, witnesses testified about the position of Minnie's body.

This time, the prosecution did not just bring testimony. Instead, Mr Smith also 
brought in a wax model - life-size, bent into a replica tub. This did what no 
other evidence in any trial or inquiry had done: squashed Hall's cheerful 
demeanour and brought tears to his eyes.

Once again Eva said she had written to Minnie, and that Hall had given her 
money during their affair - but also added new details.

Hall had told Eva he would marry her; Minnie and her family were always 
"picking" at him, and he had had enough; he would get rid of her and chance 
being hanged for it. She had cramps, he said, and if he held her head 
underwater during one, nobody would know the difference between that and her 
falling and drowning.

Not only that, but he had asked Eva to buy strychnine poison for him to put 
into Minnie's tinned fish.

Although there was no suggestion that Minnie had died of poisoning - and 
strychnine poisoning's convulsions would never be mistaken for drowning or 
suffocation - the accusation made Hall look very bad.

So did the next reported conversation, one that happened after Minnie's death.

"He asked me not to 'put him away' about anything he had said to me about his 
wife," Eva said.

"I said that I would hang myself before I'd tell the detectives anything."

Mr Hyett was quick to try and undermine Eva's testimony in cross-examination, 
demanding to know why she had never mentioned conversations like this before.

Eva said that the defence team "had not considered" her at the last trial, 
painting her as the "evil genius" who aimed to separate man from wife. It 
wasn't revenge; it was because Hall and his defence team showed how little he 
cared for her, so he no longer deserved her protection.

In his closing statement, Dr Quick had one last chance to discredit Eva and he 
took it. The "lack of consideration" that Eva had protested was nothing to what 
came next.

Eva, Dr Quick said, was a perjurer.

"She is a wicked, designing, cruel woman," Dr Quick said. "Would you hang a man 
on the evidence of such a woman?"

Even if her evidence were true, he said, it had no bearing. While it might show 
motive, "a whole mass of motive is not a proof of murder," he said.

"A man might be guilty of adultery. He might be cruel to his wife but, because 
she is found dead, it does not necessarily follow that her husband murdered 
her."

Mr Smith then delivered the prosecution's closing statement. It was simple 
fact, he said, that Minnie could not have fallen into the tub and landed in the 
way in which her body was found.

Addressing Eva's credibility, Mr Smith said he had never heard opposing counsel 
'declaim against' a witness in such a manner. Eva, "depraved as she was, tried 
to shield the man who now sought, through his counsel, to still further blacken 
her character," he said.

"Her feelings being outraged, she decided on this occasion to tell all the 
facts."

Despite rejecting the requests for cautions to the jury at the start of the 
trial, Justice Hood addressed both issues in his summing up. The jury, he said, 
should forget anything they had read in the papers and reach a decision solely 
on the evidence presented at trial.

Further, individual jurors' votes should be based on the evidence alone; they 
could not vote to acquit only because a guilty verdict would see a man hang.

The jury began its deliberations a little past 5:30pm. By 10:45pm, they had not 
reached a verdict, and Justice Hood ordered they be sequestered for the night.

When the court resumed at 9:00am, Justice Hood got a note from the jury saying 
they had not been able to make a decision yet. He took the 'yet' to mean that 
the jury had not given up on its deliberations.

At 10:10am, the jury announced it had reached a verdict. Hall took his place in 
the dock to hear the jury's foreman pronounce him guilty of the murder of 
Minnie.

Hearing the verdict, Justice Hood then delivered the only sentence he could: 
death by hanging.

"Whether the sentence I am about to pass on you will be carried into effect or 
not does not depend upon me, but upon others," he said.

"All I can do is to advise you to trust no longer to the mercy of men, but to 
make the best use of the remaining time left to you in making your peace with 
your Maker.

"The sentence of the court is that you be taken to the place whence you were 
brought and from there to such place and at such time as the 
Governor-in-Council may direct, and that you be hanged by the neck until you 
are dead.

"May the Lord have mercy on your soul."

Appeals for clemency denied

Every sentence of death had to be confirmed by the colony's Executive Council - 
the colony's governor, premier and cabinet.

While Hall waited for their decision, he was transferred to Bendigo by train, 
arriving on August 10, 1897.

He took up residence in the 'condemned' cell, on the ground floor of the 
Sandhurst Gaol. Just as he had seemed unaffected by the stakes at trial, so now 
he seemed unaffected by the sentence passed; reports indicate he ate and slept 
well, and even gained some weight.

The gaol chaplain, Reverend Nugent Kelly, from the All Saints' Church of 
England, visited often, as did family members. A petition for clemency was set 
up by family, and sent to the Governor; members of Hall's family made the trip 
to Melbourne to plead for his life. They had reason for hope; the Executive had 
commuted the last few death sentences to life in prison.

Thus, the Executive's decision came as a shock to Hall's family. There would be 
no mercy, and the time and date of Hall's execution was set: September 13, 
1897, at 10:00am.

The gaol governor, Mr Patterson, reported that Hall received the news with 
indifference, as though he did not believe the sentence applied to him.

That indifference gave way a few days later. Hall stopped sleeping, and ate 
little. He spent more time with Reverend Kelly.

The Reverend's influence and emphasis on penance may explain the letter Hall 
wrote to Mr Patterson a little over a week later.

In it, Hall confessed to killing Minnie.

It was in hot blood, he said. That morning, as he got ready to bathe before 
going out to look for work, he and Minnie had quarrelled over his relationship 
with Eva. He wanted Minnie to cook him breakfast; she told him to go back to 
Eva and have her cook, since he spent so much time with her.

She said, 'A thing like you; you will have to get Eva to help you.' I said, 
'I'll see if I will,' and I caught hold of her by the arms. I then got hold of 
her round the body, and lifted her to put her head in the water. She said 'You 
will kill me if you put me in there.' As I was doing it her head struck against 
the edge of the tub, and I let her go. Her head went under the water. She got 
her head out, but she fell back again. She again got her head out, but again 
fell back. I then caught hold of her, and lifted her out.

She rolled on to the floor. I said 'You can go back to bed now, and I will get 
my own breakfast. That ought to cool your temper.' I went into the kitchen and 
dried my head. I did not finish washing myself. I went back into the room. She 
was still lying on the floor.

I said, 'You had better get up and go back to bed, not lay there like that.' 
She did not move. I stooped down. She was lying partly on her stomach. I turned 
her over on her back. I then saw a mark on the side of her nose. She did not 
move.

I said, 'Min, what is the matter? For God's sake speak. Have I hurt you?'

I thought she was in a faint, and would soon be all right. I carried her into 
the bedroom and put her on the bed and wiped her face. There was some whisky in 
the kitchen, and I got it and tried to get some in her mouth, but I could not.

I began to get alarmed, and I rushed out of the house to go into the 
neighbour's, but when I got as far as the gate I turned back again. I went into 
the room where my wife was. I felt her to see if there was any movement in her, 
but there was not, and the terrible idea rushed to my mind that she was dead.

I cursed myself for my silly action, and I began to think what I must do. I 
knew if I said anything about it I would be arrested, and then I thought of my 
poor mother and father and my child. Knowing that she had been in the habit of 
bathing in the tub, I decided to carry her out and place her in the tub to make 
it appear she had been bathing. I did so, and then left the house.

Although this shows that my wife met her death through my action, I will meet 
my death with the knowledge that there was not the slightest intention on my 
mind of doing her any injury whatever.

Hall's version of events was manslaughter: a horrible mistake, not murder.

Troubled, Mr Patterson forwarded the letter on to Executive Council. Although 
Hall had not written it with the intent of pleading for clemency, Mr Patterson 
said he thought it was only right that such a confession go to them for 
consideration.

But it was to no effect: the council decided, unanimously, that the sentence of 
death would stand.

The hangman

Hall was hanged on September 13, 1897.

He was accompanied by 2 chaplains, including Reverend Kelly, with whom he had 
spent considerable time since the denial of his petition for clemency.

He was reported to be pale of face but unfaltering as he was taken from the 
condemned cell to one upstairs next to the gallows, and from there to the 
gallows themselves.

Asked if he had any final words, he said only, "I commit my soul to God".

The hangman covered Hall's face, stepped back and pulled the lever that opened 
the trapdoor on which Hall stood. Death was reported as instantaneous, with no 
movement from the body visible.

Hall's body was buried in the Sandhurst Gaol exercise yard, with the grave 
marker added some unknown time later.

After Minnie's body was exhumed, it was returned to her grave at Eaglehawk 
Cemetery. Her grave is unmarked.

(source: ABC news)








BANGLADESH:

Mujaheed, SQ Chy appeal hearings April 28



The Supreme Court has fixed April 28 for commencing the appeal hearings of 
Jamaat leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujaheed and BNP leader Salauddin Quader 
Chowdhury, filed challenging the death penalty handed down by the tribunal.

The 4-member Appellate Division bench, led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar 
Sinha, passed the order on Wednesday morning.

On March 25, the defence filed a petition seeking 6-week adjournment in the 
Mujaheed case citing that chief defence counsel Khandker Mahbub Hossain had 
been ill.

Mujaheed filed the appeal on August 12, 2013 seeking acquittal from all the 
charges. He was sentenced to death by the tribunal on July 17 the same year.

Of the 5 proven charges out of 7 brought against him, Mujaheed was given 
capital punishment in 2 - for abetting and facilitating killing of 
intellectuals during the 1971 Liberation War, and participating in and 
facilitating the murder of nine Hindu civilians in Faridpur.

As a leader of Islami Chhatra Sangha - Jamaat's then student wing - Mujaheed in 
1971 had led a "death squad" named al-Badr.

On the other hand, Salauddin was given the death penalty on 4 out of 9 proven 
charges on October 1, 2013 for committing crimes against humanity and genocide 
in Chittagong with an aim to annihilate the Hindu community. He filed the 
appeal on October 29 the same year.

(source: Dhaka Tribune)








INDONESIA:

Indonesia court: No new evidence in Mary Jane case----Mary Jane Fiesta Veloso 
moves a step closer to execution, but her lawyers are planning to file a second 
appeal as soon as possible



Indonesia's Supreme Court rejected the case review request of Mary Jane Fiesta 
Veloso because it did not find new evidence to support it, a local court said 
after receiving a copy of the verdict, which means the Filipina moves another 
step closer to execution.

Marliyus, the lead judge at the Sleman District Court in Yogyakarta who chaired 
the hearings on the convicted Filipino drug courier's case review request, told 
reporters on Wednesday, April 15, that they had just received the March 25 
Supreme Court decision.

"The judges didn't find any mistakes during the previous trials, and Mary 
Jane's (1st) lawyer didn't file a complaint on the translator matter," Marliyus 
said, according to state news agency Antara.

Lawyers for the 30-year-old mother of 2 told Rappler they have yet to see the 
verdict, but will seek a 2nd case review as soon as they receive a copy.

"A member of our team went to Yogyakarta to get a copy of the decision. Once 
the copy is in Jakarta, we will file the second appeal as soon as possible, 
hopefully within the week," Sisca, one of Veloso's lawyers, told Rappler on 
Wednesday.

Translator issue

The matter of the translator was central to the request for the Supreme Court 
to review whether Veloso deserves the death penalty for bringing in 2.6 
kilograms of heroin to Indonesia from Malaysia in 2010.

Veloso maintains she was tricked into bringing the suitcase full of heroin, and 
her current lawyers argue that the lack of a competent translator during the 
first trial prevented her from effectively defending herself.

But during the hearings in March, prosecutors said any objection to the 
translator should have been filed at the beginning of the 1st trial.

In response, Agus said that Veloso's lawyer at the time was a pro bono one 
provided the government.

"Not professional," he said in court.

Veloso's lawyers had been optimistic about their chances. In 2007, the Supreme 
Court granted the case review request of Thai national Nonthanam M. Saichon, 
who was sentenced to death by the Tangerang District Court in 2002 for 
smuggling 600 grams of heroin, because of the same translator issue. Her 
sentence was commuted to life imprisonment.

Transfer, execution loom

Meanwhile, Indonesia's Attorney General said they were preparing to hold the 
next batch of executions after the 2015 Asia Africa Conference.

At least 28 heads of state have confirmed they would attend the international 
summit that will open in Jakarta on April 18 and close in Bandung on April 24.

"It's quite unethical (for us to carry out the executions) while we are 
receiving several heads of state," Attorney General H.M. Prasetyo said on 
Tuesday. "But definitely we will carry it out."

The Sleman court said it would proceed to provide copies of the Supreme Court 
verdict to the high court in Yogyakarta and to Veloso.

According to the Attorney General's Office, once "these administrative matters" 
have been completed, they will transfer Veloso to Nusakambangan prison island 
in Cilacap, Central Java, where the executions by firing squad will be carried 
out.

Veloso, like the other death row convicts, will be placed in semi-solitary 
confinement until her execution, which she will be notified of 72 hours before 
it takes place.

(source: rappler.com)

**********

Japanese man on trial for drug trafficking in Indonesia will donate organs if 
executed



A Japanese man who is on trial in Indonesia for drug trafficking and faces the 
death penalty if convicted said Tuesday he plans to donate his organs to needy 
Indonesians if he is executed, as his earlier plan to donate them to a Japanese 
university may no longer materialize.

Masaru Kawada, 73, from Aichi Prefecture, was arrested at Minangkabau 
International Airport in the West Sumatra provincial capital of Padang on Nov. 
22 after customs officials found 2.35 kg of methamphetamine in his luggage.

On Tuesday, Kawada told the court in Pariaman, about 50 km from Padang, that he 
did not know he was carrying methamphetamine when he was arrested at the 
airport.

"I was shocked when I arrived in Padang and was arrested," he said.

The indictment said a man identified as Edward Mark called Kawada at his home 
in Japan last November and asked him to travel to Macau and that Mark paid for 
his air tickets and accommodations in Hong Kong and gave him $500 in travel 
expenses.

Kawada told Kyodo News in an interview last week that a Chinese woman he met in 
Macau asked him to carry a bag to a friend in Padang. The drugs were later 
found in that bag.

During Tuesday's hearing, Kawada said he had checked the bag and did not find 
anything suspicious.

He said he only realized he was carrying methamphetamine after customs 
officials in Padang arrested him and confiscated it. He flew to Padang from 
Macau via Kuala Lumpur.

Kawada's trial was adjourned until April 28 to hear the sentence the 
prosecutors are seeking. He faces the death penalty if found guilty.

In a will written in Indonesian and Japanese, Kawada said: "If I'm found guilty 
by the judicial panel and am sentenced to 5 years in jail or even more, I will 
surely be unable to return to Japan and most probably, I'll die in Indonesia."

(source: Japan Times)

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

Shock as Saudis behead



Efforts by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo to secure reprieves for hundreds of 
Indonesians on death row in overseas prisons met a sudden setback on Tuesday 
with the unexpected execution of a mentally ill Indonesian worker in Saudi 
Arabia.

The Foreign Ministry announced that migrant worker Siti Zaenab Duhri Rupa was 
executed in the holy city of Medina.

"The Indonesian government expresses deep condolences to her loved ones and 
hopes she receives the best place in heaven," the ministry said.

Jakarta has filed a protest with Riyadh for executing Siti without any prior 
notification.

"The government filed a protest with the Saudi Arabian government for not 
informing Indonesian representatives in Saudi Arabia, or the convict's family, 
about the timing of the execution," the ministry said.

Siti, a 47-year-old mother-of-2 from Bangkalan in Madura Island, East Java, was 
arrested in October 1999 for stabbing to death her Saudi employer Nourah binti 
Abdullah Duhem al-Maruba.

She had gone to work in the kingdom in 1997. It was reported later that at the 
time of the murder Siti was mentally ill.

She was sentenced to death in January 2001, but her execution was delayed until 
the victim's children were old enough to decide whether Siti could be pardoned.

In 2013, Walid bin Abdullah bin Muhsin al-Ahmadi, Nourah's youngest son, told 
the court he refused to pardon Siti.

The execution was carried out despite a plea for clemency written by Jokowi to 
the Saudi Arabian king earlier this year.

2 of his predecessors, the late president Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid and 
president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, also sent similar letters in 2000 and 2011 
respectively.

"The government has done its best to prevent Siti from being executed by asking 
for a pardon from the victim's family members. The government also appointed 
professional lawyer Khudran al-Zahrani to provide legal assistance to Siti in 
every trial hearing," the ministry said.

Last month, Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi directly requested Saudi Arabia's 
deputy foreign minister to approach and ask for forgiveness from the victim's 
family.

"The government also offered diyat [blood money] worth Rp 2 billion 
[US$154,410]," it added.

According to Saudi Arabian law, people sentenced to death for murder can be 
reprieved from execution provided the victim???s family grants a pardon and the 
convict pays diyat. An edict on diyat issued by Saudi Arabian clerics set the 
amount at 200,000 riyals ($4,743) for a female convict and 400,000 riyals for a 
male.

Last year, the government paid blood money to save former migrant worker 
Satinah from being beheaded in Saudi Arabia.

Satinah had been convicted of killing her employer Nura al-Gharib and stealing 
37,970 riyals from her home in Gaseem in July, 2007.

International rights groups have repeatedly voiced concern over the execution 
of convicts in Saudi Arabia.

Amnesty International (AI), for example, had urged the Saudi government to do 
whatever it could to halt the execution of Siti.

"We oppose the death penalty regardless of the situation," AI said regarding 
Siti's death sentence.

The government issued a moratorium on sending migrant workers to the kingdom 
four years ago as part of the government's demand for the Saudi government to 
provide better salaries and protection for the workers.

The directive followed the case of Ruyati Satubi, a 54-year-old migrant worker 
who was beheaded in June 2011 for killing her Saudi employer.

The case triggered public anger after the government said it had only found out 
about the case after the execution.

Efforts to reprieve Indonesian convicts from execution overseas are likely to 
get harder as the government has been adamant about executing death-row drug 
convicts, many of them foreigners, as part of Indonesia's "war on drugs".

6 drug convicts were executed in January and 10 more, including 2 Australian 
members of the "Bali 9" drug ring, are expected to face the firing squad soon, 
9 of them having been moved to Nusakambangan prison island off the coast of 
Cilacap in Central Java.

The series of executions has caused outrage in the international community, 
with the UN human rights office saying that the executions would weaken 
Indonesia's position when arguing on behalf of its own nationals facing the 
death penalty abroad.

According to Foreign Ministry data, there are 299 Indonesians facing execution 
overseas, 57 % of them for drug offenses.

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

Govt urged to end death penalty following Saudi execution



The execution of Siti Zaenab, a domestic worker convicted of killing her 
employer in Saudi Arabia, should become the point at which the Indonesian 
government ends the death penalty, says an NGO advocating for the rights of 
Indonesian workers abroad.Migrant Care said preserving the death penalty had 
led the government to lose its moral legitimacy to push other countries to 
release Indonesian citizens on death row.

"This [an end to the death penalty] would be an initial step to urge other 
countries not to apply the death penalty for Indonesian migrant workers," it 
said.According to the NGO's data, 290 migrant workers working in 5 countries, 
namely China, Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore and Qatar, are involved in 
legal problems and facing the threat of capital punishment. Of the total, 59 
cases have reached a final verdict.

"We are urging the Indonesian government to condemn Saudi Arabia," Migrant Care 
said in a press release on Wednesday.As a protest, she said, the Indonesian 
government must declare the Saudi Arabian ambassador to Indonesia persona non 
grata for the country's failure to notify Indonesian authorities before the 
execution of Siti Zaenab.

Siti Zaenab was beheaded by Saudi authorities at 10 a.m. local time on Tuesday 
in Madina, Saudi Arabia.Migrant Care said the execution was a serious human 
rights violation as the right to life of every human must be guaranteed. 
Moreover, Siti Zaenab killed her employer in self defense following the torture 
she had often received in the 2nd year of her contract. Siti Zaenab had told 
her family about the torture in her letters home.Migrant Care said Siti 
Zaenab's execution violated the Vienna Convention and diplomatic ethics as the 
Saudi Arabia government carried out the execution without first notifying 
Indonesian representatives in the country.

"The government must improve its diplomacy in defending Indonesians threatened 
with execution abroad," it said, adding that Indonesia must continue its 
moratorium on the dispatch of migrant workers to Saudi Arabia.

(source for both: Jakarta Post)

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

President Jokowi Conveyed Condolences as Indonesian National Siti Zaenab 
Executed Without Notification by Saudi Arabia



An Indonesian migrant worker, Siti Zaenab, has reportedly been executed in 
Saudi Arabia on Tuesday (14 Apr 2015).

The government broke the news in an apparent surprise moment, as it 
concurrently conveys a protest over the lack of notification on the execution 
of such death penalty to its citizen in Saudi Arabia. The Indonesian Consul 
General in Jeddah had only received news on the execution of death penalty on 
Tuesday (14/4) at 2 PM Western Indonesia Time.

According to the Foreign Affairs Ministry, no information on the execution of 
the death penalty to Siti Zaenab was conveyed to the country???s representative 
in Saudi Arabia. Siti Zaenab Bt. Duhri Rupa had apparently been executed in 
Medina, Saudi Arabia, on Tuesday (14/4) at 10 AM local time, according to the 
information that was received by the ministry from her Saudi lawyer, Khudran Al 
Zahrani.

"The Indonesian government conveys its protest to the government of Saudi 
Arabia for not delivering a notification to the Indonesian Embassy nor to the 
family (of the convict) on the timing of the execution of the death penalty," 
reads a Foreign Affairs Ministry's press release.

Meanwhile, the news has been reported to Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who 
according to Foreign Affairs Minister Retno Marsudi, is in a deep sorrow.

"President Joko Widodo has received a report on the execution of death penalty 
to an Indonesian citizen Siti Zaenab Bt. Duhri Rupa, in Medina, Saudi Arabia, 
on Tuesday (14/4) at 10 AM local time. The President conveys his deep 
condolences for the death of Siti Zaenab, and prays that the deceased receives 
the best place upon Him," reads an article that was released by the Cabinet 
Secretary website on Wednesday (15 Apr 2015).

According to the news release, the government prioritizes the protection of 
Indonesian citizens abroad, including those facing legal troubles, and had 
attempted 'maximum' efforts to assist Siti Zaenab in her death penalty case in 
Saudi Arabia.

"The Indonesian government has conducted all efforts up to the maximum to 
release Siti Zaenab from the death penalty," stated the Foreign Affairs 
Ministry press release. This included legal actions, alongside diplomatic steps 
that were taken by then President Abdurrahman Wahid, then President Susilo 
Bambang Yudhoyono and the current President Joko Widodo.

On the other hand, Indonesia had in the recent months been criticized for its 
position on the execution of death penalty, especially amidst the execution of 
its own citizens and foreigners over convicted drug cases.

In 1 perspective, the country is seen to have a double standard on the death 
penalty. Whilst the Indonesian government attempts to assist Indonesian 
citizens facing death penalty aboard, the country is not yet close to 
abolishing the death penalty law in its own soil.

Siti Zaenab Binti Duhri Rupa (47) was executed in Saudi Arabia on 14 April 
3015. She was born in Madura, East Java, in 12 March 1968, and had worked as a 
migrant worker in Saudi Arabia, before being arrested for an alleged murder of 
her Saudy employer's wife in 1999. Siti was arrested and imprisoned Medina 
since 5 October 1999. The Medina court had on 8 January 2001 given the death 
penalty in the form of qisash (equal life punishment) to Siti Zaenab.

(source: Global Indonesian Voices)



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