[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Feb. 10



CHINA:

Chinese court brandishes new penalty post erronous death sentence; aims to 
overhaul legal reforms----While wrongful executions have often stirred outrage, 
capital punishment itself has wide support from the public.



A court in China sentenced a man to death on Monday for crimes including the 
murder and rape of a woman in 1996 which another person was wrongly executed 
for before being exonerated last year, state media reported.

Zhao Zhihong, 42, was detained in 2005 and confessed to a series of rapes and 
murders, including 1 in a public toilet in Inner Mongolian capital Hohhot in 
1996 that was blamed on Huugjilt, then aged 18.

Huugjilt, who like many Chinese Mongols used just a single name, was later 
executed. A court in December overturned his conviction and awarded his parents 
- who attended Zhao's verdict hearing - compensation. The court additionally 
ordered Zhao to pay 102,768 yuan ($16,445) in compensation to his victims.

China has embarked on legal reforms, including reducing the use of the death 
penalty, as public discontent mounts over wrongful punishment. While wrongful 
executions have often stirred outrage, capital punishment itself has wide 
support from the public.

Anti-death penalty campaigners say China uses the death penalty far more than 
other countries. The government does not release the number of executions it 
carries out, deeming it a 'state secret'.

(source: Daily News & Analysis)

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

SA cop held in Hong Kong for drug smuggling



A South African police officer has been arrested in Hong Kong for allegedly 
trafficking drugs, it was reported on Tuesday.

Sergeant Busisiwe Zungu was arrested at Hong Kong International Airport, 
reported The Mercury.

Zungu's arrest came as a shock to her family and friends who described her as a 
law-abiding citizen who "was very proud of her clean record".

Her police partner also described her as a hard worker.

Zungu has been suspended from the Saps who are also conducting their own 
investigation into the alleged trafficking.

Patricia Gerber, head of Locked Up, an organisation that assists South Africans 
arrested overseas for drug smuggling, says China unfortunately has the death 
penalty for drug-related offences.

Last month, a Johannesburg father was sentenced to death in Malaysia after he 
was found guilty of drug smuggling.

Deon Cornelius was found guilty of smuggling 2kg of methamphetamine into 
Malaysia when he landed at Penang International Airport on 4 October 2013, 
News24 reported.

Gerber says many of those who get arrested are decoys and not mules.

"They [the mules] travel all over the world and are protected by corrupt police 
and airport authorities," Gerber said in an email to News24.

"The decoy on the other hand is a person who is recruited by means of 
manipulation, coercion and are threatened at times.

"They are recruited for the sole purpose [of being] arrested so that the drug 
mules can walk through with the larger amounts, this is done unbeknown to the 
decoy.

"Before the arrival of the decoy the airport receives a tip off ... The mules 
do have a hassle-free passage."

In 2011, South African woman, Janice Linden was executed in China for drug 
smuggling, reported Sapa.

She was arrested in Guangzhou in November 2008 after she was caught with 3kg of 
crystal methamphetamine (tik) in her luggage. She was convicted of drug 
smuggling in 2009.

(source: news24.com)

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

Killer's death penalty a lesson in law



The trial of Zhao Zhihong, a serial killer found guilty of 21 crimes, not only 
displays China's resolve to promote justice, but also offers a chance for the 
entire society to better understand the rule of law.

A court in north China on Monday sentenced Zhao to death for crimes including 
multiple murder, rape, robbery and larceny. Among the convictions was one Zhao 
was found to have committed in a public toilet in Hohhot in 1996, for which 
Huugjilt, an innocent man who was 18 years old at the time, was wrongfully 
executed.

Huugjilt was acquitted after a retrial last year found that the evidence was 
questionable and inadequate, 18 years after his execution.

Monday's conviction has attracted wide public attention as it is linked to the 
miscarriage of justice against the teenager in the sense that it was Zhao's 
confession that brought the wrongful execution to light.

Also, Zhao's guilt supports Huugjilt's innocence.

However, in other aspects, the two cases should be regarded as having no 
bearing on each other. Huugjilt's acquittal was not based on Zhao's sentence, 
and the crime of the latter was rightfully proven by valid evidence, not the 
young man's innocence.

More importantly, against the backdrop of China determining to improve the rule 
of law, the trial and sentencing of Zhao should not be taken as an act of 
revenge for Huugjilt's tragic mistreatment.

After all, this is not the end of Huugjilt's case. Those who were responsible 
for his wrongful conviction should be held accountable, and efforts must be 
made to prevent such a tragedy from happening again.

China's criminal and procedural laws are made not only to punish crime but also 
to protect innocent people from undeserved penalties.

Furthermore, the legal rights of suspects and convicted criminals, as long as 
they have not been deprived of them by due process, should also be properly 
observed.

To that end, procedures regarding both Zhao and other people involved in 
Huugjilt's case must be conducted with due prudence and in strict accordance 
with the law.

Even after Zhao's conviction, it should be noted that he still has his right to 
appeal and his death sentence is still subject to final approval by the Supreme 
People's Court.

In this sense, Zhao's case has provided the entire society, including the 
judiciary system, the media and the public, with a chance to understand that 
justice for everyone, whether innocent or guilty, matters.

It is only with efforts to strictly implement the rule of law and respect the 
legal rights of everyone, even perpetrators of crime, that members of society 
can be reassured that no one will be subject to capricious judgement.

That is also the reason why Zhao, despite his despicable motives and cruelty, 
also deserves a fair trial and justice.

(source: Shanghai Daily)








AUSTRALIA:

AFP unrepentant over its role in Bali 9 capture



The Australian Federal Police remains unrepentant for its role in putting Bali 
Nine drug traffickers Myuran Sukumaran and Andrew Chan on death row, despite 
mounting criticism.

In an explosive opinion piece on news.com.au on Friday, barrister Bob Myers 
gave a scathing assessment of the AFP's involvement in the affair, saying the 
agency would have blood on its hands if the pair was put to death.

Now, other influential voices have slammed the federal police, saying its 
actions had led to the imminent death of the Bali 9 ringleaders.

The AFP has admitted it disclosed information to Indonesian authorities that 
"ultimately led to the arrest of the Bali 9".

Speaking on ABC TV's Q&A last night, influential broadcaster Alan Jones 
condemned the AFP.

"Instead of preventing these people from going (to Bali), they gave all the 
information to the Indonesian police and virtually said to them, 'Do with them 
what you will'," he said.

Jones said the aim of handing over the details was to capture the "big boys" in 
the drug trade, but said the AFP had failed to uncover them.

"So what have we got in return for the noble behaviour of the federal police? 2 
dead Australians," Jones said.

"It's shame on the Indonesian system, but a pronounced shame on the federal 
police system."

What had Jones most fired up?

Former Labor foreign minister Bob Carr told The Saturday Paper that the AFP had 
"an obligation to explain why (the Bali 9) were effectively delivered into a 
jurisdiction that applies capital punishment, when it appears there was enough 
evidence to arrest them on Australian soil".

In 2005, Mr Myers tipped off the AFP that Bali 9 member Scott Rush was about to 
engage in illegal drug activities in Bali.

In Friday's story, Mr Myers said the force had deliberately lied to him at the 
time and had written to Indonesian authorities to disclose the names, dates of 
birth and passport numbers of members of the drug smuggling syndicate.

"The fact is that this group of 9 young Australians was exposed to the almost 
inevitable imposition of the death penalty by a deliberate, premeditated 
decision of the Australian Federal Police," Mr Myers said.

"There is no doubt that the federal police has knowledge that the information 
that they were providing to the Indonesian authorities would likely result in 
the loss of Australian lives."

But the AFP has rejected Mr Myers' version of events, despite admitting that 
the information it disclosed to Indonesian authorities "ultimately led to the 
arrest of the Bali 9".

The AFP said it was a "difficult time" for Chan and Sukumaran, and their family 
and friends.

"This is a very sad illustration of the harsh dangers people can ultimately 
face when they are involved in international crime and drug trafficking," the 
AFP said in a statement in response to Mr Myers' comments.

"The AFP has been, at all times, transparent and accountable in relation to its 
actions on this matter and has always acted appropriately and in accordance 
with Australian and international policies and guidelines.

"Although Mr Myers is entitled to hold personal views in relation to this 
matter, it is not helpful to introduce misleading and incorrect information 
into the public domain, while ignoring the findings of several government 
reviews and judicial hearings into this matter that are contrary to his 
statements."

Mr Myers said that the AFP had sufficient evidence to detain all of the Bali 9 
co-conspirators at Sydney Airport, thus preventing them from being detained in 
Indonesia, but that it deliberately chose not to do this.

"The alternative was to keep the 9 under surveillance, perhaps with the 
co-operation of the Indonesian authorities, and monitor their movements on 
their return to Australia with a view to making more significant inroads in the 
war against drugs, including the identification of those resident in this 
country responsible for the organisation of drug importation," Mr Myers said.

In short, he alleges that the Bali Nine were sacrificed to the Indonesian 
authorities in order to catch more powerful drug smugglers further up the 
chain.

But the AFP has rejected this assessment.

In response to questions put by ABC current affairs program Four Corners, the 
AFP said that it had no evidence or lawful reason to detain, arrest or charge 
any member of the Bali Nine before they left Australia.

"The AFP was unaware of the hierarchy of the syndicate, the identity of all 
syndicate members or the source of drugs that may have been imported. 
Additionally, Myuran Sukumaran was not known to the AFP prior to his arrest on 
April 17, 2005," it said.

Ultimately, the AFP said exchanging information between countries was a 
"routine" part of its efforts to prevent illegal drug trafficking.

"The AFP's role is to work cooperatively with law enforcement partners around 
the world to combat all forms of serious and organised crime impacting 
Australia," the AFP said.

"Such co-operation is critical in targeting the borderless nature of crime and 
for the protection of the Australian community."

Chan and Sukumaran are expected to be executed by firing squad sometime this 
month.

(source: news.com.au)








SAUDI ARABIA----execution

Saudi executes Syrian for drug smuggling



Saudi Arabia's state news agency says authorities have executed a Syrian man 
convicted of smuggling a large quantity of amphetamine pills.

The Saudi Press Agency says Abdullah Mohammed al-Ahmed was executed Tuesday in 
the northwestern al-Jawf province after the Supreme Court confirmed his 
conviction and sentencing. It does not say how he was executed.

Saudi Arabia has executed 25 people this year, mainly for drug smuggling. Most 
executions in the kingdom are by beheading or firing squad.

An Associated Press tally based on SPA reporting shows 83 people were executed 
in Saudi Arabia in 2014.

The kingdom follows a strict interpretation of Islamic law and applies the 
death penalty on crimes such as murder, rape, apostasy and witchcraft. Rights 
groups have criticized executions carried out for non-lethal crimes.

(source: Associated Press)








INDIA:

Centre to challenge High Court verdict on Nithari killer



New Delhi: Not just terror acts, even crime against women and children will 
bear the maximum punishment is the message of the Narendra Modi government 
which is set to challenge the Allahabad high court's verdict commuting the 
death sentence of Nithari killer Surinder Koli in the sensational NIthari 
serial killings of 2006.

After being awarded capital punishment, Koli's mercy petition had been rejected 
by President Pranab Mukherjee in 2014. However, the Allahabad high court had 
said in last month that there was an 'inordinate delay' in deciding his mercy 
plaint and commuted his sentence to life imprisonment.

The home ministry has decided to move the SC against the high court verdict, 
telling the Apex Court that Koli must be executed and there has been no delay 
in his case. It will tell the SC that the legal process was duly completed, 
including the rejection of his recall application by the Apex Court.

Sources said the commutation of Koli's sentence could have a rippling effect on 
other death row cases. "This is a fit case for hanging which deserves the 
maximum penalty. If death sentence has been included under the criminal law for 
rape cases, then this case is no exception," said an official.

(source: Deccan Chronicle)

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

Rohtak rape incident: Women's Commission to demand death penalty



Haryana Women Commission has decided to recommend death penalty for the 
perpetrators of brutal rape and murder of a mentally challenged Nepalese woman 
in Rohtak.

Kamlesh Panchal, Chairperson of the commission who visited the victim's family 
said she would demand exemplary punishment for the perpetrators. Panchal told 
the family members that the commission has taken note of the issue and will 
demand that the accused be nabbed at the earliest, tried and hanged.

"The Women Commission demands speedy capital punishment for the culprits 
because this is a one of the gravest crimes," said Suman Dahiya, member of the 
Haryana Women Commission

Meanwhile, Police yesterday claimed to have got vital clues in the case. 
Additional Director General of Police (law and order) Muhammad Akil said the 
culprits would soon be arrested.

"According to post-mortem and investigation report there is no doubt that a 
grave crime was committed against her and she was murdered," said Additional 
director general of police (ADGP), Mohammed Akil.

Earlier, unidentified men had raped the 28-year-old before brutally killing her 
in the Bahu Akbarpur area of the Rohtak district in Haryana.

The woman's body was reportedly found on Wednesday with key organs missing and 
with sticks, stones and condoms stuffed into her private parts three days after 
she went missing.

(source: New Kerala)