[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

May 30



INDONESIA:

Riau Court Sentences Marijuana Trafficker to Death



An Indonesian court has sentenced a truck driver to death for transporting 8 
tons of marijuana, as part of the government's crusade against what the 
president claims is a "national drug emergency."

The court in Riau province, in Sumatra, ruled on Thursday that the defendant, 
M. Jamil, was guilty of attempting to smuggle the drugs overland from Aceh 
province, on the northern tip of Sumatra, to Jakarta and Bandung in Java last 
year.  Jamil was arrested in Riau's Siak district with his truck loaded with 
sacks of marijuana. He said the contraband had been ordered by a man identified 
as Ibrahim, who was later also arrested and sentenced to death.

Jamil's arrest last October was not his 1st brush with the law. He was caught 
smuggling marijuana several years ago but managed to evade the death sentence.

After serving time in prison, he was released and immediately returned to 
transporting the drug.

The court also sentenced 2 of Jamil's accomplices to life in prison, and 
another man identified as Muhalil to 20 years in prison.

Jamil told the court that he would not appeal against the death sentence.

The ruling comes a month after Indonesia executed 8 men, 7 of them foreign 
nationals, for drug-trafficking offenses. Indonesia has so far this year put to 
death 14 people, 12 of them foreigners, for drug offenses, drawing widespread 
international condemnation.

President Joko Widodo, in defending the use of the death penalty, claims that 
Indonesia is in the grip of a "drug emergency," and that the death sentence 
serves as a deterrent against would-be drug offenders. Experts, though, have 
repeatedly debunked the figures Joko cites for drug-related deaths.

(source: The Jakarta Globe)

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

Int'l drug offenders now dropping appeals----Japanese man 2nd foreigner this 
month to drop appeal after execution of 14 foreign nationals in fear it will be 
increased to death penalty



A Japanese man sentenced to life imprisonment in Indonesia for possessing 
crystal methamphetamine has dropped an appeal against his sentence for fear it 
will be increased to the death penalty.

The man is the 2nd foreigner this month to forego such an appeal in the wake of 
14 foreign nationals being put to death in Indonesia so far this year.

Lawyer Syusvida Lastri told the Jakarta Post on Friday that defendant Masaru 
Kawada had withdrawn the appeal as he was afraid his sentence could be 
increased.

"We asked Kawada again whether or not he would file for an appeal, and he 
decided to accept the verdict and withdraw the appeal," said Syusvida.

She said the 73-year-old had come to his decision in consideration of the 
government's policy on drug offenders.

Since President Joko Widodo declared a "drug emergency," he has insisted he 
will reject clemency pleas from 60 drug convicts scheduled to be executed.

So far this year, 14 have been put to death, including Australians Andrew Chan 
and Myuran Sukumaran.

According to court documents, Kawada was asked by a man identified as Edward 
Mark to travel to Macau last November.

He paid for Kawada's tickets and accommodation and gave him US$500 for travel 
expenses.

While in Macau, Kawada met a Chinese woman, identified as Sherly, who asked him 
to take a bag to a friend in Padang, West Sumatra.

Kawada has said that he didn't know there were drugs in the bag, and only 
realized it upon his arrival at Minangkabau International Airport where customs 
officials searched him and found 2.35 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine.

Earlier in May, a Russian women serving 16 years in prison accepted a verdict 
against her and refused to appeal in fear of a harsher penalty.

Magnaeva Aleksandra, 25, was charged with smuggling 2.1 kilograms of crystal 
methamphetamine from Hong Kong to Bali on Dec. 7, 2015.

Kompas.com. quoted Aleksandra's lawyer, Heru Purwanto, as saying that she was 
scared that if she made such an appeal she "would get a harsher penalty."

"A lot of news about foreigners who had been executed made her scared," he 
added.

Earlier this week, Indonesia's Administrative Court said it would hear a 
last-ditch appeal by a Frenchman on death row, after it was delayed due to the 
absence of the presiding judge.

The hearing has been rescheduled for June 3 and a verdict is expected soon 
after.

Serge Atlaoui had been due to face the firing squad with eight other prisoners 
in April but won a last-minute reprieve.

The father-of-4 was arrested in 2005 in an ecstasy laboratory near Jakarta, 
which he claims he thought was an acrylics factory where he was installing 
machinery.

French President Francois Hollande has warned Indonesia of diplomatic 
consequence if it follows through with the death sentence.

Attorney General's Office Spokesperson Tony Spontana told Anadolu Agency Friday 
that Atlaoui's current legal challenge would be his last.

If the court refuses, then the office can decide whether he will be executed 
alone or together with other prisoners, he added.

(source: videonews.us)








SAUDI ARABIA:

At 90 Executions This Year, Saudi Arabia Sets a Grisly Record



On May 28, Saudi Arabia carried out its 90th execution so far this year, 
equalling the number of people executed in the Kingdom during the whole of 
2014.

The death toll is one of the highest we have recorded during the same period 
for more than three decades and marks an unprecedented spike in executions for 
a country already ranked among the most prolific executioners in the world.

"With the year yet to pass its midpoint, the Gulf Kingdom has raced towards 
this shocking toll at an unprecedented rate. This alarming surge in executions 
surpasses even the country's own previous dreadful records," said Said 
Boumedouha, Deputy Middle East and North Africa programme director at Amnesty 
International.

Today's execution, carried out in Riyadh, was of a Pakistani man convicted on 
drug-related charges. Almost 1/2 of the executions carried out so far this year 
were for drug-related offenses.

These do not fall into the category of "most serious crimes," and the use of 
the death penalty for such offences violates international law. The authorities 
themselves do not categorize drug-related offenses as crimes subject to 
divinely ordained punishment under Sharia law. Instead, they consider the use 
of the death penalty for such offenses a discretionary punishment.

Saudi Arabia's most common method of execution is beheading, often conducted in 
public squares. Occasionally prisoners in some southern provinces are executed 
by firing squad.

Many defendants in Saudi Arabia, including those sentenced to death, are 
convicted after flawed court proceedings that routinely fall far short of 
international standards for a fair trial. They are often convicted solely on 
the basis of "confessions" obtained under duress, denied legal representation 
in trials that are sometimes held in secret and are not kept informed of the 
progress of the legal proceedings in their case.

For some crimes punishable by death, the Supreme Court has recently confirmed 
that judges do not need to prove guilt but can sentence someone to death at 
their own discretion based on suspicion alone.

???The Saudi Arabian authorities' unwavering commitment to this brutal form of 
punishment is utterly gruesome considering the deep flaws in its justice 
system," Said Boumedouha said.

???The use of the death penalty is cruel and inhumane in any circumstance, but 
it is even more outrageous when meted out as a punishment against someone 
convicted in a trial that itself makes a mockery of justice."

Worryingly, a significant number of Shi'a protesters have been sentenced to 
death in the past 2 years. These are often in relation to protests in the 
Kingdom's Eastern Province in the aftermath of the 2011 mass popular uprisings 
that toppled a number of long-standing authoritarian rulers in the region.

Among those sentenced to death is Saudi Arabia's most prominent Shi'a cleric 
Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr, who was sentenced to death in October 2014 after a deeply 
flawed trial. His nephew, Ali-al-Nimr, a juvenile offender, was sentenced to 
death in May 2014 solely based on "confessions" that he claimed were extracted 
under torture. The imposition of death sentences against individuals who were 
below 18 years of age when the crime was committed is prohibited under 
international law.

6 other Shi'a protesters were sentenced to death in the past year and scores of 
others await trial on charges for which the prosecution has called for the 
death penalty. Many of them have complained of ill-treatment in detention and 
of unfair trials.

The claim by the Saudi Arabian authorities that the death penalty is a 
deterrent to crime is unfounded.

"There is no convincing evidence that the death penalty is a particular 
deterrent to crime, or that it is more effective than other forms of 
punishment. Instead of expediting executions the Saudi Arabian authorities 
should immediately establish a moratorium on executions with a view to 
abolishing the death penalty," Said Boumedhoua said.

Background

In Amnesty International's latest global report on the death penalty, published 
in April 2015, Saudi Arabia ranks among the top three executioners in the 
world, surpassed only by China and Iran.

As of December 31, 2014, 140 countries have abolished the death penalty in law 
or practice. Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases 
without exception, regardless of the nature or circumstances of the crime; the 
guilt or innocence of the individual; or the method of execution.



IRAN----executions

At Least 8 Prisoners Hanged in Ghezelhesar Prison in Karaj



At least, 8 prisoners with drug related charges were hanged in Ghezelhesar 
prison in Karaj.

According to the report of Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), 8 
prisoners with the names of Nader Hajizadeh, Mohammad Barani, Jahangir Shah 
Zehi, Mehran Balouch Zehi, Mehrshad Solimani, Reza Daeizadeh, Ehsan Saghafi and 
Abbas Ameri were executed in Ghezelhesar prison of Karaj, on Monday May 25th.

These 8 prisoners were transferred from hall number 3 to solitary confinements 
a day before. Some other prisoners from other halls had been transferred for 
execution as well, but HRANA's sources do not have information about the 
identity or the number of these prisoners, by the time this news being 
reported.

Besides, the identity of some prisoners who were executed last week in 
Ghezelhesar prison, has recognized by HRANA's sources as Ahamad Teymoori, 
Moslem Rafiei, Morteza Mirzaei poor, Afshin Karimian, Abbas Haidari and Masoud 
Zibayi.

(source: HRANA news agency)

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

Over 60 executed in 10 days ---- 3 young men were hanged in public in the city 
of Mashhad in northwestern Iran on 28 May



At least 4 more prisoners have been hanged during the last 10 days in cities 
across Iran - raising the total number of victims to 63 inmates.

The information received from sources inside Iran indicates that 2 prisoners 
were hanged last Sunday in Shahab Prison in the city of Kerman. A man 
identified as Norouz Basiri was sent to the gallows in the main prison in the 
city of Tabriz. Another 35-year-old man was hanged on Thursday in the city of 
Gachsaran in southern Iran.

The Iranian regime has not provided any information on the executions that were 
carried out in Kerman and Tabriz, however on Friday the state-run IRNA news 
agency published a short report on hangings in the city of Gachsaran.

On the recent spate of executions in Iran, Soona Samsami, NCRI's US 
Representative, told IBTimes India on Thursday: "The political climate of 
repression and censorship in Iran, coupled with lack of due process in the 
judiciary, create severe difficulties in finding the truth behind Iran's 
executions."

"However, one thing is certain: the regime continues to use the death penalty, 
not as a deterrent to drug abuse or to stem ordinary crimes, but as a means of 
inflicting terror in a young and increasing restless and enraged population," 
Samsami said.

Samsami also hit out at Hassan Rouhani's failure to curb human rights abuses in 
the country.

"Hassan Rouhani's approval of these barbaric hangings notwithstanding, there is 
no room for reform in a constitution with a non-representative 'Supreme 
Leader', and a judiciary that executed 30,000 political prisoners in a matter 
of months in 1988 alone. Ironically, Mostafa Pourmohammadi, 1 of the 3 people 
who sat on the 'death commission' that sent these political prisoners, mostly 
MEK members, to the gallows, is Rouhani's Justice Minister," she added.

(source: NCR-Iran)








NIGERIA:

Pardoned torture victim 'overwhelmed' by campaign to spare his life



A Nigerian torture victim wrongfully sentenced to death for a crime committed 
when he was 16 years old has been pardoned following intensive campaigning from 
Amnesty International supporters across the world.

Moses Akatugba, who was on death row following his conviction for stealing 3 
mobile phones 10 years ago and was repeatedly tortured into signing a 
confession, said he felt "overwhelmed" after the outgoing Governor of Nigeria's 
Delta State announced last night he had granted him a full pardon.

"The pardon of Moses Akatugba, who should not have been sentenced to death in 
the first place because he was a minor at the time of the offence, is a victory 
for justice and a reminder that people power and human rights campaigning 
really can make a difference," said Netsanet Belay, Amnesty International's 
Africa Director.

"Amnesty International members and activists are my heroes. I want to assure 
them that this great effort they have shown to me will not be in vain. I 
promise to be a human rights activist - to fight for others."----Moses Akatugba

"Without the thousands of letters sent in support of Moses by his supporters 
across the globe, he may never have been granted his freedom."

Moses is one of the core cases of Amnesty International Stop Torture Global 
Campaign and was highlighted in the 2014 Write for Rights campaign. In total, 
more than 800,000 actions were taken worldwide asking the Delta State Governor 
Emmanuel Uduaghan to commute the death sentence.

In a statement following Governor Uduaghan's announcement, Moses said: "I am 
overwhelmed. I thank Amnesty International and their activists for the great 
support that made me a conqueror in this situation.

"Amnesty International members and activists are my heroes. I want to assure 
them that this great effort they have shown to me will not be in vain, by the 
special grace of God I will live up to their expectation. I promise to be a 
human rights activist - to fight for others."

Moses also thanked the human rights defender Justine Ijeomah, who leads the 
Nigerian NGO Human Rights Social Development and Environmental Foundation 
(HURSDEF), and Governor Uduaghan for "keeping to his word".

In October 2014, Governor Uduaghan responded to pressure from Amnesty 
International supporters and said that he was looking into the case. He granted 
a pardon to Moses yesterday on his penultimate day in office.

Arrested and tortured as a boy

Moses Akatugba was 16 years old when he was arrested in 2005 for armed robbery. 
He says police officers beat him repeatedly with machetes and batons.

He told Amnesty International that they tied him and hung him up for several 
hours, and then used pliers to pull out his toenails and fingernails. He was 
then forced to sign 2 pre-written "confessions".

"Moses was just a boy when he was arrested and subjected to torture. And under 
international human rights law, he should not have been sentenced to death as 
he was a child at the time of the crime," said Netsanet Belay.

"Nigerian Governors should commute the death sentences of all death row 
prisoners in their respective states, including many who are at imminent risk 
of execution after similarly flawed criminal investigations."

Before leaving office today, Governor Uduaghan also commuted the death 
sentences of 3 other prisoners.

As Nigeria's new president, Muhammadu Buhari, takes office, Amnesty 
International is calling on him to immediately establish an official moratorium 
on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty.

Approximately 1,500 people are currently languishing on death row in Nigeria, 
including juvenile offenders. In 2013, Nigeria resumed executions when 4 people 
were hanged despite a "voluntary" moratorium.

(source: Amnesty International)



TAIWAN:

Death penalty debate revived----Deterrent? Asked to comment on calls for the 
death penalty to be retained in the wake of a girl's slaying, Ma said that the 
issue has always been contentious



The national debate on the abolition of death penalty received renewed 
attention on the heels of the death of an 8-year-old girl after her throat was 
slashed open by an attacker at her elemanetary school on Friday.

The gruesome nature of the crime sparked public outrage and prompted questions 
about the efficacy of the nation's justice system at deterring crime.

Angry netizens flooded the Facebook page of Social Democratic Party legislative 
candidate Miao Po-ya, a well-known human rights campaigner who headed the legal 
affairs division at the Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty.

Commenting on Friday's attack, Miao said that the death penalty fails to 
address the underlying reasons behind acts of murder committed against 
strangers.

"Extreme cases of criminal behavior indicate that society has become 
pathologically ill, but public opinion often neglects the true remedy [for the 
phenomenon] after gulping down the holy water of the death penalty," Miao said.

She said that extreme cases of violence were often perpetrated by individuals 
who saw no hope in a society with rampant social injustice and a widening 
disparity of wealth.

"If we kill only [convicted murderers], but fail to block the paths through 
which monsters are cultivated, then tragedies are still bound to happen without 
end," Miao said.

Netizens accused Miao of lacking empathy with the relatives of the slain girl 
and of coming to the defense of the suspected murderer.

Taipei City Councilor Wang Wei-chung of the Democratic Progressive Party posted 
on Facebook that he opposed the death penalty, saying that it contravenes two 
UN covenants on human rights that Taiwan signed into law in 2009.

His page was swarmed by angry commenters, with many saying that they would 
refuse to vote for him again.

Separately yesterday, President Ma Ying-jeou said he was deeply shocked by the 
incident and has been grieving for the girl.

Ma said he had spoken to Premier Mao Chi-kuo by telephone to instruct the 
Executive Yuan to notify campus authorities nationwide of a need to heighten 
awareness and take precautions.

It is of equal importance to probe any motives behind the assault, Ma said.

He also made the point to National Policy Agency Director-General Chen Kuo-en 
by telephone early yesterday morning, Ma added.

"The existence of people like the [alleged] killer pose a significant threat to 
urban public order," Ma said. "The government must take it seriously and 
prevent recurrences."

It is important to take precautionary measures to prevent assaults and to 
improve society's ability to deal with such crises when they occur, 
particularly with a notification system that can ensure that assistance to 
victims is prompt, Ma said.

Asked to comment on calls for the death penalty to be retained in the wake of 
the slaying, Ma said that the issue has always been contentious.

Some think that the death penalty does not deter crime, while others believe 
that abolishing the death penalty could spur crime, Ma said.

The 2 sides have confronted each other for a long time and it might take some 
more time to see how public opinion evolves, he added.

(source: Taipei Times)

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

Scholar calls for capital punishment for child-killers



People who kill children should be given capital punishment to deter others, a 
former Central Police University professor said Saturday.

Yeh Yu-lan said the world has no tolerance for child- killers and those who 
harm children should be given the harshest punishment.

Yeh's remarks came in the wake of the shocking case of a 2nd-grader who died 
Saturday after sustaining a 10-cm wound to her throat from a random attacker 
who intruded onto her school campus in the Beitou district of Taipei the 
previous day.

The suspect, Kung Chung-an, 29, claimed that he did it because he was under a 
lot of pressure and was having hallucinations.

Yeh described Kung as a "soul alienated from society," saying that if he had 
had good exchanges with his family and friends, he would not have committed the 
crime.

She said that the suspect is a loser who is unable to solve the anger within 
him.

The outspoken scholar also said the media's extensive reporting of the crime 
could easily result in a copycat effect.

On calls for the death penalty for Kung, the Taiwan Alliance to End the Death 
Penalty said that it would not comment on an isolated case.

(source: Focus Taiwan)








AUSTRALIA:

Cabinet papers released: Abolition of death penalty 'greatest achievement', 
former premier Brian Burke says



Former West Australian premier Brian Burke names the abolition of the death 
penalty as the greatest achievement of his government, as cabinet records from 
30 years ago are released.

Records of the Burke government's cabinet decisions from 1984 have been 
released by WA's State Records Office under the 30-year rule.

They show his cabinet's deliberations in its second year in office.

"I count the abolition of capital punishment as the greatest achievement of the 
government of which I was part. And that stands out to me as something of which 
I'm proudest," Mr Burke said, speaking on their release.

He said there had been a push within the previous Liberal government to apply 
the death penalty following a series of horrific murders in the state.

"It didn't happen, and it didn't happen because the Liberal member who spoke to 
me threatened to leave the cabinet if the [Liberal] cabinet went ahead with 
imposing the death penalty," he said.

"So it was a real prospect and the abolition of the death penalty, making sure 
that we could never again put a citizen of this state to death, was my proudest 
achievement."

Mr Burke stormed into office in a record win in 1983 with what he described as 
a strong cabinet, and a clear sense of purpose.

"It was a very young cabinet, very able, and a very enthusiastic group of 
people wanting to do their best," he said.

Political analyst Dr Harry Phillips said the Burke government was reformist in 
its aims, but by 1984 had already run into political headwinds as it attempted 
to balance the books, and push ahead with its legislative agenda in the face of 
a Liberal-controlled Upper House.

"So the reality of government after the great excitement of 1983 had begun to 
firm," he said.

(source: Australian Broadcasting Corporation)