[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Oct. 9



EUROPEAN UNION/CARIBBEAN:

EU Ambassador urges Caribbean leaders to fight against the death penalty


As we commemorate the European Day against the Death Penalty on October 10th, 
the abolition of the Death Penalty remains a key objective for the European 
Union's human rights policy. We are therefore pleased that there have been no 
executions in Barbados since 1984! The last execution in any of our countries 
was 7 years ago (in St. Kitts and Nevis) and Grenada has not had an execution 
since 1978!

We are acutely aware that the Death Penalty remains on the books for Barbados 
and the Member States of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) 
for historical reasons. However, changes are occurring.

The mandatory Death Penalty was discontinued in the OECS countries due to the 
2002 Eastern Caribbean Court of Appeal ruling which deemed it unconstitutional. 
We congratulate Barbados on the initiative to also abolish the mandatory Death 
which is almost complete.

In line with this tendency and given the existence of a de-facto moratorium 
because of the length of time since an execution has been carried out, the next 
step should be taken: accepting a legal moratorium.

With the increase in crime, particularly murders, in recent times, there have 
been renewed calls for the Death Penalty. Despite the support that the use of 
the Death Penalty still receives in Caribbean communities, I challenge leaders 
to show more courage, launch a public debate and lead the way in the fight 
against the Death Penalty.

The EU sees the Death Penalty as cruel and inhumane, and scientific research 
has shown that the Death Penalty in no way acts as a deterrent to crime. Its 
abolition is essential for the protection of human dignity, as well as for the 
progressive development of human rights. This is a moral issue about the value 
of human life.

As a deeply religious Caribbean society this is one of the basic tenets that as 
a community we hold dear. Sentiments such as 'it is cheaper to kill them than 
to keep them in prison' have no place in this era of civilization.

There is a worldwide movement against the Death Penalty and even here in the 
Caribbean it was abolished in Suriname - your fellow CARICOM Member State - in 
March of this year! In the region, Haiti and the Dominican Republic have also 
abolished capital punishment.

The historic milestone of over 100 death penalty free countries has been 
achieved! The international outcry against the Death Penalty is also well 
present in the United Nations (UN) framework of which we are all apart. In 2007 
the UN General Assembly adopted a resolution establishing a moratorium on 
executions with the goal of abolishing the death penalty, and every other year 
such a resolution is put to vote.

I take this opportunity to urge your leaders to vote in favour of such a 
moratorium or at least to abstain, instead of voting against it, reflecting the 
situation of no executions on the ground for almost 10 years! For those who may 
yet be not convinced, I make a call for a debate between the stakeholders, 
including the church and the legal fraternity.

Let us put the facts to the test and come up with a position based on 
principles and not on emotions and historical customs. The EU remains strongly 
committed to this fight.

(source: Mikael Barfod is the EU Ambassador to the Eastern Caribbean countries, 
OECS, CARICOM and CARIFORUM----stlucianewsonline.com)






EUROPE:

Death Penalty Day: Europe underlines its firm opposition to capital punishment


Ahead of the World and European Day against the Death Penalty (10 October), the 
47-nation Council of Europe and the 28-member European Union have issued a 
joint declaration underlining their firm opposition to capital punishment and 
calling on countries across Europe to move towards abolition.

The declaration from Council of Europe Secretary General Thorbjorn Jagland and 
the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Federica 
Mogherini, points out that no Council of Europe or EU member states have 
carried out executions since 1997.

It also calls on those European countries which have not yet done so to ratify 
2 protocols to the European Convention on Human Rights which aim to abolish the 
death penalty.

"On the European and World Day against the Death Penalty, the Council of Europe 
and the European Union reaffirm their strong opposition to capital punishment. 
The death penalty is inhuman and degrading treatment, does not have any proven 
significant deterrent effect, and allows judicial errors to become irreversible 
and fatal.

No execution has been carried out in our member states for 18 years. The 
Council of Europe and the European Union urge all European States to ratify the 
protocols to the European Convention on Human Rights which aim at the abolition 
of the death penalty.

The Council of Europe and the European Union deplore the continuing use of the 
death penalty in Belarus. They strongly urge the authorities of Belarus to 
commute the remaining death sentences and establish without delay a formal 
moratorium on executions as a 1st step towards abolition of the death penalty.

The Council of Europe and the European Union note with concern that the number 
of executions of persons for drug offences has increased during the last year 
in the few states that apply the death penalty to those offences. Both 
Organizations are particularly alarmed when this involves the execution of 
minors, which is contrary to international law. It is all the closer to heart 
because some European citizens have been executed in 2015 and others are still 
on death row for drug-related offences.

The Council of Europe and the European Union welcome the Resolution of the 
United Nations General Assembly on a moratorium on the use of the death penalty 
adopted on 18 December 2014. With an increasing number of votes in favour of 
that resolution compared to the previous four resolutions of this kind, and 
with almost 2/3 of countries in the world having abolished the death penalty in 
either law or practice, there exists now a clear global trend towards the 
abolition of capital punishment," is said in a joint Declaration by the 
European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, 
Federica Mogherini, and the Secretary General of the Council of Europe, 
Thorbjorn Jagland.

(source: Panorama.am)






INDIA:

Supreme Court rejects death penalty plea in Katara murder case


Vikas and Vishal Yadav, who are currently serving a 30-year-long jail sentence 
for brutally killing Nitish Katara in 2002, escaped the death penalty on 
Friday, with the Supreme Court rejecting the plea of the victim's mother Neelam 
Katara calling it a 'rarest of rare' crime.

"What they (Yadavs) did cannot be condoned, but it (the offence) is not so 
heinous and abhorring that it warrants death," a bench of Justices J S Khehar 
and R Banumathi said.

The bench, which had recently dismissed several special leave petitions of 
Vikas, Vishal and Sukhdev Pehalwan against the Delhi high court verdict in the 
case, did not agree with the submission of the representative of Neelam Katar, 
senior advocate Harish Salve, that the 2 convicts deserved the death penalty.

"I don't see it as honour killing," the bench observed at the outset when Salve 
opened arguments on the plea seeking enhancement of the sentence, saying that 
the high court had described the 2002 murder as a honour killing.

"I am asking for death penalty," the senior lawyer said, adding that the 
convicts, who were educated and hailed from "good families", had killed the 
youth in pre-meditated and brutal manner and mutilated the body before burning 
it.

The court said that the convict's sister Bharti Yadav had even gone to the 
victim's house to deliver the invitation card of her sister's wedding and it 
cannot be said that the family of the convicts did not approve the 
relationship.

The "trigger" potentially was the moment when the convicts saw her dancing with 
Nitish and took him away and killed him, the court said, adding that every 
murder is brutal but it is difficult to say it is "abhorring".

"It was just a murder. That is it ... They (convicts) have also suffered the 
sentence for 16 years," it said, adding that the manner of disposal of the body 
fell under the IPC provision dealing with destruction of evidence.

Vikas (39), Vishal (37) and Sukhdev (40) are serving life term sentences 
awarded by the lower court in May 2008 for abducting and killing Katara, a 
business executive and the son of a railway officer, on the night of February 
16, 2002, as they opposed the victim's affair with Bharti, daughter of Uttar 
Pradesh politician DP Yadav.

(source: Hindustan Times)






KENYA:

Man nabbed for laptop theft in Ruiru faces death penalty


A man arrested for allegedly stealing a laptop at Ruiru now face a charge 
punishable by the death penalty.

A Thika court on Thursday remanded Nicholas Mwangi man who was charged with 
robbery with violence. a charge that carries the death penalty.

Mwangi appeared before Resident Magistrate Abdulkadir Lolot and was charged 
with robbery with violence according to section 296(2) of the penal code.

Before reading the charges to Mwangi, who has another case pending in court, 
the trial magistrate told him that if he pleaded guilty, he faced the death 
penalty.

The court heard that on September 20, at around 11pm at Ruiru town center, the 
accused armed with a dangerous weapon together with another, not before court, 
ambushed Charles Mutegi on his way home and stole his laptop worth Sh55,000.

The accused allegedly threatened the complainant with the said weapon during 
the robbery.

The court also heard that Mutegi was on his way to his residential home on the 
said day when he met the accused. On passing him, the accused is said to have 
ambushed him from behind and got hold of his throat while the accomplice took 
his laptop.

Mutegi identified him and later reported the incident to Ruiru Police Station 
after which the police arrested him.

The prosecution asked the court to hold the accused to consolidate the case 
with another in the same court involving the accused.

He denied the charges and was remanded till the November 12, when his case will 
be heard.

(source: hivisas.com)