[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

April 6



GLOBAL:

The Use of the Death Penalty Is at Its Highest in 25 Years, a New Report Says


More people were executed worldwide in 2015 than at any point in the last 25 
years, according to a new report by global human rights group Amnesty 
International released on Wednesday.

At least 1,634 people were put to death across 25 different countries, a 54% 
increase from the number of executions recorded the previous year. Even without 
the figure for China (Beijing treats its executions as a state secret), Amnesty 
said last year's total represented the highest it has recorded since 1989.

The report also showed that nearly 90% of all recorded use of the death penalty 
was accounted for by just 3 countries - Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan, with 
the latter reinstating capital punishment in December 2014 following a 7-year 
moratorium. The 3 nations fall between China, which Amnesty estimates executes 
thousands annually, and the U.S., which rounds out the top 5 with 28 people put 
to death in 2015.

Amnesty added that the report includes only the executions they were able to 
verify, with the actual number in countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, 
Somalia, and Egypt likely higher than their respective confirmed totals of 977, 
158, 26, 25, and 22.

At the same time, the report observed that most of the world is renouncing the 
death penalty. Madagascar, Fiji, the Republic of Congo and Suriname abolished 
the death penalty for all crimes last year, bringing the total number of 
countries that have done so to 102. As of Dec. 31, 2015, Amnesty said, the 
number of countries that have abolished the death penalty "in law or practice" 
stood at 140.

"Thankfully, countries that execute belong to a small and increasingly isolated 
minority," Salil Shetty, Amnesty International's Secretary General, said in a 
statement. "The majority of states have turned their back on the death 
penalty."

(source: TIME.com)

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Death penalty 2015: Facts and figures


Global figures

At least 1,634 people were executed in 25 countries in 2015. This represents a 
stark increase on the number of executions recorded I 2014 of more than 50%; in 
2014 Amnesty International recorded 1,061 executions in 22 countries worldwide.

This is the highest number of executions recorded in more than 25 years (since 
1989).

Most executions took place in China, Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and the USA - 
in that order.

China remained the world's top executioner - but the true extent of the use of 
the death penalty in China is unknown as this data is considered a state 
secret; the figure of 1,634 excludes the thousands of executions believed to 
have been carried out in China.

Excluding China, almost 90% of all executions took place in just three 
countries - Iran, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

During 2015, 25 countries, about 1 in 10 of all countries worldwide, are known 
to have carried out executions - a rise from 22 in 2014. This number has 
decreased significantly from 2 decades ago (39 countries carried out executions 
in 1996).

140 countries worldwide, more than 2/3, are abolitionist in law or practice.

In 2015, 4 countries - Fiji, Madagascar, the Republic of Congo and Suriname - 
abolished the death penalty for all crimes. In total, 102 countries have done 
so - a majority of the world's states. In 2015, Mongolia also passed a new 
criminal code abolishing the death penalty which will come into effect later in 
2016.

Commutations or pardons of death sentences were recorded in 34 countries in 
2015. At least 71 people who had been sentenced to death were exonerated in 6 
countries in 2015: China (1), Egypt (1), Nigeria (41), Pakistan (at least 21), 
Taiwan (1) and USA (6).

At least 1,998 death sentences were recorded in 61 countries in 2015, a decline 
from 2014 (at least 2,466 death sentences in 55 countries).

At least 20,292 people were on death row at the end of 2015.

The following methods of execution were used across the world: beheading, 
hanging, lethal injection and shooting.

Reports indicated that at least 9 people who were under 18 at the time of the 
crime for which they were sentenced to death were executed in 2015 - 4 in Iran 
and 5 in Pakistan.

In many countries where people were sentenced to death or executed, the 
proceedings did not meet international fair trial standards. In some cases this 
included the extraction of 'confessions' through torture or other 
ill-treatment, including in Bahrain, China, Iran, Iraq, North Korea and Saudi 
Arabia.

People continued to be sentenced to death and executed for offences that do not 
meet the "most serious crimes" threshold of "intentional killing" as set out in 
international law and standards. These offences included drug-related crimes in 
at least 12 countries in Asia and the Middle East, as well as committing 
"adultery" (Maldives, Saudi Arabia), economic crimes (China, North Korea, Viet 
Nam), "apostasy" (Saudi Arabia) and "insulting the prophet of Islam" (Iran).

Sub-Saharan Africa

At least 43 executions were carried out in 4 countries - compared to 46 
executions in 3 countries in 2014.

Death sentences fell sharply from 909 in 2014 to 443 in 2015, mainly due to a 
decrease in Nigeria.

Chad, which had not executed anyone for more than a decade, resumed executions 
and put 10 people to death. The other 3 countries that carried out executions 
were Somalia, South Sudan and Sudan.

Americas

For the 7th consecutive year, the USA was the only country to carry out 
executions in the Americas region with, 28 people executed in 2015 (7 fewer 
than in 2014). This was the lowest number of executions recorded in a single 
year since 1991. 6 states executed in 2015 compared to 7 the previous year. The 
number of death sentences decreased from at least 72 in 2014 to 52 in 2015, the 
lowest number recorded since executions resumed in 1977. Only one other country 
in the region, Trinidad and Tobago, imposed death sentences in 2015.

Asia-Pacific

At least 367 executions were carried out in 12 countries - a huge increase on 
the 32 executions in 9 countries recorded in 2014, almost exclusively due to 
the rise in Pakistan. This figure does not include executions carried out in 
China, where executions were still in the thousands. But the true extent of the 
use of the death penalty in China is unknown as data is treated as a state 
secret.

Pakistan put 326 people to death in 2015 after the country lifted a 6-year 
moratorium on the execution of civilians in December 2014, following the 
Taliban attack on a school in Peshawar. It is the highest number of executions 
Amnesty International has ever recorded for Pakistan.

Indonesia carried out 14 executions for drug-related offences, the 1st 
executions under President Joko Widodo.

It was impossible to confirm the real number of executions in North Korea.

Europe and Central Asia

Belarus - the only country in the region that executes - did not put anyone to 
death in 2015 but imposed 2 death sentences (compared to 3 executions and no 
death sentences in 2014).

Middle East and North Africa

At least 1,196 executions were carried out in 8 countries - a rise of 26% from 
the 945 executions recorded in 8 countries in 2014.

Iran alone accounted for 82% of all recorded executions in the region.

Saudi Arabia executed at least 158 people - a 76% increase on 2014 and the 
highest number recorded for Saudi Arabia since 1995.

Amnesty International could not confirm if executions took place in Syria.

(source: Amnesty International)

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

see:https://youtu.be/IunfRribVN8

(source: youtube.com)

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

US among world leaders in death penalty, surpassed only by Saudi, Iran & 
Pakistan - Amnesty


With 28 killings in 2015, the US is the only country in the Americas and among 
OSCE members to be on the list of top executioners published by Amnesty 
International, coming right after Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan.

At least 1,634 people were put to death in 25 countries in 2015, Amnesty 
International said. Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan account for nearly 90 
percent of those.

The US, it appears, had more executions than Iraq last year - 28 in 6 states: 
Texas (13), Missouri (6), Georgia (5), Florida (2), Oklahoma (1) and Virginia 
(1).

Last year, at least 2,851 people were under sentence of death in America, 
including 746 in California, 389 in Florida, 250 in Texas, 185 in Alabama and 
181 in Pennsylvania, according to the report.

"While the 2015 figure was the lowest number of executions recorded in a single 
year since 1991, the decrease was in part linked to legal challenges that 
resulted in the revision of lethal injection protocols or problems faced by 
states in obtaining lethal injection chemicals," the human rights watchdog 
explained.

21 US states still retain the death sentence. Texas carried out almost 1/2 of 
all executions in 2015.

The state of Virginia carried out its 1st execution since 2013, while 2 states 
- Arizona and Ohio - had to put executions on hold because of issues concerning 
lethal injections.

"The USA continued to use the death penalty in ways that contravene 
international law and standards, including on people with mental and 
intellectual disabilities," Amnesty said in its annual report on the use of 
capital punishment.

Amnesty cited the case of Warren Hill, who was executed by the state of Georgia 
despite the fact that all experts who had assessed him, including those 
provided by the state, agreed that he had an intellectual disability. "His 
execution amounted to the arbitrary deprivation of life in violation of Article 
6 of the ICCPR [the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights], to 
which the USA is a state party," Amnesty said.

The report also mentioned the case of the 74-year-old Cecil Clayton, who was 
diagnosed with dementia and a psychotic disorder, but was executed in Missouri 
in March.

In August the governor of North Carolina signed into law House Bill 774, aimed 
at the resumption of executions in the state. The law allows for the 
participation of medical professionals other than a physician in executions, 
against ethical codes relevant to the profession, the report said, adding that 
it also allows the authorities to keep confidential any identifying information 
of any person or entity involved in the manufacture, preparation or supply of 
drugs used for lethal injection. Legislators in Texas also voted in favour of a 
law to allow for secrecy on the providers of chemicals, Amnesty said.

Pre-trial proceedings against 6 detainees at the US naval base at Guantanamo, 
Cuba, did not go unnoticed. The US government intends to seek the death penalty 
if convicted for all 6 men, 5 of whom were charged with plotting the 9/11 
attacks. "Proceedings before the military commission do not meet international 
fair trial standards and the imposition of the death penalty in their cases 
would constitute arbitrary deprivation of life," Amnesty stressed in the 
report.

Huge increases in killings in Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia executed at least 158 people (4 women and 154 men), the highest 
number of executions recorded in the country since 1995, Amnesty International 
said. 84 of the executions were for murder, 64 for drug-related offences, 6 for 
kidnapping, torture and/or rape, and 4 for armed robbery.

"Saudi Arabia continued to carry out executions, mostly by beheading but some 
also by a firing squad, in public and, in some cases, to display executed 
bodies after death in public," according to the report. The authorities often 
failed to inform those under sentence of death and their families of their 
imminent execution or to return the bodies of those executed to their families, 
Amnesty said, adding that the situation was plagued by the "flawed nature of 
Saudi Arabian legal and judicial safeguards." According to the report, the 
authorities frequently failed to apply both national laws and international 
human rights law standards during trials, and commonly denied detainees the 
right to a lawyer and to a meaningful appeal. "One of the most significant 
concerns remained the fact that 'confessions' extracted under torture, duress 
or coercion were often the sole evidence in death penalty cases."

Saudi Arabia continued to use the death penalty disproportionately on foreign 
nationals, the majority of whom were migrant workers with no knowledge of 
Arabic (the language in which they were questioned while in detention and in 
which trial proceedings were carried out). Foreign nationals were often denied 
adequate interpretation assistance. Their country's embassies and consulates 
were not promptly informed of their arrest, or even of their executions. In 
2015, 73 out of the 158, or 46 %, of executions recorded by Amnesty 
International in Saudi Arabia were of foreign nationals.

Executions in Asia-Pacific

Amnesty International reported a "sharp increase" in the number of recorded 
executions in the Asia-Pacific region, with Pakistan accounting for as much as 
89 % of the total (excluding China). Bangladesh, India and Indonesia resumed 
implementation of the death penalty in 2015, raising the number of executing 
countries from 9 in 2014 to 12 in 2015.

The human rights watchdog said it received credible information indicating that 
Pakistan executed at least 5 men who were under 18 years of age at the time of 
the crime. "Pakistan carried out executions at an alarming rate in 2015, 
joining the leading executioners China and Iran."

Amnesty recorded 326 executions, including 305 for murder in the South Asian 
country last year. Pakistan had lifted a moratorium on executions in December 
2014 to allow for executions for terrorism-related offences. Many of those 
executed in 2015 had been convicted by the so-called Anti-Terrorism Courts, 
Amnesty said.

China remained the world's top executioner, according to Amnesty International. 
Although it was not possible to establish specific figures for executions 
there, given the classification of death penalty figures as state secrets, the 
report said executions in the country were still in the thousands in 2015.

3 executions were carried out in Japan last year, the same number as in 2014. 
The authorities continued to implement death sentences in secret, announcing 
executions only after they had occurred, Amnesty said.

At least seven new death sentences were imposed in Thailand. The Department of 
Corrections reported that at the end of the year 413 people were on death row, 
of whom 55 % had been convicted of drug-related offences. This % is much higher 
among the female death row population, where 80 % of the 50 women under 
sentence of death had drug-related convictions.

Capital punishment in the Middle East

Egypt executed at least 22 people in 2015, and courts in the country sentenced 
at least 538 people to death. Many of the death sentences followed trials that 
were unfair, Amnesty said.

Iran carried out at least 977 executions in 2015. The Iranian authorities 
announced 400 executions through official and semi-official sources. "However, 
credible sources confirmed that at least 577 more executions took place, in 
addition to those officially announced," the report said, adding that at least 
16 women and at least 4 juvenile offenders were executed. At least 58 
executions known to Amnesty International were carried out publicly. The 
majority of executions carried out in 2015 were for drug-related offences. At 
least 160 juvenile offenders were on death row at the end of 2015. Some of them 
had been in prison for more than a decade, according to the report.

At least 26 executions were carried out in Iraq, three of which took place in 
the Kurdistan Region. These were the 1st executions carried out in the 
Kurdistan Region of Iraq since 2008, Amnesty said. At least 89 death sentences 
were imposed for offences that included terrorism, murder and kidnapping. Those 
sentenced to death were mostly Iraqi nationals but also included some foreign 
nationals.

(source: rt.com)






JAPAN:

Amnesty slams Japan over death penalty as global executions soar


Recorded executions worldwide surged by more than 50 % last year to the highest 
level in a quarter-century, a human rights group said Wednesday.

Amnesty International cited the 3 executions that Japan carried out in 2015 as 
contributing to a total of 1,634 worldwide. The tally does not include China, 
where the figure is considered a state secret.

"The rise in executions last year is profoundly disturbing," Amnesty 
Secretary-General Salil Shetty said. "In 2015 governments continued 
relentlessly to deprive people of their lives on the false premise that the 
death penalty would make us safer."

In its report, Amnesty leveled additional criticism at Japan for executing or 
holding on death row prisoners with mental or intellectual disabilities.

One of the inmates killed last year was 89-year-old Masaru Okunishi. He spent 
46 years on death row, fighting to clear his name in the murders of five women. 
He said his confessions were forced and sought a retrial on nine occasions.

"Until the end he was fighting to clear his name. He is a good example of why 
the authorities in Japan should review their criminal justice system," Amnesty 
spokeswoman Chiara Sangiorgio told Kyodo News on Wednesday.

Sangiorgio urged Japan to follow the lead of the United States and initiate a 
debate on the death penalty. Some activists say replacing the punishment with 
life imprisonment without parole would have little political cost for the 
government.

Japanese activists echoed the criticism. Taku Fukada of lobby group Forum 90 
said the high rate of executions under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe - his current 
administration has put 16 prisoners to death - and rising numbers of inmates on 
death row goes against the global trend toward abolition.

Fukada said the introduction of the lay judge system in 2009 has resulted in 
individuals being unable to appeal to the nation???s highest court, due to 
speedier convictions.

"Many people who were sentenced to death cannot defend themselves by expressing 
their remorse for what they did or by providing new evidence" in seeking an 
appeal, Fukada said.

"Whether they appeal or not, we must send all cases of capital punishment to 
the Supreme Court before finalizing the sentence - a fundamental step taken in 
other countries such as the United States. Otherwise, the number of people on 
death row will continue to rise."

The latest 2 were hanged on March 25, a solemn day in the Christian calendar 
known as Good Friday. Some activists considered the timing insensitive.

On the day, Amnesty slammed the 2 executions as "reprehensible," alleging a 
failure of leadership by Abe. "It is long overdue for Japan to abolish this 
cruel and inhumane punishment," Hiroka Shoji, an Amnesty researcher said in a 
statement responding to the deaths.

The 2 victims had spent 5 and 10 years on death row. Former nurse Junko 
Yoshida, 56, was convicted for conspiring with other women to kill 2 of their 
husbands for insurance payouts. Yasutoshi Kamata, 75, was convicted of the 
murders of 4 women and a 9-year-old girl.

Advocates of penal reform point to problems with Japan's handling of death-row 
inmates. They are typically kept in solitary confinement, prevented from 
speaking to fellow prisoners and deprived of most contact from outside - 
ostensibly to maintain their peace of mind.

Solitary confinement is widely seen as fueling mental health problems. Iwao 
Hakamada, who walked free in 2014 after more than 4 decades on death row, 
developed dementia during his 45 years of isolation and is mostly unable to 
communicate.

"Death-row prisoners are given only limited opportunities to talk with their 
families, attorneys and friends. . . . People can easily lose their minds if 
kept in such a situation for years," said Fukada of Forum 90. "Japan continues 
to hang people who have completely lost their ability (to apply for a retrial). 
I don't think that's right."

There are currently 124 inmates on death row in Japan, of whom 89 are seeking 
retrials and 22 have appealed for amnesties, according to the Justice Ministry.

(source: Japan Times)



INDIA:

In 2015, India imposed death penalty on 75 people and executed 1


In 2015, India executed 1 person and imposed death penalty on 75 others. While 
most of them were convicted of murder, 4 were sentenced for rape.

That takes the number of people in India on death row to 320, according to the 
London-based Amnesty International.

On July 30, 2015, India carried out its lone execution of the year - also the 
1st since 2013 - when Yakub Abdul Razak Memon was hanged at the Nagpur Central 
jail in Maharashtra. Memon was convicted under the Terrorist and Disruptive 
Activities Act, 1987, for his role in the 1993 Mumbai blasts that killed 257. 
Since 1999, only 4 persons have been executed in India.

In all, at least 1,634 people were executed in 25 countries in 2015 - up from 
1,061 in 2014 - according to the Amnesty report. The report excludes data on 
China, where data on death penalty is a state secret.

"This is the highest number of executions Amnesty International has recorded in 
more than 25 years, excluding those in China," the report said. "On the other 
hand, 4 countries abolished the death penalty for all crimes. This is the 
highest number of countries to fully abolish the death penalty in 1 year for 
almost a decade."

Saudi Arabia, Iran, and Pakistan accounted for 89% of all executions in 2015. 
"The number of executions recorded in Iran and Saudi Arabia increased by 31% 
and 76% respectively, and executions in Pakistan were the highest that Amnesty 
International has ever recorded in that country,' the report said.

(source: qz.com)






SINGAPORE:

AI Malaysia Pleads To Singapore President To Commute Sarawakian's Death 
Sentence


Amnesty International (AI) Malaysia is pleading to the Singapore President to 
commute Sarawak labourer Jabing Kho's death sentence to life imprisonment.

Its executive director Shamini Darshni said Jabing had exhausted all his legal 
processes.

"We are appealing to President of Singapore, Tony Tan to please not execute 
Jabing.

"We are asking that their death sentence be commuted to life imprisonment," she 
said at the National Launch of Amnesty International's Death Sentences and 
Executions 2015 report this morning, adding that the death penalty was proven 
to be an ineffective deterrent when it came to crimes.

Shamini said she understood that there had been some communication between the 
Malaysian government and Singaporean government on the issue but was unsure on 
the status of talks.

However, she hoped that the government would be able to step in and save 
Jabing.

She said her colleague, AI campaigner Gwen Lee had been in touch with the 
Singaporean non-governmental organisation Second Chances, who is working on the 
case, and Jabing???s sister Jumai Kho.

The 31-year old Sarawakian was convicted of murder in Singapore 6 years ago 
when he was found guilty of murdering a Chinese citizen in the republic in 
2010.

His appeal to overturn his death sentence failed on Tuesday when a 5-judge 
panel decided against the appeal due to lack of material that was compelling to 
justify review of the case.

(source: malaysiandigest.com)

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

see: 
http://www.amnestyusa.org/get-involved/take-action-now/singapore-halt-kho-jabing-s-execution-ua-10315

(source: Amnesty International USA)

***********

UN Human Rights Office concerned by ongoing use of death penalty in Singapore


The UN Human Rights Office for South-East Asia (OHCHR) is concerned by the 
Singapore Court of Appeal's decision on Tuesday to uphold the death sentence 
given to Kho Jabing of Malaysia and urges the Government to immediately 
establish a moratorium on capital punishment.

"We are gravely concerned that Mr. Kho is at imminent risk of hanging as the 
court has lifted the stay of execution," said Laurent Meillan, OHCHR's acting 
regional representative in Bangkok. "We are also concerned that he has been 
forced to endure years of immense suffering as his sentence has been changed on 
a number of occasions."

Mr. Kho, 31, was sentenced to death in 2010 after being found guilty of murder. 
At the time, a mandatory death penalty applied to all cases of murder in 
Singapore. Following a change in the legislation in 2012 which now gives judges 
the option of giving a life term for murders where there is 'no intention to 
cause death', he was re-sentenced to life imprisonment and 24 strokes of the 
cane in 2013.

In January 2015, the Court of Appeal decided to re-impose the death penalty. 
The following November, Mr. Kho was granted a temporary stay of execution less 
than 24 hours before he was due to be hanged as a result of an appeal by his 
lawyer.

The UN Human Rights Office calls on the Singapore Government not to carry out 
Mr. Kho's execution.

OHCHR's Regional Office welcomes the Government's decision to apply legislative 
changes to sentences related to some cases of murder and certain categories of 
drug trafficking. Media reports have said at least 5 people - 1 convicted of 
murder and 4 others with drug trafficking - have had their sentences commuted 
to life imprisonment.

"While we are encouraged by the recent positive steps, we call on the 
Government to pursue more comprehensive death penalty reforms with the ultimate 
aim of abolishing the death penalty altogether," said Meillan.

The UN Human Rights Office said it was also concerned that 4 individuals were 
executed in Singapore in 2015 - 1 for murder and the others for drug-related 
offences - which is a sharp increase from previous years. Singapore executed 2 
people in 2014 and there were no executions during the de facto moratorium from 
2011 to 2013. These statistics were released in Singapore Prison Service's 
annual report this February.

Several States called on Singapore to abolish the death penalty during its 
human rights review in Geneva in January 2016.

(source: theonlinecitizen.com)

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

Man, 47, arrested in relation to Circuit Road death


A man was arrested in Malaysia in connection with the death of a 28-year-old 
woman in Singapore last month.

The Royal Malaysia Police made the arrest on April 4 and subsequently handed 
the 47-year-old suspect over to Singapore Police Force, the police said in a 
statement on Wednesday (April 6).

The deceased's body was found inside a locked rental room of a HDB unit at Blk 
70, Circuit Road on March 22.Chinese evening daily Lianhe Wanbao reported that 
the landlord made the grisly discovery when he checked on the vacated room of 
his male tenant, after he was informed that he would be away in Malaysia for a 
work trip.

According to Wanbao, other tenants identified the deceased as the male tenant's 
girlfriend who would visit and stay over at the flat occasionally.

If convicted of murder, the suspect faces the death penalty.

(source: asiaone.com)






MALAYSIA:

'An embarrassment that M'sia practises death penalty'


It is an international embarrassment that Malaysia is 1 out of only 24 United 
Nations member states that still practises the death penalty, said Amnesty 
International Malaysia executive director Shamini Darshni.

"The recent triple executions cheapen suggestions by Attorney-General Apandi 
Ali and Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy Shukri, who both 
agree that death penalty reforms are due."

Last year saw the highest number of executions carried out around the world in 
the last 25 years, according to Amnesty International.

According to Amnesty International's Death Sentences and Executions 2015 
Report, at least 1,634 people were executed last year. This represented a 54% 
increase in the number of executions when compared with 2014.

Malaysia, the report noted, was among the 5 Commonwealth member states that 
executed convicts, apart from Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Singapore.

Malaysia is also 1 of 13 retentionist countries - states which retain and use 
the death penalty for ordinary crimes - in Asia Pacific and 1 of the 12 
countries which carried out executions last year.

The most recent executions were those of Gunasegar Pitchaymuthu, Ramesh 
Jayakumar and Sasivarnam Jayakumar in March.

The hangings drew flak from various quarters for the seeming secrecy of the 
executions and the near lack of notice given to their next of kin by the 
authorities.

Shamini repeated calls for an immediate moratorium on all death penalty cases 
so it would "not be used again".

"We are calling for a stop, not just on the death sentence for Sirul but for 
others as well."

She said this when asked whether Amnesty supported commuting the death sentence 
for Sirul Azhar Umar, the former police commando convicted of killing Mongolian 
model Altantuya Shaariibuu.

Amnesty International, however, noted that some progress was made last year 
after Putrajaya announced legislative reforms to review the country's mandatory 
death penalty laws.

In Malaysia, the mandatory death penalty is handed down for certain drug 
offences, murder, use of firearms and treason.

(source: freemalaysiatoday.com)






CHINA:

Man Sentenced to Death for Killing 9 in China Nursing Home


A man who killed 9 people and injured 9 others in a Chinese nursing home has 
been sentenced to death, the official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday.

Luo Renchu had gathered bricks and pummeled residents at the home in the 
central city of Loudi following a dispute with the owners over allegedly unpaid 
wages, Xinhua said, citing a verdict handed down on Friday by the city's 
Intermediate People's Court.

Xinhua said the attack occurred on Feb. 19, 2015, after the owners failed to 
pay 40,000 yuan ($6,150) owed to Luo and his wife. Calls to the court and local 
government offices rang unanswered Saturday

Retirement homes in China are drawing new attention as the country's overall 
population rapidly ages, mainly as a result of a shrinking fertility rate 
exacerbated by rules limiting most couples to just 1 child. Smaller family 
sizes and increased mobility have challenged traditional notions that children 
should house and care for their parents into their old age.

(source: Associated Press)






SAUDI ARABIA----executions

2 Saudis executed for murder

Saudi Arabia executed 2 citizens for murder on Monday, raising to 84 the number 
of death sentences the kingdom has carried out so far this year.

Baddah al-Dusari was found guilty of killing Saudi national Abdullah al-Qahtani 
by repeatedly running him over, the interior ministry said in a statement 
carried by SPA state news agency.

Mansur al-Azuri was convicted of stabbing to death fellow citizen Saad 
al-Subaiee following a dispute, the ministry said in separate statement.

They were both executed in al-Kharj, near the capital Riyadh.

Most people put to death in Saudi Arabia are beheaded with a sword.

The executions so far this year include 47 for "terrorism" carried out in a 
single day on January 2.

In 2015, Saudi Arabia executed 153 people, most of them for drug trafficking or 
murder, according to an AFP count.

Human rights group Amnesty International says the number of executions in Saudi 
Arabia last year was the highest for 2 decades.

The kingdom is one of the world's top executioners, although its tally in 2015 
was far behind those of China and Iran.

Saudi Arabia has a strict Islamic legal code under which murder, drug 
trafficking, armed robbery, rape and apostasy are all punishable by death.

(source: thepeninsulaqatar.com)