[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

March 2



IRELAND:

>From death row to wedding vows: Watch how 1 couple found love after life 
staring at execution----"They could imprison us physically but not in our mind, 
heart or spirit." The haunting words from former death row prisoners are ones 
that are not usually repeated nearly 20 years down the line.


Yet for Peter Pringle and his wife Sunny Jacobs, their road to true love has 
encountered injustice, death and survival.

On the outside they look like any other couple enjoying their later years 
together. They share a love of animals, vegetarian food, yoga, meditation - and 
are eager to speak of the farm they live on in Ireland.

But beneath the surface their unique bond was formed through events that only 
one can imagine.

Peter Pringle, now aged 77, and Sonia 'Sunny' Jacobs, aged 68, both served 
years on death row for alleged murder.

Sunny spent 17 years in the United States and Peter 15 years in Ireland.

Fortunately, both were exonerated after their convictions were overturned for 
the murders that they did not commit.

But while imprisoned their hope, courage, faith and determination - along with 
similar yoga and meditation practices - helped them make it through.

Timeline of the incredible story

Peter November 1980 - Peter told he would be sentenced to death.

June 1981 - his sentence was commuted and instead of the death penalty he now 
faced 40 years in jail.

1992 - Peter began to prove his innocence by studying law and his case was 
reopened in the high court.

May 1995 - The Court of Criminal appeal quashed his conviction and he was 
released.

Sunny

1976 - Sunny placed on death row in Florida.

She was put in 5 years solitary confinement.

1981 - At her 1st appeal her sentence was changed because the judge had 
initially overruled the jury. However, she still had to spend more than 10 
years in prison.

1992 - Sunny was freed after the guy who committed the crime confessed after 
her husband's execution. Her conviction was overturned.

1998 - Sunny and Peter meet when she travels to Ireland for an Amnesty 
International talk.

2001 - Sunny moves to Ireland to be with Peter.

2011 - They couple get married in an intimate ceremony in New York.

In 1976, Sunny was placed on death row in Florida for the murder of 2 police 
officers.

Where as in Dublin in 1980, Peter was sentenced to death for the murder of 2 
officers of the Garda Siochana, otherwise known as the Irish police force.

"We were both wrongly convicted and sentenced to death of crimes we did not 
commit," explained Peter.

"In my instance I wasn't even in the locality at the time of the crime. I was 
arrested 12 days after because the man they were chasing had alluded them and 
they needed to get closure - so they arrested me for capital murder and bank 
robbery.

"They sentenced me to die on December 19, 1980.

"At the same time they sentenced me to 15 years for bank robbery.

"I had a background of being a political activist beforehand, as well as a 
binge drinker. The police thought by charging me it would bring closure to the 
case and get me off the streets at the same time," he added.

Peter was 41 when he was convicted. Throughout the years to come he spoke of 
delving into legal books and effectively becoming a 'jailhouse lawyer'.

"I never gave up," he exclaimed.

"No matter what - you never give up."

One of the key factors that got me through was my stubbornness - the only other 
person I know who is as stubborn as me is sitting beside me now.

"You have to determine that they are not going to get the better of you.

"I came within 11 days of execution. I spent 20 years on death row and saw 53 
of the people around me I knew executed.

"But I was never afraid to die," he smiled.

As Peter speaks it is clear that the emotion he conveys is what sparked the 
bond between him and Sunny.

(source: Express and Star)






UNITED ARAB EMIRATES:

Man who slit mother's throat tells Sharjah court she has 'dropped charges'


A man who slit his mother's throat and kept her body in his flat for 10 days 
told a court that she had returned from the dead and dropped all the charges 
against him.

"I have a waiver," 29-year-old Emirati NL told Sharjah Criminal Court. When 
asked about the source of the waiver, NL said it was from his dead mother.

NL was referred to Al Amal Psychiatric Hospital in Dubai for a 2nd evaluation 
after a report from his initial test was inconclusive.

"You will be sent to Al Amal Hospital," the judge told N?L, who got irritated 
at the ruling.

"Are you content? This is unjust," NL said before he was taken back to his 
cell.

The court was told NL was aware of his surroundings during his 1st evaluation 
but he had not been cooperative and answered few questions.

He admitted murdering his mother last year, claiming Allah ordered him to kill 
her for performing witchcraft.

Police found the 50-year-old woman's body at NL's flat when they arrested him 
on June 7 last year for attacking an Iranian ???supermarket worker with a knife 
at a shop in Mamzar.

When confronted about his failure to answer questions, NL told the court: "They 
were the same questions asked by the court and I am well. I don't suffer from 
any illness."

Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for NL. The next hearing will be on 
March 24.

(source: The National)






INDONESIA:

Death Penalty for Inmate, Cop Controlling Drug Ring From Behind Bars


The Surabaya District Court on Tuesday (01/03) sentenced to death a female 
prison inmate for controlling a drug syndicate from behind bars with the help 
of a police officer and his wife, who also received the death penalty.

Tri Diah Toriassiah, also known as Susi, was serving a 7-year jail term in East 
Java's Porong prison in Sidoarjo district for another drug crime when she was 
found to have distributed at least 50 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine, 
with an estimated street value of Rp 6 billion ($450,958), the court ruled.

Susi had enlisted the help of Adj. First Insp. Abdul Latif of the Sedati 
Subdistrict Police and his wife Indri Rahmawati to pick up shipments from a 
former inmate named Yoyok and distribute them to drug dealers across Surabaya, 
Indonesia's 2nd biggest city.

"Despite being in prison for drug offenses, Susi continued to run her 
[narcotics] business by working with Yoyok; the volume of drugs [they 
distributed] was huge," presiding judge Kamaruddin Simanjuntak said on Tuesday 
afternoon.

The judges unanimously agreed to hand her the death sentence.

(source: Jakarta Globe)

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

With Calls For Their Execution, Indonesian LGBTQ Community On High Alert


Perhaps not since Pol Pot led the Khmer Rouge has an Asian society been this on 
edge about its future. Granted, the Indonesian government has not declared 
martial law nor has it begun to ship the Muslim-majority country's LGBTQ 
community into forced labor camps. But a recent string of announcements from 
Indonesian officials, both former and current, including a parliamentarian's 
call to execute all gay people, is causing many to wonder just how far their 
country will go with its latest anti-gay push.

What started out as a seemingly innocuous joke - the banning of gay emojis on 
one of the country's top instant messaging services, soon took a very noxious 
turn. Less than a week later, the Indonesian Psychiatric Association declared 
homosexuality as a mental condition that "may cause suffering and obstacles in 
functioning as a human being." The august body declared that transgender people 
are suffering from a "mental disorder."

Now the BBC is reporting on a more menacing trend with outright calls to kill 
gay people:

"One of the most extreme views came from Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu who 
described the movement for gay rights in Indonesia as a form of a modern 
warfare - an attempt by Western nations to undermine the country's sovereignty. 
Then former communications minister Tifatul Sembiring made a call on Twitter, 
where he has more than 1 million followers, for the public to kill any gay 
people that they find. (According to Buzzfeed, the post was pulled while the 
former minister and now parliamentarian states he was "bullied" into tweeting 
that kind of hate rhetoric.)

For the transgender community, many of whom are forced into the sex trade, the 
increase in violence directed at the LGBTQ community is palpable on the streets 
and the fear is real. Gay rights activist, Hartoyo, who runs the support group 
Our Voice, says the community is on high alert. "I am scared that there will be 
violence against us. There is a history of violence against minorities in 
Indonesia that were fueled by similar kinds of statements. We need the 
government to protect us and the president needs to say you can't talk to us 
like this."

For members of the Indonesian LGBTQ community who are more affluent, and 
particularly those that live in the capital Jakarta, life is not nearly as 
dire. As long as they agree to live a closeted life, they are pretty much left 
alone.

(source: thegailygrind.com)






MALAYSIA:

Drugs: Trial of man who faces death sentence starts


The trial of a 31-year-old local man charged with trafficking 238.3gm of 
ketamine and having 2 other types of drugs, began on Monday at the High Court 
here.

Calvin Tan is accused of trafficking the ketamine at 3.30pm on Sept 18, 2014 at 
the Hartamas Height Apartment lobby in Jalan Kepayan- Kobusak, Penampang.

Tan is also accused of having 15.6gm of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine 
(MDMA) at the same time and place while for the other charge, he allegedly had 
97.4 grammes of cannabis on the same day in a house at Hartamas Height 
Apartment.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Wan Farrah Farriza Wan Ghazali told Judge Datuk 
Nurchaya Hj Arshad that the prosecution has 5 witnesses for the trial.

The prosecution in tendering the opening address stated that they will prove 
its case via oral evidence, exhibits and documentary evidence to prove that Tan 
had possession as well as knowledge of the said drugs.

The prosecution would be calling a police inspector who was the complainant in 
the case, to prove a raid was conducted by the police team from the Narcotics 
Department at 3.30pm on Sept 18, 2014 at the lobby of Hartamas Height 
Apartment.

During the raid, Tan handed over a blue tin to the complainant, who found out 
that the said tin contained two plastic packets containing 50 pills pink in 
colour (love-shaped) and 6 plastic packets containing crystalline substances, 
both suspected to be dangerous drugs.

Tan was then arrested and a bunch of keys coupled with an access card to an 
apartment unit was found in Tan's short pants pocket.

Tan then on the same day at 4pm led the raiding team to the store room located 
at a unit at Hartamas Height Apartment and Tan subsequently surrendered to the 
complainant an orange box, which was later found to contain 2 plastic packets 
containing compact slabs of plant materials suspected to be dangerous drugs.

The police also confiscated other exhibits in Tan's bedroom including a wallet 
containing a MyKad under his name and RM650 cash.

The prosecution stated that a chemist would be called to prove that the said 
drugs confiscated from Tan on analysis were confirmed to be ketamine weighing 
238.3gm and 15.6gm of MDMA and that the chemist's evidence would prove that the 
said drugs confiscated from Tan after analysis were confirmed to be cannabis 
weighing 97.4gm.

Tan faces the death penalty if convicted under Section 39B (1) (a) of the 
Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 on the ketamine trafficking charge while for having 
MDMA, as charged under Section 12 (2) of the same Act, Tan could be jailed 
between 2 years and 5 years and caned between 3 and 9 times.

For the offence of having cannabis, Tan stands charged under Section 6 of the 
same Act which carries an imprisonment for life or for a term not less than 5 
years and with not less than 10 strokes of the cane.

Tan is represented by counsel Nelson Angang.

(source: The Daily Express)



PAKISTAN:

Worryingly, a liberal's killer is honoured in Pakistan


These are dark times for anybody who cares about religious freedom, and the 
fate of minority faiths, in Pakistan. It is exactly 5 years since Shahbaz 
Bhatti, the minorities minister who was the only Christian in the government 
and an opponent of the country's blasphemy law, was assassinated by the 
Pakistani Taliban. The United States Commission on International Religious 
Freedom marked the anniversary by urging the abolition of that law. But far 
from honouring the slain minister's memory, there seem to be ever more 
Pakistanis who agree that death is an appropriate fate not only for blasphemers 
but for those who dare to question the rightness of such a penalty.

One such questioner was Salman Taseer, a liberal-minded governor of Punjab 
province; in January 2011 he was gunned down by a self-appointed scourge of 
liberalism: his own bodyguard. That assassin, Mumtaz Qadri, was hanged this 
week in a Rawalpindi prison, and up to 100,000 people attended his funeral or 
staged protests elsewhere in Pakistan. They saw Qadri as a lone, heroic 
practitioner of divine justice, not a murderer.

Taseer's crime in the eyes of Qadri and his supporters was his support for Asia 
Bibi, a poor Christian woman who is on death row after being accused of 
blasphemy by neighbours in a petty quarrel. Taseer had also described the 
blasphemy ban as a "black law". So powerful was this week's groundswell of 
support for Qadri that the government stopped broadcasters carrying news of the 
funeral and no front-rank politician dared to comment publicly. In an 
atmosphere rife with conspiracy theory, Qadri's supporters claimed he was 
hanged on February 29th, a date which comes round every four years, in order to 
deny him an anniversary.

What is the origin of Pakistan's fury against religious offence, real or 
imagined? Liberal Pakistanis like to stress that the country was not always so 
prickly about faith. Some blame the change of mood on Zia ul Haq, the Islamist 
dictator and cold-war ally of the West who seized power in 1977 and was killed 
in 1988. Others recall that laws banning blasphemy go right back to the British 
Raj.

It is certainly true that General Zia built a network of religious schools that 
prepared people to fight the Soviet forces in Afghanistan, and generally fanned 
the flames of religous zeal. The old British bans on blasphemy, later inherited 
by independent Pakistan, were also introduced in a pragmatic spirit, designed 
to keep order. Under General Zia, things got much harsher; disrespecting the 
Koran or Islam's prophet could incur life imprisonment or, in the latter case, 
death. Then in 1991 a federal religious court ruled that death was the only 
appropriate punishment for blasphemy.

The number of blasphemy cases began soaring in the 1980s; between 1929 and 1982 
there had been only nine, according to the Jinnah Institute, a think-tank.

But the idea of honouring individuals who take it upon themselves to liquidate 
blasphemers, or those who are soft on blasphemy, is nothing new. In 1929, a 
young carpenter's apprentice was executed for killing a publisher in Lahore who 
had circulated a controversial work on Muhammad. Huge crowds attended the 
funeral; the atmosphere must have been very similar to this week's outpouring 
of grief, anger and vindictiveness.

Here's another confusing part of the story. The 2 best known streams of South 
Asian Islam, whether in Pakistan or Britain, are the puritanical Deobandis and 
the Barelvis, whose more elaborate forms of worship, involving saints and 
shrines, are sometimes called popular Sufism. The madrassas founded by General 
Zia follow the Deobandi path. In Britain, it is the Deobandis who are often 
perceived as hard-liners and advocates of self-segregation, while the Barelvis 
are seen as more moderate and amenable. The Taliban and several terrorist 
groups are offshoots of the Deobandi movement, although there are other 
ultra-pious Deobandis who are peaceful.

But the adulation of the 2 killers (Ilm-Deen in 1929 and Qadri in 2016) is a 
Barelvi phenomenon. Barelvis have never ceased to honour the grave of Ilm-Deen 
and they attended this week's funeral in huge numbers. By contrast 1 of 
Pakistan's most senior Deobandi clerics defended the execution, saying nobody 
was above the law.

Unfortunately, the roots of religious rage in Pakistan can't be reduced to 1 
particular school of Islam, 1 political leader, or 1 period of history. If only 
things were that simple.

(source: The Economist)