[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Feb. 24


PAKISTAN:

17 years on death row: SC issues notices to AG, prosecutor general


A 3-judge bench of the Supreme Court on Wednesday issued notices to Punjab's 
advocate general and prosecutor general on a petition of a juvenile offender 
who was handed down the death sentence allegedly after being deprived of the 
benefit of Juvenile Justice System Ordinance (JJSO).

In his petition, the convict Muhammad Anwar said he had turned to several 
forums for drawing their attention towards the JJSO but in vain.

He requested the bench - headed by Justice Mushir Alam, comprising Justice Dost 
Muhammad Khan and Justice Maqbool Baqar - that he be given the benefit under 
the said ordinance.

Anwar was sentenced to death in 1998 for a crime he had allegedly committed 
when he was just 17 years old. Following the death sentence, the JJSO - a law 
prohibiting the death penalty for juvenile offenders - was enacted in 2000.

In 2001, a presidential notification was enacted to extend the benefit of the 
law to all juvenile offenders, who had been sentenced to death prior to the 
JJSO, following a determination of age by the Home Department.

However after the notification, the Supreme Court held that the sessions court 
was the lawful forum for carrying out the inquiry. Anwar's family submitted an 
application to the Home Department requesting that he be granted the special 
remission on the basis of his age.

Although an age determination inquiry was initiated by the Home Department 
which gathered contemporaneous birth records showing Anwar to have been a 
juvenile at the time of the offence, this inquiry was never completed.

Since then, Anwar's family has tried every possible means to request an age 
determination from the sessions court, submitting no fewer than four 
applications. In over a decade and a half, however, no forum has ever taken a 
final decision on this issue.

A report by the Justice Project Pakistan titled 'Death Row's Children: 
Pakistan's Unlawful Executions of Juvenile Offenders' launched last week found 
that Pakistan has failed to undertake inquiries for the determination of age 
under the presidential notification.

As a result, a significant number of juveniles have been denied the benefit of 
the presidential notification and therefore executed unlawfully. In December 
2015, Anwar came within hours of execution and remains at serious risk of 
receiving another execution warrant.

Anwar has now spent nearly 19 years on death row. He was arrested in 1993 along 
with his brothers in the wake of a fight outside his house in which three 
people had gotten injured. One of the injured had later succumbed to his 
injuries.

During his 24 years in Vehari jail, Anwar has developed severe heart problems, 
as a result of which he has been partially paralysed. In 2015, he suffered an 
attack that led to the loss of movement in the left side of his body, severely 
compromising his mobility.

Anwar's birth was registered by his family with the local Union Council just 
three days after he was born in Dec 1975.

Justice Project Pakistan's Wassam Waheed who is dealing with this case said 
Anwar has been denied his rights under the country???s juvenile justice system 
for too long, without explanation. With Anwar's case, the lack of retrospective 
force of the JJSO and the presidential notification is clear for all to see.

"Under the directives of the Honourable Supreme Court, the Government of 
Pakistan will have to explain why a 17-year-old remained on death row despite 
the presidential notification," he said.

(source: The Express Tribune)






IRAN:

Iranian Sunni Leader Worried By Alleged 'Secret Order' To Quickly Execute 
Prisoners


The spiritual leader of Iran's Sunnis has written to Iranian Supreme Leader 
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to express concern over "rumors" of a secret order for 
the speedy execution of Sunni prisoners convicted of drug trafficking.

Molavi Abdolhamid, the Friday Prayers leader of the southeastern city of 
Zahedan in the restive Sistan-Baluchistan Province, calls in his letter to 
Khamenei for "wise and fatherly" intervention into the issue.

Abdolhamid, who's been outspoken about the rights of Sunnis and the 
discrimination they face in Iran, appears to be referring to a recent report by 
a news site close to the country's reformist politicians that is making the 
rounds on social media.

The report issued earlier this week by Amadnews.com claims that the head of 
Iran's hard-line judiciary has ordered Sunni prisoners convicted of drug 
smuggling to be executed as soon as possible so they won't be subject to a 
parliament bill that proposes the elimination of the death penalty for 
prisoners convicted of drug-related offenses.

The report said that at least 50 Sunni prisoners could be executed as a result 
of the alleged secret order.

Officials have not publicly commented on the report.

"Regardless of its accuracy, the rumor has resulted in worry and concern among 
Sunnis," says the letter, parts of which were published on Abdolhamid's 
website.

Sunnis -- who constitute between 4 and 8 percent of Iran's 83 million people -- 
make up a disproportionately larger proportion of the death-row population due 
to their presence in several rural border areas where drug routes are often 
located and communities are often impoverished.

The parliament's bill is an attempt to reduce the large number of executions in 
Iran - one of the highest rates in the world -- where drug traffickers account 
for the majority of those hanged.

Iranian laws call for the death penalty for the trafficking or possession of as 
little as 30 grams of drugs such as heroin or cocaine.

Critics have said the extensive use of the death penalty has done little to 
stop drug use and trafficking in the country, which is on a major transit route 
for drugs smuggled from Afghanistan to Europe.

Iranian lawmaker Hassan Nowruzi said in November that 5,000 people between the 
ages of 20 and 30 were on death row in Iran for drug offenses. He said the 
majority of them were first-time offenders.

Lawmakers supporting the draft bill reducing death sentences for drug smugglers 
have said capital punishment should be abolished for those who become involved 
in drug trafficking out of desperation and poverty.

But hard-liners in the judiciary appear to be resistant to the bill that is 
currently being considered by parliamentary committees.

The head of the judiciary, Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani, defended the body's 
"tough stance" on the proposed change to the law in comments published in 
September. "In some cases, including drug trafficking, we're forced to act 
quickly, openly, and decisively," he said, while adding that the judges should 
not delay the implementation of sentences.

He said that in some cases "alternative punishments" could replace the death 
penalty while respecting "some conditions," but added that "the death penalty 
cannot be ruled out."

At least 977 people were put to death in Iran in 2015, mainly for drug-related 
crimes, according to a report by London-based Amnesty International.

Many Sunnis are reportedly among those executed, though exact numbers are not 
available.

Iranian Vice President Shahindokht Molaverdi came under fire from officials in 
March when she said that all of the men in 1 village in the province of 
Sistan-Baluchistan, which is home to a large Sunni population, had been 
executed for drug-related offenses.

(source: payvand.com)






SINGAPORE:

UN: Halt execution of Malaysian national S Prabagaran in Singapore


The UN Human Rights Office for South East Asia calls on Singapore to halt the 
scheduled execution of Malaysian national S Prabagaran, and urges the 
government to immediately reinstate a moratorium on the use of the death 
penalty.

Prabagaran was convicted in 2012 after 22.24g of diamorphine, a pure form of 
heroin, was found in his car at the Singaporean immigration checkpoint.

Under international law, the death penalty may only be used for "the most 
serious crimes", which has been interpreted to mean only crimes involving 
intentional killing. Drug-related offences do not fall under the threshold of 
"most serious crimes". Furthermore, under domestic law, the death penalty is 
not mandatory for drug-related offences.

"The death penalty is not an effective deterrent relative to other forms of 
punishment nor does it protect people from drug abuse. The focus of 
drug-related crime prevention should involve strengthening the justice system 
and making it more effective," the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid 
Ra'ad Al Hussein has stated.

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

Prabagaran has maintained his innocence, saying that he didn't own the car he 
drove, and wasn't aware of the drugs being in it.

His lawyer N Surendran said Prabagaran faces execution within a few weeks.

(source: aliran.com)






PHILIPPINES:

Cebu groups say no to death penalty, lower age of criminal liability


Activist groups in Cebu on Friday launched a signature drive to protest the 
administration's plan to bring back the death penalty and to lower the criminal 
age of liability from 15 years old to 9.

The activity was part of the nationwide campaign to gather at least a million 
signatures to convince lawmakers to vote against the 2 controversial bills.

"We want to show Congress that many are against plans to reimpose the death 
penalty and the lowering of the age of criminal liability. The duty of the 
state is to protect the lives of its citizens; not to kill its citizens. And if 
they want to discipline erring minors, they better do it the right way," said 
Rep. Tom Villarin of the Akbayan Partylist who graced the launching at the 
North Reclamation Area in Cebu City.

He said they have until May 2016 to reach their target.

Villarin expressed hopes that lawmakers will vote according to their conscience 
and not because of any prodding from Malaca???ang.

"Let us not enact laws by force. If that happens, it's just so alarming,' he 
said, alluding to threats by Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez to remove those opposed 
to the death penalty bill from plum posts in Congress.

(source: newsinfo.inquirer.net)

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

UK Ambassador calls death penalty law 'a tragic reversal'


United Kingdom Ambassador to the Philippines Asif Ahmad and former president 
Fidel V. Ramos both criticized the moves to revive capital punishment in the 
country.

Ahmad said reinstating the death penalty is a tragic reversal of upholding the 
right to life that would demonstrate the Philippines could easily walk away 
from international treaties and legal obligations.

Ramos, on the other hand, said "we are not moving forward, we are moving 
backward."

"We must listen to the Amnesty International, who condemns Duterte's reported 
7,000 killings and his administration's move to re-impose the death penalty. We 
must listen to this international bodies especially AI, they are governed by 
certain basic rules of humanity and they are authorized by the United Nations 
(UN) to look into this things," Ramos said, during a television interview last 
Thursday.

We're one of the founding fathers of the UN under Carlos P. Romulo, who became 
the president of the General Assembly, but now, we are 115 in UN ranking in 
Human Development," he added.

The Philippines is also a party to the International Covenant on Civil and 
Political Rights (ICCPR) and to the Second Optional Protocol of the ICCPR on 
the abolition of the death penalty.

Ahmad said that the Philippines being a signatory to the ICCPR, "could not just 
walk away from that agreement or treaty just like that and that it would cause 
jitters among the British businessmen or the business community."

Yasay said: "I am not too sure why the good ambassador has made mention that 
statement maybe he was referring to that in the context of that experience in 
the UK."

When informed that Ahmad was referring to the ICCPR mandate, Yasay replied: 
"Well, I am not sure that is a very diplomatic statement but I would take issue 
with the statement as not being quite accurate. I think change has come to the 
Philippines for the better and I think change has come to the Philippines 
because we have a president in the person of President Rodrigo Roa Duterte that 
is committed to make real and meaningful change as it happen as it is happening 
today."

"I do not know why he says that change is happening in the negative way. I see 
a lot of positive effects of the actions we have taken to make change happen."

"Of course there are side effects and downsides of that change. But these are 
things that we are trying to manage. These are things that we manage in a 
manner that they will not overpower the positive results and benefits that we 
are trying to pursue and we're now in fact also enjoying," Yasay added.

When asked whether Ahmad's statement constitute interference with the country's 
internal affairs, and whether Yasay plans to summon Ahmad to explain, Yasay 
said.

"No, I think he was just expressing his personal opinion. I am just saying that 
I don't think his opinion is right. And I have said it."

According to the AI, "since winning the presidential election, President 
Duterte triggered widespread alarm by calling for the restoration of the death 
penalty, vowing to preside over a wave of extrajudicial executions, threatening 
journalists, and intimidating human rights defenders.

"President Duterte's promises to adhere to the rule of law and to Philippines" 
international obligations mark a welcome change from earlier rhetoric, but it 
is important that they are not merely issued to placate critics but are 
translated into actual policy and implemented in practice," AI said.

President Duterte has said that he intends to apply the death penalty to a 
range of crimes including offences that do not meet the threshold of "most 
serious crimes," which is the only category of crimes for which international 
law allows the death penalty," AI added.

(source: businessmirror.com.ph)

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

Yasay defends move to revive death penalty


Foreign Affairs Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. defended yesterday the move to 
reinstate the death penalty, saying nobody from outside should interfere in the 
domestic decision if it would be approved by Congress.

Yasay said he was not too sure about British Ambassador Asif Ahmad's expression 
of his views on the revival of the death penalty in the country, but he pointed 
out that the envoy could be commenting in the context of their own experience 
in the United Kingdom.

The abolition of the death penalty, he said, has in fact encouraged hardened 
and ruthless criminals like drug lords, murderers, terrorists and syndicates 
"to capitalize on that weakness that we have shown."

"And it is for this reason that I think to deliberate once and for all whether 
it is in the paramount national interest to reinstate the death penalty (is 
necessary) and if it (Congress) so decides, nobody ... especially somebody 
outside of our country, can interfere with that domestic decision," Yasay told 
reporters.

Although treaties have the same force and effect of laws, Yasay explained that 
the Constitution mandates Congress with a duty to deliberate on the death 
penalty.

"It (Congress) has not made a final decision on it as yet. It is premature. Let 
us see and find out the true justification why the death penalty if at all it 
will be imposed," he added.

Ahmad said reinstating the death penalty is a tragic reversal of upholding the 
right to life that would demonstrate the Philippines could easily walk away 
from international treaties and legal obligations.

The Philippines is party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political 
Rights and to the Second Optional Protocol of the ICCPR on the abolition of the 
death penalty.

Railroaded?

The House will vote on the bill re-imposing the death penalty on Tuesday, 
Majority Leader Rodolfo Farinas said yesterday.

He said members have until Monday to present proposed amendments to the revised 
version of Bill 4727, which reflects the reduction of the original 21 covered 
crimes to only 4.

He shared the confidence of Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez that their majority 
coalition would be able to muster the votes needed to approve the measure on 
2nd reading on Tuesday.

On Wednesday night, the House terminated the period of debates despite 
objections from those opposed to capital punishment. It also closed the period 
for committee amendments after the committee on justice presented its revised 
version of the bill.

During the session, the presiding officer, deputy speaker and Rep. Sharon Garin 
of Aambis-OWA, and acting majority leader Rep. Juan Pablo Bondoc of Pampanga, 
ignored insistent interventions by members against death penalty.

The revised version includes only 4 crimes - treason, plunder, certain 
drug-related crimes like importation, sale, trading, manufacture or 
distribution of dangerous drugs, maintenance of a den for illicit drugs and 
rape cases such as rape with homicide, rape of a minor and rape committed by 
law enforcement officers.

(source: philstar.com)

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

PH ready for international criticism for death penalty


During his confirmation hearing before lawmakers in the Commission on 
Appointments yesterday, Foreign Affairs secretary Perfecto Yasay said that the 
Philippines is preparing for any international backlash in case death penalty 
was reinstated.

In his statement, Yasay pointed out the country's commitment with the 
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) where the country 
should not adopt the death penalty.

"But there is our involvement in this convention where if we will reinstate the 
death penalty, it could result in some negative repercussions where we might be 
forced out of that situation as member and signatory to that convention," Yasay 
said, referring to the ICCPR.

"But this is something that is way down the road, we are now preparing our 
response, in the event that Congress is able to come up with a decision on 
whether or not to reinstate the death penalty," he said.

Yasay also pointed out that there are members who are also members of the Human 
Rights Council. In fact, in the ASEAN, only Cambodia and the Philippines are 
the countries who still don't use death penalty.

Although the Congress had already reached a consensus regarding the matter, it 
may not be the same with the Senate. As of the moment, there are 10 senators 
who are not in favor of reinstating death penalty.

According to House Majority Leader Rodolfo Fari???as, even if the law approved 
of this, it is possible that Duterte would not be able to use it during the 
rest of his term due to the long and technical process of convicting an 
offender.

Conviction takes at least 4 to 5 years as it follows a process of reviews from 
higher courts until the Supreme Court hands out a verdict.

It is unlikely for Duterte to be able to execute anyone who is currently 
serving his or her sentence in New Bilibid Prisons either.

(source: canadianinquirer.net)






MALAYSIA:

MP Kula: Speed up efforts to abolish death penalty----The Ipoh Barat MP says 
there is no conclusive proof that the death penalty reduces homicides.


DAP national vice-chairman M Kula Segaran today called on the government to 
speed up efforts to abolish the death penalty.

The MP for Ipoh Barat said in a statement, studies had debunked the view that 
the death penalty reduced the number of homicides.

He was commenting on the scheduled execution of brothers Rames and Suthar 
Batumalai today, which was postponed at the last minute.

The duo had filed an application for a royal pardon. It is not certain if the 
postponement was due to the clemency plea.

"It is most unfair and unjust if the brothers are denied the right to have 
their appeal studied by the Pardons Board. It is also totally unacceptable if 
the Pardons Board is not given the time to review the application," Kula said.

Rames, 44, and Suthar, 39, were sentenced to death in April 2010 after being 
convicted for murder.

Meanwhile, Kula said the Prisons Department had said in May 2015 that there 
were 1,043 death row inmates nationwide.

The figure of 1043 was no small number, said Kula.

"Being a member of parliament and the secretary of the Parliamentarians for 
Global Action, I have highlighted the injustice related to the death penalty in 
Parliament.

"It is significant that Attorney-General Apandi Ali has stated that the 
government plans to review the death penalty on certain crimes.

"It is hoped that efforts towards the abolition of the death penalty in 
Malaysia will be speeded up."

(source: freemalaysiatoday.com)

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

Brothers on death row get last minute reprieve


2 brothers who were due to be executed on Friday morning for a murder they were 
convicted for received a temporary reprieve at the last minute, said Amnesty 
International Malaysia.

Brothers Rames and Suthar Batumalai, who were convicted for murder in April 
2010, had earlier submitted a clemency application for a royal pardon through 
their lawyers.

The clemency application was submitted to the Negri Sembilan Pardons Board on 
Thursday by Haresh Mahadevan & Co.

The family of Rames, 44, and Suthar, 39, were only informed on Wednesday that 
they should visit the brothers for the last time on Thursday ahead of their 
execution.

The brothers were originally found guilty of a murder committed in Feb 2006.

(source: thestar.com.my)