[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

July 7



EGYPT:

Post-coup Egypt's penchant for capital punishment----Since bloody military coup 
in mid-2013, Egyptian courts have sentenced hundreds of people to death


Hundreds of Egyptians have been sentenced to death since July 3, 2013, when 
Mohamed Morsi, Egypt's 1st freely elected president and a Muslim Brotherhood 
leader, was ousted and imprisoned in a bloody military coup.

One of the most notable raft of sentences was issued by the Minya criminal 
court in March of 2014, when 529 people -- including Muslim Brotherhood Supreme 
Guide Mohammed Badie -- were sentenced to death en masse.

Many of these sentences were subsequently reversed by Egypt's Court of Appeals 
after being challenged by lawyers for the defendants.

23 people, however, remain on death row, and if President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi 
approves the sentences, they will soon be executed by hanging.

Many observers, however, say the president -- who, as defense minister, 
spearheaded the coup -- is unlikely to show clemency.

Ezzet Ghoneim, director of the Egyptian Network for Rights and Freedoms, an 
NGO, told Anadolu Agency that the al-Sisi regime's penchant for issuing death 
penalties was unlikely to change in the absence of a dramatic policy 
reorientation.

Of the 23 people now awaiting execution, 2 were sentenced to death for 
allegedly sowing "anarchy and violence" during the forcible dispersion of a 
pro-Morsi sit-in in mid-2013; 4 for allegedly carrying out a deadly bomb 
attack; 6 for allegedly murdering a police officer and judge in 2014; 1 for 
allegedly taking part in "violent acts" after the coup; and 10 for involvement 
in a deadly brawl that erupted during a football match in Port Said in 2012.

Since the coup in mid-2013, a total of 8 death penalties have been carried out 
by the authorities.

1 person was executed last December for allegedly killing 25 soldiers, while 6 
others were hanged in May of 2015 for allegedly killing soldiers and being 
members of a terrorist group with alleged links to Daesh.

The latter case came under widespread criticism, however, since some of those 
accused of terrorist activity had reportedly been in the custody of the 
Interior Ministry at the time of the alleged incident.

The first death penalty to be carried out under al-Sisi took place in May of 
2015, when Mahmoud Ramadan, a Brotherhood member, was executed for allegedly 
throwing a young man off a rooftop in Alexandria in the wake of the coup.

Aside from the 23 people now on death row, there is no official figure for how 
many death penalties have been issued in total by Egypt's higher courts. But 
human rights groups say hundreds of people have been condemned to death since 
the coup.

According to Ghoneim, more than 350 people have been sentenced to death and are 
now waiting for the courts to review appeals lodged by their lawyers.

In July of this year, the Cairo criminal court upheld death penalties handed 
down against 20 people accused of involvement in the murder of a police officer 
in 2013.

In the 4 years since Morsi's ouster, the Egyptian authorities have waged a 
relentless crackdown on dissent, killing hundreds of his supporters and 
throwing thousands -- some say tens of thousands -- behind bars.

(source: aa.com.tr)






IRAN:

Iranian Supreme Court Judge Describes 1988 Mass Executions of Political 
Prisoners as "Fair and Lawful"


A senior Iranian judicial official has publicly defended the state's mass 
executions of political prisoners and extended incarcerations of dissidents in 
the 1980s.

In an interview on July 2, 2017 with Tasnim, a news agency that maintains close 
relations with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Judge Ali Razini, 
the head of Branch 41 of the Supreme Court, described the executions of an 
estimated 4,500-5,000 political prisoners in the summer of 1988 as "fair and 
lawful."

The executions were carried out on the orders of what came to be known as the 
"Death Committee," a special committee that was set up by the founder of the 
Islamic Republic of Iran, the late Supreme Leader Ruhollah Khomeini.

The victims, mostly members of the banned Mojahedin-e Khalgh (MEK), had already 
been tried and sentenced when they faced the committee, which decided whether 
they would live or die based on their perceived loyalty to the Islamic 
Republic.

Razini, who previously headed the Special Court for the Clergy, said he was 
"proud" of his record in the 1980s, including for framing hundreds of 
dissidents in order to keep them behind bars.

"Specifically I interviewed a thousand prisoners [in 1986] to make them confess 
to committing offenses inside prison so that we would have a logical reason to 
put them on trial and convict them again," he said in the interview.

"They were sentenced to additional prison terms between 3 and 5 years," he 
added.

The former Tehran Prosecutor continued: "Rulings by the top 20 judges and I 
ensured the country's security at that time and ever since. As a consequence, 
the MEK can never establish itself here. We nipped them in the bud."

The Supreme Court judge also boasted about issuing death sentences in the early 
1980s.

"In Bojnourd [northeastern Iran], 80 to 90 % of the high school and university 
students had ties with opposition groups," said Razini. "We began to prosecute 
and sentenced 5 of them to death."

"3 months later, the situation changed and their families took us seriously and 
chastised their children [to dissuade them from joining the groups]," he added.

The extrajudicial executions of 1988 became a topic in Iran's May 2017 
presidential election after incumbent President Hassan Rouhani implicitly 
attacked his rival Ebrahim Raisi for being a member of the Death Committee.

"The people of Iran are saying they don't accept those who only hung and 
imprisoned people for the past 38 years [since the 1979 revolution]," said 
Rouhani at a campaign rally on May 8.

Raisi, who lost to Rouhani on May 19, served on the special committee setup by 
Khomeini.

His membership in the committee was never officially brought up in the 
election, but his candidacy was strongly criticized by human rights activists 
and relatives of the victims of the 1988 mass executions.

A month later, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei defended the executions.

"The 1980s was a very important and momentous decade that has been unfairly 
judged," he said on June 4.

"Unfortunately, that period remains undiscovered and recently some of the media 
loudspeakers and their operators have been launching attacks against it," he 
added.

(source: Iran Human Rights)

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

Urgent Action Update: Spiritual Teacher At Risk Of Death Penalty Again (Iran: 
UA 212.14)


Iranian spiritual teacher Mohammad Ali Taheri is awaiting his 2nd hearing due 
to take place in July. The authorities are prosecuting him for "spreading 
corruption on earth". He has been held in solitary confinement for over 6 years 
in Tehran's Evin prison. If convicted, he can be sentenced to death.

TAKE ACTION

Write a letter, send an email, call, fax or tweet:

Urging the Iranian authorities to release Mohammad Ali Taheri immediately and 
unconditionally as he is a prisoner of conscience held solely for the peaceful 
exercise of his rights to freedom of expression and association;

Reminding them that under international human rights law, the death penalty may 
only be used for "the most serious crimes", which international bodies have 
interpreted as being limited to crimes involving intentional killings;

Calling on them to order independent and impartial investigations into his 
prolonged solitary confinement, which violates the absolute prohibition of 
torture and other ill-treatment, and bring those responsible to justice.

Contact these 2 officials by 16 August, 2017:

Head of the Judiciary

Ayatollah Sadegh Larijani

c/o Public Relations Office

Number 4,

2 Azizi Street intersection

Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran

Salutation: Your Excellency



Office of the Supreme Leader

Permanent Mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the United Nations

Ayatollah Sayed 'Ali Khamenei

622 Third Avenue, 34th Floor, New York, NY 10017

Fax: (212) 867-7086 I Phone: (212) 687-2020
Email: iran at un.int

Salutation: Your Excellency

(source: amnestyusa.org)






INDIA:

New anti-hijacking law that prescribes capital punishment comes into 
force----The 2016 Anti-Hijacking Act replaces a 1982 vintage law and it 
prescribes capital punishment in the event of death of "any person".


The country's new anti-hijacking law, which prescribes capital punishment in 
the event of death of "any person", has come into force following a government 
notification.

The 2016 Anti-Hijacking Act replaces a 1982 vintage law, according to which 
hijackers could be tried for death penalty only in the event of death of 
hostages, such as flight crew, passengers and security personnel.

In the new law, the definition has been expanded to include death of "security 
personnel on board" or "ground support staff" as well.

In other cases of hijacking, guilty will be punished with imprisonment for life 
and fine, besides confiscation of movable and immovable property held by him or 
her.

The new law, which has come into effect after its notification on July 5, 
includes several acts within the definition of hijacking including making a 
threat, attempts or abetment to commit the offence.

Those who organise or direct others to commit such offence will also be 
considered to have committed the offence of hijacking.

The new law mandates the central government to confer powers of investigation, 
arrest and prosecution on any officer of the central government or National 
Investigation Agency (NIA).

A bill to repeal 1982's Anti-Hijacking Act in this regard was introduced in the 
Rajya Sabha by civil aviation minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju on December 17, 
2014.

After a few days, it was referred to a parliamentary panel which gave its 
report in March 2015. The bill was passed on May 4, 2016 in the upper house, 
and on May 9, 2016 in the Lok Sabha.

(source: hindustantimes.com)






PAKISTAN:

Man gets death penalty for sexually assaulting, murdering woman


A court awarded death sentence to a man for sexually assaulting and murdering a 
woman in Dera Ghazi Khan.

The judgment was announced by District and Sessions Judge Khizar Hayat. The 
prosecution told the court that accused Faisal Iqbal, Hafiz Kamal and Shahid 
had sexually assaulted a woman Yasmeen Kausar a few years ago. However, the 
police arrested them and registered an FIR no 376/302 against them.

The police produced the accused before the court where they were found guilty 
of the murder. After hearing witnesses and analysing the evidence, the court 
awarded death sentence to the Faisal. The court also imposed a fine of Rs0.5 
million that would be paid to the heirs of the victims. However, the judge 
acquitted Hafiz and Shahid over lack of evidence.

Earlier in May 2017, a man was sentenced to death in a murder case in Dera 
Ghazi Khan. The judgment was announced by District and Session Judge Chaudhry 
Muneer Ahmad.

The prosecution told the court that accused Ghulam Akbar had gunned down Ghulam 
Mustafa over a dispute of laying pipeline in Sakhi Sarwar police limits. The 
police arrested the accused and registered an FIR no 15/83 against him.

After hearing witnesses and analysing the evidence, the court awarded death 
sentence to the Ghulam Akbar.

(source: The Express Tribune)

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

Reconciliation averts murderer's hanging


The execution of capital punishment of a murder accused was stopped in District 
few minutes before after reconciliation between the two families on Thursday.

Murderer Ramazan had shot dead police constable Mukhtiar Ahmed and injured 
sub-inspector Niamat Ali in 2004. An Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) convicted him 
for the murder and sentenced him to death. His mercy plea was rejected by 
President of Pakistan on May 29, 2017. He was to be hanged Thursday morning 
when widow of Constable Mukhtiar Ahmed forgave him and consequently 
implementation of his death penalty was stopped.

FACILITIES FOR LITIGANTS REVIEWED

District and Sessions Judge Syed Muzzafar Ali Shah visited Judicial Complex and 
review the arrangements to facilitate litigants here the other day.

The DSJ went to sessions and civil courts and the alternative dispute 
resolution (ADR) centres. He expressed his displeasure over poor cleanliness on 
the complex premises. He inspected the ADR centres' performance and informed 
the litigants of ADR significance in disposing of cases. He directed the judges 
and other staff to treat the litigants politely. He also urged them to work for 
mitigating litigants woes. He advised them to avoid unnecessary court 
appearance of litigants.

Senior Civil Judges - Shumaila Yaqoob Sidhu, Sajjad Qasim and Additional 
District and Sessions Judge Safdar Ali accompanied him.

(source: The Nation)






DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC of CONGO:

Congo court convicts soldiers for massacre in disputed Kasai region


A Democratic Republic of Congo court convicted 7 soldiers on Thursday for the 
murder of suspected militia members in the country's insurrection-ravaged Kasai 
region.

The court in the central Congolese city of Mbuji Mayi sentenced 2 army majors 
to 20 years in prison and three other soldiers to 15 years for murder and 
improperly disposing of weapons, defence lawyer Jimmy Bashile told Reuters.

A video of the massacre showed soldiers shooting people, some of them young 
women, at point blank range and provoked international condemnation when it 
appeared in February.

2 soldiers were sentenced in absentia to capital punishment, Bashile added, 
although Congo has observed a moratorium on the death penalty for more than a 
decade.

1 other soldier received a 12-month suspended sentence for failing to denounce 
the crimes, while another was acquitted for lack of evidence, Bashile said. All 
of the defendants who were convicted plan to appeal their sentences, he added.

More than 3,000 people have been killed and 1.3 million displaced since the 
start of an insurrection last August by the Kamuina Nsapu militia, which 
demands that the government withdraw its forces.

At least 52 mass graves have also been found and several of the defendants in 
Mbuji Mayi had faced more serious war crimes charges, but those were dropped 
mid-trial.

Congo's government denies any systematic use of excessive force and has said 
the prosecutions show its justice system's ability to deal with crimes 
committed during the conflict.

The United Nations and rights groups, however, say Congolese authorities have 
not done enough to hold perpetrators responsible. The U.N. Human Rights Council 
voted last month to establish an international investigation.

Militia violence in Congo, a tinder box of conflicts over land, ethnicity and 
minerals, has been worsened by President Joseph Kabila's refusal to step down 
when his mandate expired in December, and analysts say it risks spinning out of 
control.

(source: Reuters)