[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

May 6



GAMBIA:

Does Gambia Need The Death Penalty?


Justice Hassan Babucarr Jallow, is back as the Chief Justice of The Republic of 
The Gambia. It was he who, as Attorney General and Minister of Justice back in 
the 1980s abolished the death penalty in The Gambia. I am sure he is poised to 
do the same again, not least because the European Union will make abolition of 
the death penalty a condition of financial support to the new government. 
Abolition of the death penalty is also a matter of principle for many in 
Gambia's new government, not least because of the disgraceful and atrocious way 
that Yahya Jammeh killed those Mile 2 prisoners in 2012.

But the question must be asked: in a poor developing country like The Gambia, 
can we afford not to have the death penalty?

The question was brought to my mind yesterday and today by two pieces of news, 
one from Guinea when I saw a video of people killing three robbers who were 
forcefully taken from police custody by the vengeful crowd; and here in London 
when a man, who had already served 11 years for a previous murder, was sent to 
jail today for 15 years - for a 2nd murder of a 21-year old young father.

The initial impetus for the abolition of the death penalty was the argument 
that the conviction for murder may be arrived at wrongly (I think the last 
person to be hanged in UK has been pardoned because his innocence has been 
proved posthumously).

The 2nd argument against the death penalty is a simple moral one: the Bible 
says "thou shall not kill" and some argue that this applies to the state itself 
too.

The 3rd argument is that "the death penalty is counter-productive" - look at 
USA where the one Western country with the death penalty also has the highest 
homicide rate.

And finally, the 4th argument against the death penalty is that even the worst 
of people can be rehabilitated to lead a useful life and contribute to society. 
There was a famous murderer in Scotland whom I met many years ago at his 
Project working with youth offenders. He had married the daughter of a "Lord", 
a doctor and prison psychologist who had fallen in love with this murderer and 
did much to give him a new lease of life.

The 1st argument appears unanswerable - until we note that last month a USA 
grandfather was shot dead, deliberately, on facebook. So there are 
circumstances in which we can now be 100% certain that the murderer is the 
murderer.

The 2nd argument seems rather simplistic and has been defeated by theologians 
themselves who have justified the concept of the "just war" - which involves 
killing. It is interesting that NATO and the Western alliance have been the 
biggest killers (mass murderers) of civilians around the world in the last 70 
years or so.

The 3rd argument seems to conflate specific problems of the United States of 
America - a nation founded on the genocide of the native "Red Indians", violent 
and racist brutal slavery, and above all America's love of the gun culture. So 
USA is not a good example. We should ask instead: does the death penalty in 
Saudi Arabia, in Iran and China, for example lead to a less violent society? 
Will the violent killings of so many drug-dealers in the Philippines today 
rescue that country and save it from destruction at the hands of drug dealers?

The 4th argument may be answered by referring to today's sentencing in a London 
court: should the man sentenced today to 15 years in jail (a second sentence 
for a second murder) get a 3rd chance to kill someone else? Which brings me to 
the lynching of those men in Guinea by the mob: the mob believed that if the 
robbers had been left with the police and the courts, they would have bribed 
their way out and continued to terrorise the community. Some 2 weeks ago, the 
Kenyan police executed gang members in broad daylight in the area where I grew 
up (and where Justice Jallow has visited to see my alma mater): enter utube 
"police kill gang members in Eastleigh".

On a final note, looking after prisoners is an expensive matter - more so 
dangerous ones who have been sent to prison for life (it costs something like 
100,000 pounds per prisoner in UK - Dalasi 5,000,000 per prisoner). Can a poor 
country like The Gambia be able to look after, let's say, 100 death-row 
prisoners for life?

Like many Africans of my generation in the West I have been affected by the 
fact that here in the West black people get a row deal when it comes to the 
Justice System (or Injustice system!). Stories of black people wrongly 
convicted, and therefore murder by the state, are legion in the USA. So, I have 
a strong antipathy to the death penalty who whose abolition my life-long HERO, 
Dr. Angela Davies, has committed her life. That said, if I were a Justice 
Minister in The Gambia, I would probably have different considerations - not 
least the security of society when violent crime and murder is on the rise.

I leave it to the readers - since as an old retired teacher now teaching simple 
maths to teenagers I need not make any decision on the matter!

Dida Halake,

Notting Hill,

London, UK.

(source: Letter, sambagate.com)






BELARUS----execution

Belarus Carries Out 1st Execution This Year; EU Urges Moratorium


Belarus is believed to have carried out its 1st execution of the year.

Homel resident Syarhey Vostrykau, who was found guilty of rapes and murders 
involving extreme brutality, was most likely executed last month on either 
April 13 or April 29, the Belarusian human rights center Vyasna said in a 
report posted on its website.

"Representatives of the group Human Rights Activists Against the Death Penalty 
in Belarus have learned that the death sentence handed out to Homel resident 
Siarhei Vostrykau has been carried out. His mother has received a relevant 
report from the Homel Regional Court," Vyasna said on its website on May 5.

Judges in the regional court in the southeastern city of Homel found Vostrykau, 
33, guilty in May of last year of kidnapping, raping, and murdering 2 women in 
2014 and 2015. The case was heard behind closed doors.

Belarus remains the only country in Europe which still applies the death 
penalty. The execution is carried out by firing squad.

The European Union issued a statement reaffirming "its strong opposition to 
capital punishment in all circumstances."

"The continued application of the death penalty goes counter to Belarus's 
stated willingness to engage with the international community, including the 
European Union, on the matter and to consider the introduction of a moratorium 
on the use of the death penalty," EU spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic said in a May 
6 statement.

"The European Union urges Belarus...to commute the remaining death sentences 
and to introduce without delay a moratorium on the death penalty as a 1st step 
towards its abolition," Kocijancic said.

Belarus carried out four executions last year. Before 2016, an execution had 
not been carried out under the Belarusian legal system since November 2014.

(source: rferl.org)






TUNISIA:

Tunisia court convicts 18 of 'terrorism'


A Tunisian court on Wednesday sentenced 2 people to death and 16 others to jail 
terms for acts of "terrorism" in 2014 during which a security guard was killed.

Judiciary spokesman Sofiene Sliti told AFP that 9 of those sentenced were tried 
in absentia.

The 2 death sentences were handed down for the murder of the guard in Kebili, 
southern Tunisia.

The 16 others were condemned to prison terms of between 4 and 36 years for 
"belonging to a terrorist group" and over a deadly clash with security forces 
near Tunis.

Tunisia has observed a moratorium on carrying out executions since 1991.

Since its 2011 revolution, Tunisia has experienced an increase in jihadist 
attacks that have cost the lives of dozens of members of the security forces 
and 59 foreign tourists.

(source: news24.com)



IRAN:

Arrested at 15 and At Risk of Imminent Execution in Iran


Peyman Barandah, who was arrested by the Iranian regime at 15, is at imminent 
risk of execution. On May 2, the prosecutor of Shiraz met with his family and 
told them that if the check of 5.5 billion rails ($169,500 US) representing 
"blood money" that was given to the family of the teenager that Barandah was 
accused of killing did not clear by May 7, then his execution would be carried 
out on May 10 as planned. When his family wrote the check, they didn't have the 
funds and admit that they still do not have the money to pay the debt. The 
prosecutor then acknowledged that there was not anything his office could do to 
stop the execution.

His execution was originally scheduled for April 9, but was postponed to give 
his family more time to raise the money. This is just another example of money 
weighing heavier on the scales of justice than a young man's life.

His trial was a classic example of Iranian justice. He was initially imprisoned 
for three months in solitary confinement without access to his family or an 
attorney. During this time period, he was subject to horrific treatment, 
including beatings and other forms of torture and ill-treatment. He met his 
lawyer for the 1st time at his trial, which was roughly 4 hours long and 
included no protections for his juvenile status. Instead, he was tried as an 
adult, which violates the international rules regarding juvenile judicial 
proceedings.

There was no investigation ordered into his allegations of torture during his 
confinement. He was sentenced to death in August 2012 for stabbing a teenager 
during a fight, which he steadfastly denies. His sentence was upheld in 
September 2013 by Branch Six of the Supreme Court.

Amnesty International is campaigning to have his conviction quashed and to have 
him granted a retrial with the proper protections that should be afforded a 
juvenile, including taking the death penalty off the table as a possible 
sentence. They also want to encourage the international community to call on 
Iran to establish a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the 
death penalty for Iranian citizens.

They also noted that Iran's Article 19 needs to be amended to abolish the sue 
of the death penalty for crimes committed by individuals under the age of 18, 
in line with Iran's human rights obligations under the International Covenant 
on Civil and Political Rights and the Convention one the Rights of the Child.

Since 2016, Barandah has made 3 requests for a retrial under the juvenile 
sentencing provisions of the 2013 Islamic Penal Code (IPC) and all three were 
rejected by the Supreme Court. To date, no written decision has ever been 
communicated to him, his family or his attorney. His family said the judge 
presiding over Branch 35 of the Supreme Court told them, "His death sentence is 
the will of God and the Prophet and must be carried out and nothing can be done 
about it."

The minimal age of criminal responsibility in Iran is set at nine lunar years 
for girls and 15 lunar years for boys. From this age, a child who is convicted 
of murder or crimes that fall in the category of hodud (offenses that carry 
inalterable punishments prescribed by Sharia law) is generally convicted and 
sentenced as an adult. The burden of proof of his innocence was put on 
Barandah's shoulders, which violates the presumption of innocence and the 
prosecution did not prove his guilt beyond a reasonable doubt in a fair trial.

In January 2016, Iranian authorities claimed before the UN Committee on the 
Rights of the Child that "all adolescents who were under the age of 18 at the 
time of committing the crime are granted retrials...and their previous verdicts 
are annulled by the Supreme Court." However, lawyers have told Amnesty 
International that some branches of the Supreme Court tend to deny the 
applications for an Article 91 retrial. Amnesty International has identified at 
least 90 juveniles who are currently on death row. Many have spent prolonged 
periods on death row, in some cases more than a decade. Some have had their 
executions scheduled then postponed or stayed at the last minute on multiple 
occasions, thus adding to their mental and emotional abuse.

(source: The Media Express)






INDIA:

'Revoking death penalty is injustice'


Confirming the death penalty for the 4 men convicted in the brutal gang rape 
and murder in the Nirbhaya case in December 2012, the Supreme Court on Friday 
threw out the defence counsel's plea for mercy, listing instead the "brutal, 
barbaric nature of the crime", which made it the rarest of rare case.

The accused had reformed, repented and never misbehaved in jail, the defence 
counsel had said.

Justice R. Banumathi, on the Bench with Justices Dipak Misra and Ashok Bhushan, 
pointed out that the accused had used a public transport bus to lure in 
passengers. The court agreed with the Delhi Police counsel and senior advocate 
Siddharth Luthra that anything short of death penalty would be a "devastation 
of social trust".

'Fear psychosis'

The court acknowledged Mr. Luthra's submission that the depravity of the crime 
"invites indignation of the society and created a fear psychosis. This case was 
indeed rarest of rare considering the brutal and diabolic nature of the crime".

To the accused, the court read out the "entire medical history of the victim - 
the shattering of the intestine caused by the repeated insertion of iron rods, 
the tearing of her clothes, looting of her personal belongings, aggravated 
sexual assault".

Conscience shocked

"Where a crime is committed with extreme brutality and the collective 
conscience of the society is shocked, courts must award death penalty. By not 
imposing a death sentence, the courts may do injustice to the society at 
large," Justice Banumathi observed.

"This sounds like a story from a different world where humanity has been 
treated with irreverence," Justice Misra wrote.

Spelling out each of the arguments raised in the appeal hearings, the Supreme 
Court gave primary emphasis to the victim's multiple dying declarations, the 
last and 3rd one made in gestures. The judgment said the dying declaration 
proved beyond doubt the guilt of the accused.

The court said there was no reason to disbelieve the CCTV images which had 
confirmed the presence of the men in the vicinity of the crime on the fateful 
night.

(source: The Hindu)






PHIIPPINES:

Most Pinoys still back death penalty


Most Filipinos still support the death penalty although their number dropped 
significantly in the last 8 months under the Duterte administration, the latest 
Pulse Asia survey showed.

The poll, fielded from March 15 to 20, also showed more than 1/2 of Filipinos 
want the minimum age of criminal liability to stay at 15 years old, contrary to 
the proposal of administration lawmakers to lower it to 9.

The Pulse Asia poll used face-to-face interviews of 1,200 representative adults 
and has an error margin of plus or minus 3 % points at the 95 % confidence 
level. Support for the reimposition of capital punishment fell by 14 points 
from 81 % in July 2016 to 67 % in March 2017.

Most of the respondents who favor the death penalty come from the National 
Capital Region and Mindanao, both at 74 %.

It also received the backing of 66 % of respondents from the Visayas and 61 % 
from balance Luzon.

Support for the death penalty was registered at 68 % for both classes ABC and 
E, while it was at 66 % among class D or masa.

1 in 4 Filipinos (25 %) opposed the death penalty, while the remaining 8 % were 
unable to say whether or not they support capital punishment.

Support for the death penalty dropped in the rest of Luzon (-21 % points) and 
in Class D (-16 % points), Pulse Asia said.

On the other hand, opposition to capital punishment rose by 14 % points 
nationwide, with the highest increase recorded in balance Luzon.

Among those who are pro-capital punishment, the most often cited crime which 
should be made punishable by death is rape (97 %), followed by murder (88 %) 
and drug pushing (71 %).

Fewer Filipinos supportive of the death penalty think kidnap-for-ransom (46 %) 
and plunder (33 %) should be covered by such punishment.

However, most respondents from Metro Manila (55 %), the Visayas (59 %) and 
those in Class ABC (57 %) support the imposition of capital punishment for 
kidnap-for-ransom and plunder while a bare majority of those in Class ABC (51 
%) are in favor of the death penalty in plunder cases.

Pulse Asia noted that more Visayans now support imposing the death penalty for 
murder cases than in July 2016 - 91 % from 75 %.

As regards kidnap-for-ransom cases, support for capital punishment declined in 
the rest of Luzon by 13 % points but went up in the Visayas by 20 % points.

With regard to plunder cases, more Visayans are in favor of having the death 
penalty compared to July 2016 (40 % versus 27 %).

The House of Representatives passed the Death Penalty Bill last March despite 
strong opposition from various sectors, including religious groups.

>From an initial list of 21 crimes that included rape, treason and plunder, the 
House leadership decided to limit the death penalty to drug-related crimes and 
offenses.

The same Pulse Asia survey found 55 % of Filipino adults who think the minimum 
age of criminal liability in the Philippines should be retained at 15 years 
old.

This opinion was expressed by "big pluralities to sizeable majorities" across 
geographic areas and socio-economic classes (45 % to 63 % and 48 % to 58 %, 
respectively).

Filipinos in balance Luzon (63 %) are more in favor of keeping the minimum age 
of criminal liability at 15 years old than those in Metro Manila (45 %) and the 
Visayas (47 %).

On the other hand, 20 % of Filipinos favor lowering the minimum age of criminal 
liability to 12 years old while 9 % say it should be 9 years old.

13 % of survey respondents say the minimum age of criminal liability should be 
between 16-25 years old, 2 % say it should be 10-11 years old and 1 % favor 
having it at 13-14 years old.

Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez and Capiz Rep. Fredenil Castro filed House Bill No. 2 
or the "Minimum Age of Criminal Responsibility Act," which seeks to lower the 
minimum age for criminal liability from the current 15 to 9 years.

The lawmakers said the measure was meant to deter minors from being used as 
accomplices, especially in drug-related cases.

March against death

Meanwhile, pilgrims against the reimposition of the death penalty will march 
from Cagayan de Oro City to the Senate in Pasay City to drum up public 
awareness against capital punishment.

The Lakbay-Buhay Laban sa Death Penalty caravan march started their journey 
from Cagayan de Oro on May 4. They will travel to 13 cities and provinces 
before reaching Metro Manila. From Cagayan de Oro, they will go to Cebu City, 
Tacloban City, Borongan City, Catarman, Sorsogon, Legaspi City, Naga City, 
Gumaca and Lucena City, San Pablo City, Lipa City in Batangas, Imus in Cavite.

They will go to Ateneo de Manila University in Quezon City on May 19 and be in 
CAMANAVA the next day. On May 21, they will proceed to the University of Santo 
Tomas and stage a protest outside the Senate from May 22 to 24.

"Death penalty is inhuman as it runs contrary to the principle of restorative 
justice and corrupts the universal value of life; it is unlawful as it violates 
existing international treaties the Philippines is party to; it is ineffective 
as deterrent to crime and drug abuse; it is unjust as it is anti-poor," said 
Fr. Edu Gariguez, executive secretary of the National Secretariat for Social 
Action of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines.

He said that even if Senate Minority Leader Franklin Drilon gave assurance that 
13 senators are likely to vote against the passage of the death penalty bill, 
they are not discounting the possibility that there are some lawmakers who 
might change their mind or be persuaded to vote in favor of the bill.

"We are worried because with just one wave of the administration, they could 
railroad the passage of the law in Congress. We all know that this bill is 
connected with the government's war against illegal drugs. This is a pet bill 
of the government," he added.

Gariguez said there are also rumors circulating that there is a directive that 
Congress should pass the death penalty bill before President Duterte's 2nd 
State of the Nation Address in July.

(source: Philippine Star)