[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Oct. 13



GLOBAL:

Why Pope Francis' rejection of the death penalty is so important



In a major speech on Wednesday Oct. 11 Pope Francis said in blunt terms that 
the death penalty is contrary to Gospel teaching. Given the setting and context 
of the talk - a celebration marking the 25th anniversary of the Catechism of 
the Catholic Church - Vatican observers speculated that a change in the 
Catechism may be forthcoming. The passage in question (No. 2267) allows for the 
death penalty in very rare cases. But now even that small window may be closed.

America reached out to Sister Helen Prejean, the author of Dead Man Walking and 
longtime opponent of the death penalty, for her response to the news.

At last, a clear, uncompromising stance of moral opposition to the death 
penalty by the highest authority of the church.

Words in official teachings matter. At death penalty trials, in state 
legislatures and before pardon boards I have witnessed as pro-death penalty 
district attorneys passed over the words of Jesus calling for forgiveness of 
enemies to quote instead church teachings that they felt justified the 
premeditated killing of criminals.

In New Orleans, I watched priests sent by the archbishop to the death penalty 
trial of Willie Watson, an indigent African man, to assure Catholic jurors that 
in good conscience they could vote for the state to kill Willie. Which, in 
fact, the state did on July 24, 1987, electrocuting Mr. Watson to death in 
Louisiana's (very busy) killing chamber.

This torture and killing in states continues today, terrible and mostly unseen, 
and Pope Francis' words or a change in church teaching are not enough to change 
that. Only we, the people, freshly awakened to the call of the Gospel can make 
that transformation happen. First, we must meditate on and ingest the pope's 
message so that the Gospel call in his words may set us on fire to act boldly, 
pouring into death rows, legislative halls and stations of public dialogue to 
persuade our citizens to truly become people of life.

May the Holy Spirit enliven our hearts and guide us all. Thank you, Pope 
Francis. Again and again, you renew my hope.

(source: Sister Helen Prejean, americanmagazine.org)

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

UN: Death penalty has no place in 21st century



U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for an end to the death penalty 
on Oct. 10, insisting it has "no place in the 21st century."

He urged member states that still execute convicts to join the 170 countries 
that have halted or abolished the practice, warning that the risk of a 
miscarriage of justice is an "unacceptably high price" to pay.

"I want to make a plea to all states that continue this barbaric practice: 
please stop the executions," Guterres said at an event marking the 15th World 
Day Against the Death Penalty.

Capital punishment "does little to serve victims or deter crime," Guterres 
said, adding that most of the U.N.'s 193 members do not carry out executions.

"Just last month, 2 African states - The Gambia and Madagascar - took major 
steps towards irreversible abolition of the death penalty," he said.

"In 2016, executions worldwide were down 37 % from 2015. Today just four 
countries are responsible for 87 % of all recorded executions," he added.

Guterres also called for transparency from states where the death penalty is 
legal, asking them to let lawyers do their job.

"Some governments conceal executions and enforce an elaborate system of secrecy 
to hide who is on death row, and why," Guterres said.

(source: Hurriyet Daily news)








PAKISTAN:

3 Ahmadis sentenced to death for blasphemy



3 members of Pakistan's persecuted Ahmadi sect have been sentenced to death for 
blasphemy by a court in the central town of Sheikhupura, a community 
spokesperson said.

Mubasher Ahmad, Ghulam Ahmed and Ehsan Ahmed were convicted by the court on 
Wednesday for insulting Prophet Mohammad under the country's strict blasphemy 
laws, Ahmadi community spokesperson Saleemuddin told Al Jazeera.

The 3 men were arrested in May 2014 after they tore down religious posters in 
Bhoiwal, a village about 22km southwest of the city of Lahore.

Khalil Ahmed, a 4th accused, was shot and killed in police custody just days 
after the incident took place.

While the accused claimed the posters carried anti-Ahmadi slogans, the 
prosecution said they carried religious significance and that tearing them down 
was tantamount to insulting the prophet.

Saleemuddin said that the Ahmadi community would challenge the trial court's 
decision in the high court.

Ahmadis are a sect that consider themselves Muslim but whose faith is rejected 
by the Pakistani state. There are around 600,000 Ahmadis in the country and 
several million around the world.

Members of the sect face 3 years in prison for referring to themselves as 
Muslim, to their places of worship as mosques or to their call to prayer as 
"azaan" under Pakistani law.

Last year, at least 6 Ahmadis were killed in planned attacks, according to 
local media reports.

Since 1984, when the blasphemy laws were amended to include several 
Ahmadi-specific clauses, more than 250 Ahmadis have been killed, according to 
data collected by the community.

'Atmosphere of fear'

Pakistan's strict blasphemy laws prescribe a mandatory death penalty for anyone 
found guilty of insulting Prophet Muhammad, and life imprisonment for those 
found to defile the Quran.

Those accused often face the threat of murder, even if they are acquitted by 
the courts.

Since 1990, at least 74 people have been murdered over blasphemy allegations, 
according to a tally maintained by Al Jazeera.

Those killed include people accused of blasphemy, their lawyers, family members 
and judges adjudicating blasphemy cases.

On Tuesday, Muhammad Safdar, a member of parliament and son-in-law of recently 
dismissed Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, launched a scathing attack against 
Ahmadis in the parliament.

"These people [Ahmadis] are a threat to this country, its constitution and 
ideology. This situation is heading towards a dangerous point," he said while 
calling for them to be barred from serving in the military or judiciary.

Safdar was not challenged by any other member of parliament at the time, 
although some political leaders have distanced themselves from his remarks 
since then.

"These statements create an atmosphere of fear," said Saleemuddin. "If these 
things are being said on the floor of the house, then what do you think will 
happen in the streets?"

(source: Al Jazeera)








THAILAND:

8 Years Since Last Thai Execution, Future of Death Penalty Uncertain



Those campaigning for the abolition of the death penalty may take solace in the 
fact that no one has been executed for eight years. There have been no actual 
executions, but a senior government official said it's simply impossible to 
predict when capital punishment will be abolished in Thailand.

Pitikan Sitthidej, Director General of the Department of Rights and Liberties 
said it???s impossible to pin down when Thailand will do away with death 
penalty despite having observed a de facto moratorium since 2009.

"I can't say when it will end but in practice it will soon be 10 years since no 
execution has taken place," Pitikan said. "We don't know when death penalty 
will be abolished."

Pitikan was vague on whether it would be.

At present there are 63 crimes that merit death sentence under Thai law, 
ranging from people found guilty of the rape and murder of girls under 15 or 
their parents to big time drug dealers and extremists. Pitikan pointed out that 
under the Thai penal code, any criminal sentenced to death will automatically 
be required to apply for a royal pardon to the king in hope of having the 
sentence commuted to life imprisonment.

According to a document of the justice ministry, there were 444 inmates 
sentenced to death at various stages of the judiciary system as of April 2017. 
The document also states that during the 65th UN General Assembly in 2010, 
Thailand no longer voted to oppose a move to end the death penalty but had 
decided to abstain from voting.

However, according to the same paper, the ministry conducted a survey on the 
possible abolition of the death penalty on 1,073 people in all the four regions 
of the country as well as in Bangkok and discovered that 73 percent of 
respondents still supported death penalty.

Campaign groups such as Amnesty International Thailand took the opportunity on 
the World Day Against the Death Penalty on Tuesday to renew its call for the 
abolition of capital punishment in Thailand.

Knowing that it is still far from being realized, the organization???s director 
Piyanut Kotsan said she wanted to see the Thai government announce a formal 
moratorium on capital punishment and decrease the number of crimes punishable 
by death.

"We're quietly lobbying and maintain the trend for the end of death penalty," 
said Piyanut on Tuesday.

Pitikan said there will be no formal announcement of moratorium as in reality 
Thailand is also a de facto moratorium state on the matter.

"What announcement? I am confused. How do we make such announcement?" said 
Pitakan, adding that the Third National Human Rights Plan, covering 2014 to 
2018, clearly stated that the state shall conduct studies on the possible 
abolition of the death penalty. When asked about a campaign to educate the 
public about the negative repercussion of death penalty such as the violation 
of the right to life, Pitikan said the department lacks funding to engage in 
such campaign as it has only 300 million baht budget per annum.

In the end, said the director general, whether Thailand will abolish capital 
punishment or not depends not on international organizations such as Amnesty 
International or the government but on the society's consensus itself.

"We must consider the direction of our society as well," Pitikan said.

While it's still common for some Thais on social media to keep calling for some 
criminals - particularly those who have committed rape and murder - to be 
executed, the anti-death penalty argument is slowly becoming known.

Pitikan for example stressed that a wrongful death penalty means those executed 
can no longer be brought back to life.

"It's against the basic human rights principle of the right to life. Most of 
those [sentenced] tend to be poor and underprivileged."

Chamnan Chanruang, a prominent campaigner for the end of death penalty said 
ending the death penalty is not about not punishing the wrongdoers while death 
penalty is vindictive and about revenge.

"What should be done is not to eliminate these people but to find out the root 
cause and eliminate it. If we hate what they did we shouldn???t commit the same 
things which is to become criminals by allowing acting as executioners on our 
behalf," said Chamnan.

(source: khaosodenglish.com)








INDIA:

Prosecution seeks death for Sanghvi----Girgaum diamond merchant's son's murder 
case



The prosecution has sought death penalty for Vijesh Sanghvi, the sole convict 
of 2013 Adit Ranka murder case. It said that Sanghvi is beyond reformation 
because of the kind of thought he put into planning and executing the murder 
and in disposing off the body outside Mumbai's city limits. The defence sought 
leniency and prayed for life imprisonment instead.

Special Public Prosecutor Kalpana Chavan, making her submissions on Wednesday 
before Principal sessions judge SB Aggarwal, said that more than a dozen 
mothers were present in the court on the day of the conviction, and that they 
are now afraid that a similar thing could happen to their child as well.

"This has had an impact on society and a message has to go across. The 
punishment should be such that it can act as a deterrent," she submitted before 
the court. She added that Sanghvi knew the child well and was supposed to 
protect him. Instead, he killed him for money.

According to Chavan, the murder was not only gruesome in itself, but it also 
affected the entire family, cutting short Adit's father, Jitendra???s life as 
well. She submitted that though his father had ailments, his death got 
expedited because of the shock he suffered due to Adit's killing. The fact that 
Adit had undergone a heart procedure as an infant was also pointed out.

Chavan added that the convict was a well-educated person, and it could not be 
accepted that he was not aware of the consequences of what he was doing. Chavan 
said that in case the court was not convinced about capital punishment, Sanghvi 
should be sentenced to 'life imprisonment till death.'

Defence lawyer BP Singh pleaded for leniency, citing Sanghvi's family as one of 
the reasons. He submitted that Sanghvi had been married for barely a year when 
he was arrested, and that he was the breadwinner of his family. Singh said that 
the conviction was based mainly on circumstantial evidence, and, thus, it 
merited life imprisonment and not the death sentence. The sentence will be 
pronounced today.

Adit was kidnapped on May 13, 2008, by Sanghvi, a steel merchant, and the 
former's cousin, Himanshu Ranka. On Monday, Himanshu was acquitted by a 
sessions court.

(source: Mumbai Mirror)

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

Karnataka High Court reduces serial killer 'cyanide' Mohan's death penalty to 
life



The Karnataka High Court on Thursday reduced serial killer 'Cyanide' Mohan 
Kumar's death penalty to life imprisonment in the rape and murder case of one 
Anita of Kolimane in Bantwal taluk.

The division bench of judges Ravi Malimath and John Michael Cunha modified the 
death penalty judgement passed by the trial court. They directed the prison 
authorities to not release Mohan Kumar until his death and also said that he 
would not be entitled to remission.

In 2009, Mohan Kumar, promising to marry Anita, took her to Hassan city from 
Bantwal, where he allegedly raped her. He then, reportedly, took her to a bus 
stand in Hassan asked her to take a birth control pill. Not knowing that the 
pill was laced with cyanide, Anita consumed it and she was found dead in a 
toilet at the bus stand.

Out of 20 such similar crimes perpetrated by Mohan between 2003 and 2009, the 
alleged serial killer has been sentenced to life imprisonment in 4 cases, 
including the death penalty in 3 cases.

In Anita's case, he had filed an appeal in the High Court against the death 
penalty and pleaded for a life sentence. However, prosecution pressed for a 
death penalty. However, the court absolved Mohan from the rape and abduction 
charges framed against him.

(source: The New Indian Express)



CHINA:

China launches legal assistance pilot program for all defendants



China has launched a pilot program to ensure every criminal defendant has 
access to a defense lawyer for their trial.

The Supreme People's Court and the Ministry of Justice jointly released a 
document Wednesday which stipulates that if a defendant has not retained a 
lawyer himself/herself, the court should inform legal assistance agencies to 
appoint a defence counsel for the defendant.

At present, a defense lawyer is only mandatory for juveniles and defendants 
with certain physical or mental disabilities, or in cases where the defendants 
face life imprisonment or death penalty sentences.

According to the document, if the appellate court finds that a defendant has 
not been allocated a defense lawyer due to the court's failure to correctly 
inform legal assistance agencies, the original ruling should be revoked and the 
case should be sent back for a retrial.

The document also guaranteed financial assistance for the services.

It required lawyers to be diligent in their work and improve the quality of 
their defense services.

The pilot program, which will run for 1 year, was launched in 8 
provincial-level regions -- Beijing, Shanghai, Zhejiang, Anhui, Henan, 
Guangdong, Sichuan and Shaanxi.

(source: xinhuanet.com)








MALAYSIA:

Death Row Convict Files Stay Of Execution Application



An Iranian, who is facing the death penalty, filed an application for a stay of 
execution in the Federal Court pending an amendment to Section 39B of Dangerous 
Drugs Act 1952, to include provisions on sentences other than the death 
sentence.

Hamidreza Farahmand Hassan, who was charged with 2 other Iranians, was 
convicted on a charge under Section 39B for drug trafficking and sentenced to 
death on May 15, 2014, by the Shah Alam High Court.

Lawyer Ramkarpal Singh, who represents Hamidreza, said he had posed a question 
in Parliament on whether the government is proposing to introduce a 
"moratorium" for cases under Section 39B, on Aug 1.

He said the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Azalina 
Othman Said, in her reply, said a study was presented to the Cabinet on March 1 
and agreed to make amendments to the section by including provisions to allow 
the courts to use discretion to impose a sentence other than death.

Hamidreza, in his application, said the government has not stated clearly on 
whether the amendments will be enforced retrospectively in nature.

He said he would be prejudiced if his execution takes place before the 
amendment is approved by Parliament.

He said there are special circumstances to justify the stay of the death 
penalty on him.

Ram Karpal told the media that he intends to raise questions on whether or not 
it would be in retrospective in nature in the coming Parliament sessions, which 
will begin on Oct 23.

"This application is the first of its kind in asking the court for a stay of 
execution," said Ramkarpal.

"We are of the view that the judicial avenues had been exhausted. In light of 
this latest development, we believe judicial relief is warranted in the 
circumstances, in this case, a stay of execution of death penalty," he said.

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

Don't hang me yet, wait for law amendments, Iranian tells court



An Iranian on death row has filed an application to stay his death by hanging 
pending an amendment to a law that gives judges discretion on sentencing.

Hamidreza Farahmand Hassan, in his application filed in the Federal Court 
today, said the Malaysian government was scheduled to amend the Dangerous Drugs 
Act 1952 to do away with the mandatory death penalty for drug traffickers.

The former professional kick-boxing coach said judges would then be given the 
discretion to impose the capital punishment or a jail term under Section 39B of 
the law.

However, Hamidreza said the government had been unclear on whether its decision 
to amend the law had retrospective effect or otherwise.

Lawyer Ramkarpal Singh, who filed the application, said the Iranian would be 
prejudiced if the sentence were to be carried out before any changes in the 
legislation, as the penalty was irreversible.

"Hamidreza wants the court to allow the application as he will lose an 
opportunity to substitute the death sentence if Parliament approves amendments 
to the law," the lawyer said.

Ramkarpal, who is also Bukit Gelugor MP, said there were special circumstances 
as to why his client's application should be allowed.

Hamidreza, 36, and 2 others were found guilty of trafficking 1.4kg of 
methamphetamine at KLIA in Sepang on Feb 2, 2010.

The Shah Alam High Court sentenced them on May 15, 2014, and the conviction was 
affirmed by the Federal Court last year.

Last week, Hamidreza filed an application for clemency to the Selangor Pardons 
Board.

Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Azalina Othman Said said in a 
written parliamentary response on Aug 1 that the cabinet had unanimously agreed 
to do away with the mandatory death penalty for drug traffickers, but that the 
decision still had to be approved by Parliament.

She said the cabinet had agreed to amend the colonial-era law to give the 
courts a choice in sentencing.

Capital punishment is mandatory in Malaysia for murder and drug trafficking, 
among other crimes.

Azalina said a total of 651 Malaysians had been sentenced to death since 1992, 
most of them for drug-related offences.

In March, human rights group Amnesty International ranked Malaysia 10th in the 
use of the death penalty among the 23 countries that carried out capital 
punishment last year.

2 days ago, in conjunction with World Day Against the Death Penalty, Malaysian 
Bar president George Varughese said the Bar would remain steadfast in wanting 
to abolish the death penalty for all forms of crime.

'There is no empirical evidence that confirms that the death penalty serves as 
an effective deterrent to the commission of crimes," he had said.

He added that the Bar's primary opposition to the death penalty was because 
life was sacred, and every person had an inherent right to life as guaranteed 
under Article 5(1) of the Federal Constitution.

(source: freemalaysiatoday.com)








ZAMBIA:

Death penalty 'moratorium' impresses EU



The European Union (EU) has commended Government for not implementing the death 
penalty for 20 years and has welcomed the global trend towards abolition of the 
practice.

And Minister of Justice Given Lubinda says Zambia will continue to be a de 
facto death penalty abolitionist despite it being enshrined in the 
Constitution. EU head of delegation Alessandro Mariani said Zambia is among 30 
countries that do not practise the death penalty.

Mr Mariani was speaking during a joint press briefing with Government to 
commemorate World Day Against Death Penalty.

(source: epaper.daily-mail.co.zm/)








EGYPT:

917 Egyptians sentenced to death since 2013 coup



An Egyptian Court sentenced 8 people to death on Tuesday and 50 others to life 
in prison for their role in a case known as the storming of Helwan Police 
Station.

According to prosecution, on 14 August 2013 protesters stormed Helwan Police 
Station, which led to the killing of 3 police officers and 2 civilians. The 
police station and 20 police cars were destroyed.

The same court issued a 10-year prison term against 7 defendants and 5 years in 
prison against 3 others. The defendants are accused of several charges 
including terrorism, premeditated murder, the attempted sabotage of public 
buildings and the destruction of police cars.

The Giza Criminal Court referred earlier this week 13 people's cases to the 
country's Grand Mufti in preparation for their execution.

Former leader of the Muslim Brotherhood and co-founder of the Nahdha party, 
Ibrahim Al-Zaafarani, said that the number of Egyptians sentenced to death 
since the July 2013 coup has reached 917 cases.

In July 2013 Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi overthrew the government 
of elected President Mohammad Morsi with the blessing of the United States. 
Since then General Al-Sisi has assumed the title of Field Marshal.

Al-Zaafarani said in a press statement that 16 Egyptians are waiting to be hung 
whilst 8 people have already been executed.

According to Al-Zaafarani nearly 640 Egyptians have died in prison as a result 
of torture and medical negligence while the number of those who have been 
extra-judicially executed has reached nearly 300 people.

A report by the UK based Arab Organization for Human Rights on human rights 
violations in Egypt during the third quarter of 2017 said that Egyptian courts 
have issued death sentences against 74 people.

In the aftermath of the 2013 coup, Egypt's judiciary gave 237 death sentences 
in 2016, more than any other country in the region. That same year, 44 people - 
including 8 women - were executed, a figure that doubled since the previous 
year and has risen sharply since the coup. In 2013 no executions were recorded.

As well as facing military tribunals, defendants are often sentenced to the 
death penalty in mass trials in which there is no time for individual evidence 
to be considered properly. In March 2014 a court in Egypt's southern city of 
Minya passed down 529 execution orders in one go, then just weeks later 
sentenced 683 to the same fate.

Those who are sentenced to death in Egypt face hanging, an ancient, barbaric 
form of execution that snaps the neck and breaks the spinal cord or cuts off 
the flow of blood and oxygen to the brain and eventually results in death.

In a 2015 reportReprieve revealed that of the 588 people who had been sentenced 
to death since 2014 72 % of sentences were administered for attending 
pro-democracy protests.

Egypt's highest criminal court has also sentenced 5 men to death for killing a 
policeman in the northern city of Mansoura in 2014 in what became known as the 
Mansoura 6 case. The policeman was part of Hussein Qandil's protection unit, 
one of the judges who presided over Mohammed Morsi's trial.

Theirs is a familiar story - confessions were tortured out of them, they were 
denied access to lawyers, verdicts formed on the evidence of secret sources as 
well as there being major holes in the case as video evidence did not match up 
with witness statements.

Despite this, the Mansoura 6 were convicted of premeditated murder, arms 
possession and forming a terrorist cell with the view to target security 
forces. Prior to the trial they were forcibly disappeared and then denied 
medical treatment once in detention. As of June their sentence cannot be 
appealed.

There are some 60,000 political prisoners in the country. Human rights 
activists are persecuted by the government and their organizations subject to 
severe limitations. In May, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi passed the 
NGO law which will severely restrict the operational capacity of some 47,000 
non-governmental organizations.

(source: Abdus Sattar Ghazali is the Chief Editor of the Journal of 
America----The Milli Gazette)



AUSTRALIA:

Aus urged to take charge in abolishing death penalty worldwide



The Law Society of South Australia has called for the country to take a lead in 
global efforts to abolish the death penalty.

In marking the 15th World Day Against the Death Penalty this week and the 50th 
anniversary of the last Australian execution this year, the SA legal body is 
encouraging citizens to join in the fight to abolish the death penalty 
worldwide.

"The abolition of the death penalty in Australia has been an important 
milestone for human rights in this country," said Tony Rossi, president of the 
SA Law Society.

"As more Australians travel regularly overseas, including to countries where 
the death penalty remains, Australia must continue to push for the abolition of 
the death penalty globally. No country should consider itself as having the 
right to take a human life as a sentencing option."

Research from the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty shows that 104 
countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes, and an additional 7 
have abolished the death penalty for all crimes except extraordinary crimes 
(such as those committed in times of war).

However, Mr Rossi explained that the death penalty is still used as a form of 
punishment in 57 countries and territories. In some countries the death penalty 
continues to exist as sentencing option in respect of juvenile offenders, he 
noted.

In addition, Mr Rossi said the death penalty continues to feature as a 
sentencing option for countries in the Asia-Pacific region.

"Unfortunately, Australians only too well know of the continued use of the 
death penalty in the Asia-Pacific. Most Australians would be familiar with the 
deaths of several Australian citizens, caught up in the legal systems of our 
neighbours while travelling abroad. These tragic examples have made Australians 
well aware that the death penalty robs people of the opportunity to 
rehabilitate, reform, and contribute to society," he said.

"The death penalty is an affront to human worth and dignity. It's absolute, and 
offers no opportunity for rehabilitation. As such, its continued use inflicts 
universal injustice, and therefore demands Australia's response.

"We call on the Australian government to make the global abolition of the death 
penalty a focal point of Australian foreign policy."

(source: Lawyers Weekly)