[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

August 25




GHANA:

Death penalty should be scrapped - Justice Dzordzie


A nominee for the position of the Supreme Court Justice, Justice Agnes Mercy 
Abla Dordzie, is urging the judicial service to scrap death penalty as a 
sentence in the country's courts.

According to her, Ghana's position as a signatory to some international 
conventions that are against death penalty as a sentence makes it pertinent 
that it be abolished.

"I think it should be scrapped off our statute books because Ghana has been a 
signatory to some other international conventions that have abolished the death 
penalty."

Mrs. Dordzie, during her vetting on Friday, August 24 further noted that the 
inability of the sentence to be executed though it is given in some cases by 
the court is enough indication that Ghanaians want a change in that regard.

"We don't even execute anymore. For over 20 years, I don't think any execution 
has been done, so though, the courts pass the sentence, we don't execute it so 
it means that as a people we have come to recognise that we cannot go that way 
anymore."

"If the law says that is what should be done, I have passed these sentences 
though I am a Christian, that is the law and I must interpret it but I think we 
are getting to a point now with our relations internationally and what pertains 
so far as fundamental human rights are concerned, it???s about time we 
changed".

On death penalty in Ghana

Death penalty is a sentence given by the court as punishment for very serious 
crimes.

The last time Ghana recorded an execution of a convict, was in 1993 when 
then-president John Rawlings ordered the execution of 12 convicts via a firing 
squad.

According to Amnesty International Ghana, as of September 2016, there were 137 
prisoners on death row, who have not been executed. As a result, many have 
pushed for Ghana to do away with the death penalty from Ghana's legal system 
since it is not enforced.

Those opposed against the death penalty have argued that it is not the right 
punishment for a convicted murderer but retributive.

Death penalty has been in the country's statute books since the application of 
the English common law in 1874, but in practice, no execution has been recorded 
since July 1993.

According to the proponents, much as the sentence may be seen in a wider sense 
as fairness, it doesn???t deter people from committing such crimes.

(source: ghanaweb.com)






SAUDI ARABIA:

Stories Of Executions Undermine Saudi Push To Modernity


Reports that detained activists will likely face the death penalty come after 
the Saudi government's crackdown on women's rights activists under the pretext 
of 'maintaining national security'

Responding to reports that Saudi Arabia's Public Prosecution is seeking the 
death penalty against 5 human-rights activists, a Saudi political analyst has 
told The Media Line that no information had been released from the authorities 
and that "all information is fragmentary, politicized and propagated by media 
or hostile sources that have fallen into the trap."

Sulaiman al-Oquily explained that many media outlets, as well as human rights 
organizations, believed the "propaganda" that was created regarding the arrest 
of the activists, who include Shia Muslim Israa al-Ghomgham from the kingdom's 
Eastern province.

"The attorney-general has the right to request the maximum sentence by law," he 
said, emphasizing that at trial the judge would rule according to evidence.

The death penalty reports come after a recent crackdown on women's rights 
activists in the kingdom which has led to the arrest of at least 13 women under 
the pretext of "maintaining national security."

Authorities in the ultra-conservative Sunni Muslim nation have accused several 
of them of "serious crimes," including "participating in protests in the Qatif 
region," "incitement to protest," "chanting slogans hostile to the regime," 
"attempting to inflame public opinion," "filming protests and publishing on 
social media," and "providing moral support to rioters."

"Any execution is appalling, but seeking the death penalty for activists like 
Israa al-Ghomgham, who are not even accused of violent behavior, is monstrous," 
Middle East director at Human Rights Watch (HRW) Sarah Whitson stated in a 
report. "Every day, the Saudi monarchy's unrestrained despotism makes it harder 
for its public relations teams to spin the fairy tale of 'reform' to allies and 
international business," she continued.

Saudi authorities have held all 6 activists in pretrial detention and without 
legal representation for over two years, HRW stated. Their next court date has 
been scheduled for October 28.

Al-Oquily claimed that activists like al-Ghomgham, who was arrested in 2015 
during the "waves of terrorism," endangered "the safety of Saudi civilians, 
including clerics who were opposed to terrorism," which, he added, also 
targeted security personnel who were assigned to ensure stability.

"These operations were carried out by the so-called Hizbullah, which is 
sponsored by the external branch of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards headed by 
Qasim Soleimani," who, he said, were causing the "collapse" of security in many 
Arab countries.

He was at pains to differentiate between the peaceful demonstrations of 2011 
and what had taken place in Saudi Arabia between 2015 and 2017, which he said 
were "all violent activities, from live ammunition to bombing."

Al-Oquily pointed out that the call for the execution of the women activists 
was based on an Islamic law principle of "ta'zir," in which the judge has 
discretion over the definition of what is considered a crime as well as over 
the sentence.

However, an imam based in the Middle East told the Media Line that "this has 
nothing to do with any religion; Islam is being used here for opportunistic 
reasons," and maintained that in the case of the detained Saudi activists, "the 
religion has been employed to achieve certain ends."

He added that seeking the death penalty against the activists conflicted with 
established international resolutions. In Saudi Arabia, executions are carried 
out by beheading.

Charlotte E. Allan, an activist and former legal advisor to United Nations 
Human Rights Council (UNHRC) contends that the recent detention of the female 
activists highlights the "hypocrisy" of the Saudi state, "which tries to take 
credit for reform while locking up the women who made change possible." She 
told The Media Line that by "locking up female activists it reveals a 
frightened and abusive administration stuck in the medieval era and scared of 
real reform."

In the case of al-Ghomgham, Allan pointed out that she had campaigned for the 
women-to-drive movement, as well as provided training for the Al-Adalah Centre 
for Human Rights on UN human rights reporting mechanisms.

"She has a global profile as a courageous activist and also stood as a 
candidate in municipal elections in Saudi Arabia in 2015 but was later banned 
from participating," she added.

Following the Canadian Embassy's call for the immediate release of the detained 
women, Saudi Arabia announced the expulsion of Canada's ambassador to Riyadh 
and recalled the kingdom's envoy from Ottawa. All new trade and investment 
between the 2 countries has been suspended. The Saudi Foreign Ministry stated 
that "the Canadian position is a clear interference in the internal affairs of 
the kingdom and contrary to basic international norms. It's an unacceptable 
transgression of the kingdom's systems."

Al-Oquily told The Media Line that the Saudi government was concerned that "any 
involvement in its internal affairs might affect the kingdom's security and 
stability." Recalling how Riyadh had dealt with previous instances of outside 
interference in its politics, he said that observers "would notice the same 
severity."

In April, the U.S. State Department issued a report condemning human rights 
abuses in Saudi Arabia, noting the continued and arbitrary arrests of civilian 
activists and the restrictions on freedom of expression. According to the 
report, the Saudi human rights violations also extended to executions without 
due process, torture and the detention of lawyers and jurists. The State 
Department also highlighted Saudi airstrikes in Yemen that killed many 
civilians in the battle between the Saudi-backed government and the Houthi 
rebels.

In contradiction to the suppression of women activists, recent reforms by Saudi 
Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman have directly impacted the lives of the women 
in the kingdom. Changes range from granting Saudi women the right to an 
education and increasing their participation in the workforce to allowing them 
to travel locally and drive a vehicle without a male companion.

(source: themedialine.org)

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

Iran's High Council for Human Rights Warns Riyadh against Execution of 
Activists


The Iranian High Council for Human Rights expressed deep concern over a 
possible move by the Saudi regime to execute 5 political activists in the 
oil-rich kingdom, describing Riyadh's policy to crack down on the 
"truth-seeking" activists as unacceptable.

A recent report about Saudi Arabian public prosecutor's request that 5 
political activists, including Israa al-Ghomgham and her husband, be sentenced 
to death is extremely regrettable and worrying, the council said in a statement 
on Saturday.

"The policy of Saudi Arabia in suppressing open-minded and truth-seeking 
Muslims on charge of terrorism is ridiculous and unacceptable," the human 
rights body said.

"If terrorists are to be dealt with, the current Saudi rulers are the prime 
suspects responsible for destroying the lives and properties of hundreds of 
thousands of innocent people in the region," the statement added.

Saudi Arabia's public prosecutor is seeking the death penalty against 5 human 
rights activists from the kingdom's Eastern Province currently on trial in a 
secretive terrorism court, groups including Human Rights Watch (HRW) said.

Among the detainees is Ghomgham. Saudi activists said she's the 1st woman to 
possibly face the death penalty for rights-related work. Charges against her 
include incitement to protest and providing moral support to rioters.

"Any execution is appalling, but seeking the death penalty for activists like 
Ghomgham, who are not even accused of violent behavior, is monstrous," Sarah 
Leah Whitson, Middle East director at HRW, said in a statement on Wednesday.

(source: tasnimnews.com)






UGANDA:

What's behind the recent political unrest in Uganda?----Ugandan pop 
star-turned-opposition-MP Bobi Wine is facing a charge of treason, which could 
carry the death penalty.


Robert Kyagulanyi, a musician-turned-MP whose arrest prompted protests in 
Uganda, has been charged with treason.

The singer, who goes by the stage name Bobi Wine, has been under military 
custody since August 14 for allegedly leading a group of people to pelt Ugandan 
President Yoweri Museveni's convoy with stones ahead of a by-election in a 
northern town.

Kyagulanyi joined the parliament last year and is one of the most popular faces 
of Ugandan opposition.

He is a strong critic of long-time leader Museveni, who has been in power since 
1986.

Widespread protests and a crackdown by state forces followed Kyagulanyi's 
detention last week.

(source: Al Jazeera News)






INDIA:

Ex-gurdwara volunteer awarded death for rape, murder of 2 sisters----Parwan 
Singh was found guilty on August 20 after which justice Rama Pandey pronounced 
the punishment on Thursday, in the 1st case of a death penalty awarded by a 
POCSO court in Dehradun.


A 55-year-old former gurdwara volunteer has been sentenced to death for raping 
and murdering 2 minor sisters in Uttarakhand's Rishikesh town in June last year 
by a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act court.

Parwan Singh was found guilty on August 20 after which justice Rama Pandey 
pronounced the punishment on Thursday, in the 1st case of a death penalty 
awarded by a POCSO court in Dehradun.

Singh raped and murdered the 2 sisters, aged 13 and 3 years old, on June 15 
last year in Shyampur area of Rishikesh town near Dehradun. He had committed 
the crime when the 2 girls were alone in their home. Their mother and brother 
were out of the house and their father was in a jail.

Rishikesh's station house officer Praveen Koshiyari hailed the judgment said 
police had gathered crucial evidence against Singh during the investigation 
which helped them to get him convicted.

"The incident had happened at around 8.30am when the duo was alone. They were 
found lying unconscious in the house by their 9-year-old brother and aunt who 
entered from outside. Later in the hospital, the 2 were declared dead by 
doctors. The police were informed about the incident at around 12.30pm," 
Koshiyari said.

The police officer said Singh was questioned during the initial investigations 
as he lived in the gurdwara near the victims' house.

"Police found a deep bite mark on his hand and later found his facial hair from 
the hands of the deceased 13-year-old girl which matched during the DNA test," 
he said.

???These 2 proved to be the most crucial evidence against him before the court 
apart from the confession to committing the crime after his arrest. Also, the 
rape of the younger sister was proved in the medical examinations," he added.

(source: Hindustan Times)






MALAYSIA:

Alleged drug mules face death penalty


2 teenage boys and 4 men have been hauled up to the Sessions Court here for 
attempting to smuggle about 10kg of methamphetamine to South Korea earlier this 
month.

The 6 - Lim Zheng Qiang, 19, Yen Tai Xiang, 19, Joon Zheng Han, 22, Yap Fook 
Chen, 25, Loh Wei Rhy, 27, and Mak Kwong Ming, 41 - were charged yesterday with 
drug trafficking under Section 39B(1)(a) of the Dangerous Drugs Act.

If convicted, they face the death penalty or life imprisonment and 15 strokes 
of the rotan.

The 6 were separately charged but no plea was recorded from them after a court 
interpreter read out the charges in Mandarin.

Loh was represented by lawyer Palaya Rengaiah, Yap by lawyer A.K. Mohd Shaiful 
Nizam and Joon by lawyer Kelvin Sidhu.

Judge Harith Sham Mohamed Yasin fixed Oct 11 for submission of the chemistry 
report by investigating officer Insp Noraini Sulaiman.

Several family members of the accused were present in court and were later 
spotted waiting outside to catch a glimpse of the 6 as they were escorted back 
to the Sepang police station before being detained at the Sungai Buloh prison 
while awaiting trial.

On Monday, Selangor police chief Comm Datuk Mazlan Mansor announced that the 
police had busted a syndicate "exporting" drugs to South Korea following the 
arrest of 6 individuals at the KL International Airport 2 at about 6.35am on 
Aug 11.

About 10.43kg of syabu were seized following the arrest.

The 6, believed to be drug mules, tried to conceal the drugs in 76 small 
packets on their bodies and inside the soles of their shoes.

Comm Mazlan said investigations revealed that the six were recruited by a 
syndicate advertising "job vacancies" via Facebook in the guise of offering an 
all-expense-paid trip overseas.

2 more suspects, one of whom is age 53, were detained on Aug 15 while waiting 
for their flight to South Korea. They are expected to be hauled to court soon.

(source: thestar.com.my)