[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

January 15




CHINA:

China sentences Canadian to death for drug smuggling



A Canadian citizen in China has been sentenced to death after a court convicted 
him of drug smuggling on Monday, a move likely to further inflame tensions 
between Ottawa and Beijing.

The Dalian Intermediate People's Court in northeastern China said Robert Lloyd 
Schellenberg was given a death sentence based on the nature and severity of his 
crime and in accordance with the Chinese criminal code.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau criticized the ruling, which comes as 
relations have strained between the 2 countries following the arrest of a 
senior executive from the Chinese tech firm Huawei in Vancouver last month.

According to the court, Schellenberg was dispatched to Dalian by drug 
traffickers in November 2014 to orchestrate the smuggling of more than 222 
kilograms (489.4 pounds) of methamphetamine from the Chinese port city to 
Australia.

Schellenberg and an accomplice bought tools and tires in an attempt to 
repackage the drugs before shipping them out in containers, according to the 
prosecution.

The Canadian was said to have inspected the cargo, assessed the workload and 
decided on a shipping date. After his accomplice turned himself into the 
police, Schellenberg fled Dalian and was arrested in southern China on December 
1, 2014, when he tried to fly to Thailand, the court said.

"I am not a drug smuggler. I came to China as a tourist," Schellenberg said 
Monday before the verdict was announced, the AFP news agency reported. The 
court said Schellenberg is entitled to appeal his verdict and sentencing within 
10 days. The court added that his rights to defense and translation were 
protected during the trial and officials from the Canadian embassy were in 
attendance.

Trudeau 'concerned' amid rising tensions

Trudeau said the Chinese court's decision was "of extreme concern."

"It is of extreme concern to us as a government, as it should be to all our 
international friends and allies, that China has chosen to begin to arbitrarily 
apply the death penalty in cases facing, as in this case, facing a Canadian," 
Trudeau said in a news conference following Monday's ruling.

Schellenberg was first tried in March 2016 and was convicted of being an 
accessory to drug smuggling in November 2018. Upon receiving a sentence of 15 
years in prison, he appealed the verdict.

A high court ordered a new trial in late December 2018 when the prosecution 
said they had uncovered new evidence to prove Schellenberg's principal role in 
the case.

Schellenberg's conviction and sentencing came amid worsening diplomatic 
tensions between the two countries after Canadian police detained top Huawei 
executive Meng Wanzhou on December 1.

Meng, who is also the daughter of the Chinese tech company's founder, has since 
been released on bail pending an extradition hearing to the United States on 
charges of violating sanctions against Iran. Since her arrest, multiple 
Canadian citizens have been detained in China.

In an opinion piece on January 9, the Chinese ambassador to Canada Lu Shaye 
effectively confirmed that the detention of 2 Canadian academics was in 
response to Meng's arrest, raising further questions around Schellenberg's 
case.

"I have recently heard a word repeatedly pronounced by some Canadians: 
bullying. They said that by arresting two Canadian citizens as retaliation for 
Canada's detention of Meng, China was bullying Canada," the ambassador wrote 
last Wednesday in The Hill Times, a Canadian publication.

"To those people, China's self-defense is an offense to Canada. If someone 
slaps you on your left cheek, give him your right cheek, they told us. But I 
have never seen them doing as they said."

China severely punishes those caught smuggling or trafficking drugs, including 
foreigners. Anyone found with more than 50 grams (1.76 ounces) of a controlled 
substance can face the death penalty.

In 2009, Akmal Shaikh, a British citizen convicted of carrying up to 4 
kilograms (8.8 pounds) of heroin, was executed by lethal injection despite 
fierce protests from the UK government and his family, who said he suffered 
from a mental disorder and was tricked into carrying the drugs.

According to China.org.cn, a government-run website, at least 12 foreign drug 
dealers have been executed in China since 2000, "and other foreigners were 
sentenced to death for other serious crimes."

China remains the world's top executor, according to international monitors, 
though the country does not publish detailed statistics.

(source: CNN)

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

Death sentence for Canadian in China 'of extreme concern': PM



A Canadian man who was convicted of being an accessory to drug-smuggling in 
China has been sentenced to death in what appears to be the latest escalation 
of the ongoing diplomatic hostilities between the 2 countries.

Robert Lloyd Schellenberg was first arrested in China in 2014. He was tried in 
2016 and sentenced to 15 years in prison.

That verdict was appealed, and prosecutors argued at the new trial that the 
sentence was too lenient. The new trial concluded Monday, with Schellenberg 
being found guilty and given a death sentence. Schellenberg has 10 days to 
appeal the sentence, according to his lawyer, Zhang Dongshuo.

According to the court, Schellenberg was recruited to help smuggle 222 
kilograms of methamphetamine from a warehouse in Dalian, China, to Australia.

Zhang told The Associated Press that he had argued there was no justification 
for a stiffer sentence because no new evidence had been introduced at the 2nd 
trial.

Speaking to reporters in Ottawa, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the 
Canadian government would intercede on behalf of Schellenberg, as it is 
required to do anytime a Canadian faces the death penalty abroad.

“It is of extreme concern to us as a government, as it should be to all our 
international friends and allies, that China has chosen to arbitrarily apply 
[the] death penalty,” he said.

While unusual, it is not unprecedented for a foreign national to be sentenced 
to death in China. British resident Akmal Shaikh was executed in 2009 for 
smuggling heroin.

Chinese officials have suggested that Schellenberg’s case is not related to the 
arrests of Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor last month or the arrest 
in Canada of Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou.

Zhang said it was “unique” for a retrial to be held so quickly after it was 
ordered, but declined to comment on whether it could be related to the ongoing 
diplomatic dispute.

However, some analysts have suggested that Schellenberg’s fate could become a 
part of diplomatic negotiations between the 2 countries.

Ben Rowswell, a former Canadian diplomat who now heads up the Canadian 
International Council foreign policy think tank, said he considered the death 
penalty to be “a really dangerous escalation” of hostilities from China.

“In the absence of any messages from the Chinese government that they’re 
willing to protect the judicial process and have judicial issues dealt with 
separately from political issues, it certainly leads us to interpret this as 
yet another escalation,” he told CTV News Channel on Monday.

Schellenberg’s case was never publicized by Chinese media until shortly after 
Meng’s arrest.

Rowswell said Schellenberg’s fate would be “on the top of the agenda” for 
diplomats from Trudeau on down, with Canadian officials likely attempting to 
have Schellenberg returned to Canada and his case dealt with under the Canadian 
justice system.

“They will be doing everything possible in closed, secret, diplomatic channels 
to try and reach a resolution,” he said.

Lynette Ong, a professor at the University of Toronto’s Asian Institute and 
Munk School of Global Affairs, said the Canadian effort would likely involve 
convincing China that its world standing would be hurt if it executed 
Schellenberg.

Speaking on CTV News Channel, Ong said China needs to be seen as a “benign 
power” in order to realize its goal of becoming a greater global power.

“We need to persuade the Chinese that it is actually not in their national 
interest to detain Canadians or any foreigners as pawns,” she said.

Schellenberg would be the 1st Canadian citizen ever to be executed by China. 
Rowswell said Chinese authorities following through with the sentence could 
have far-reaching implications.

“That’s going to push Canadians over the edge,” he said.

“It will take years and years for the Canada-China relationship to recover.”

Erin O’Toole, the Conservative critic for foreign affairs, tweeted that Trudeau 
“needs to seize himself with this troubling and deepening diplomatic dispute.”

Monday’s sentence was the “worst-case fear confirmed” for Schellenberg’s 
family, according to his aunt, Lauri Nelson-Jones.

“It is rather unimaginable what he must be feeling and thinking. It is a 
horrific, unfortunate, heartbreaking situation,” she told The Canadian Press in 
an email.

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

China urges citizens to 'fully assess the risks' of visiting Canada----Ottawa 
issued a new ominous travel advisory for China following a death sentence for a 
Canadian man.



Justin Trudeau is condemning a sudden decision by a court in China to order the 
execution of a B.C. man.

Hours after Canada issued a travel advisory warning of the “arbitrary 
enforcement of local laws” in China, Chinese officials have responded in kind.

The country’s foreign ministry published a notice Tuesday warning that Chinese 
citizens should “fully assess the risks of going to Canada for tourism.” The 
notice said Chinese citizens may find themselves “arbitrarily detained at the 
request of a third nation” in an apparent reference to Meng Wanzhou.

Meng, the chief financial officer of technology behemoth Huawei, was arrested 
in Vancouver last month following an extradition request from the United States 
government. The U.S. accuses her of using a shell company to hide dealings 
between Huawei and the Iranian government in violation of U.S. sanctions.

The Chinese government has arrested two Canadian citizens since Meng’s arrest. 
Another Canadian, Robert Schellenberg of Abbotsford, B.C., had his 15-year 
sentence for being an accessory to drug-smuggling upgraded to the death penalty 
Monday following a 2nd trial.

The death sentence is widely being seen as political retaliation, and prompted 
Canada to warn Canadian citizens Monday night about the risks of travelling to 
China.

Speaking to reporters Tuesday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua 
Chunying expressed “strong dissatisfaction” with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, 
who had earlier said he felt “extreme concern” at China’s decision to put a 
Canadian to death.

Hua said Trudeau should “respect the rule of law, respect China’s judicial 
sovereignty, correct mistakes and stop making irresponsible remarks.”

According to the Chinese courts, Schellenberg was part of an operation to 
transport 222 kilograms of methamphetamine from a warehouse in China to a 
destination in Australia.

CTV Vancouver reports that a man with the same name and age as Schellenberg has 
served jail time for four drug-related convictions in B.C. in the past, 3 of 
which were for drug possession for the purpose of trafficking.

Schellenberg’s sentence has also been criticized by Amnesty International, 
which said execution was not an appropriate sentence for a drug-related 
offence.

"China's death penalty system is shrouded in secrecy, which contributes to why 
many will be questioning the timing of this decision,” William Nee of Amnesty 
International said in a statement.

“We have seen before that in highly politicized cases the trial is often a mere 
spectacle with the outcome already decided.”

Meng’s father has told reporters that he does not believe the death sentence or 
the arrests of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor are in any way connected to 
Meng’s arrest.

(source for both: CTV news)

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

China must revoke death sentence against Canadian citizen for drug crimes



Responding to a death sentence given by a Chinese court to Canadian citizen 
Robert Schellenberg for drug smuggling, William Nee, China researcher at 
Amnesty International, commented:

“The death sentence given to Robert Schellenberg does not deliver justice. We 
urge the Chinese authorities to revoke this sentence. Drug-related offences do 
not meet international standards for the use of capital punishment.

"China's death penalty system is shrouded in secrecy, which contributes to why 
many will be questioning the timing of this decision. We have seen before that 
in highly politicized cases the trial is often a mere spectacle with the 
outcome already decided.

“The sudden re-trial and apparent rush to judgment has highlighted the numerous 
flaws in China’s judicial system. We hope that Robert Schellenberg and his 
defence counsel are given adequate time to prepare and respond to the 
prosecution’s new evidence when the case is finally brought up for appeal."

Background

Robert Schellenberg had been sentenced to 15 years in prison for drug 
smuggling, charges he denies, at his original trial in November 2018 at the 
Dalian Intermediate People’s Court in China’s northeast Liaoning Province. At 
the appeal hearing held on 29 December 2018, prosecutors said that they had 
uncovered new evidence and argued that the original sentence was too lenient. 
He received a death sentence at a re-trial by the same Dalian Intermediate 
People’s Court on Monday.

China executes more people than any other country in the world; however, the 
number of death sentences imposed and number of executions carried out are 
shrouded in secrecy. The authorities continue to execute a significant number 
of individuals for drug related and other offences which do not meet the “most 
serious crimes” threshold to which the use of the death penalty must be 
restricted under international law. States are under an obligation to review 
their criminal laws to ensure that the death penalty is not imposed for 
drug-related offences

Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception 
regardless of the nature or circumstances of the crime; guilt, innocence or 
other characteristics of the individual; or the method used by the state to 
carry out the execution. The organization has been campaigning for total 
abolition of the death penalty for over 40 years.

(source: Amnesty International)








MALAYSIA:

Former IGP says no to abolishing death penalty, urges govt to reconsider



Former Inspector-General of Police Tan Sri Abdul Rahim Noor today lambasted 
Putrajaya for its decision to abolish the death penalty, saying those who were 
convicted must be brave to face the consequences.

Abdul Rahim pointed said a convicted murderer in a fair trial must take 
personal responsibility of their actions and must bear the punishment of death 
willingly after taking another life.

“The murderer still goes through the court of law and it may take years to 
appeal however when they take someone’s life, it is done in seconds.

“If someone is murdered then the murderer must face the eventuality,” he said 
in a press conference at the Sultan Sulaiman Club in Kampung Baru here.

In October last year, the Cabinet agreed to abolish the death penalty and halt 
pending executions following a moratorium.

On January 8, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department (Law) Datuk Liew Vui 
Keong said a new law is expected to be tabled sometime this year in Parliament 
to abolish the death penalty.

The former top cop argued that Malaysia being an Asian country must emulate 
Asian traits and culture of respecting the life of a human being by ‘exchanging 
a life for another taken in a fair manner’.

He then cited several examples of countries such as China, Japan and Singapore 
which still maintained capital punishment to this day.

“Those countries retain capital punishment because they view capital punishment 
as an effective deterrent to crime,” he said.

Abdul Rahim also called on the government to conduct a thorough study and call 
for a national referendum on the matter to reaffirm public opinion.

“As a former policeman, the abolishment is a serious matter to me. There must 
be a referendum despite a decision being announced previously.

“I think the democratic process has not been followed,” he said.

He also cited that while several NGOs have shown support to the government’s 
move, there exist public apathy towards those affected by the abolishment who 
may not be able to seek justice against the perpetrators.

“There is a support imbalance. NGOs like Suhakam, Lawyers for Liberty and the 
Malaysian Bar have thrown their support to abolish.

“But what about those from the other side (kins of slain victims)? Does Suhakam 
asks about them? It seems nobody is concerned with their plight and all the 
(victims) can do is grieve if capital punishment is removed,” he said in 
reference to the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia.

However Abdul Rahim remained optimistic that the government will reconsider its 
decision and retain capital punishment.

“A blanket moratorium on all offences punishable by death is too drastic,” he 
said.

The move to abolish has drawn mixed reaction from the various layers of 
Malaysian society, with civil rights groups largely welcoming the move but 
conservatives arguing that it be retained for particularly heinous crimes.

(source: malaymail.com)






PAKISTAN:

Schizophrenic prisoner on death row: SC to overview the case



The Supreme Court of Pakistan has directed a 2-member bench to oversee the 
matter of a mentally ill prisoner Khizar Hayat on death row, whose scheduled 
execution was suspended by the apex court on Saturday.

Chief Justice Saqib Nisar on Saturday, while reacting on media reports, had 
issued stay order against the execution of Khizar Hayat, who was diagnosed with 
paranoid schizophrenia by jail’s medical authorities. Hayat’s execution had 
been scheduled for January 15 at the central jail in Kot Lakhpat.

Hayat’s mother Iqbal Bano had appealed the court for the suspension of his 
death sentence on grounds of mental illness. Her request, which was submitted 
before the court’s human rights cell, was reviewed by Chief Justice Nisar who 
suspended Hayat’s execution warrant till further orders and fixed the matter 
for hearing on Monday, January 14. As the hearing resumed earlier today, 
Justice Nisar instructed a 2-member bench comprising Justice Manzoor Ahmad 
Malik and Justice Sardar Tariq Masoof to review the matter. The court was 
informed by Additional Advocate General Punjab that a medical board has been 
formed for examining Hayat.

A former police officer, 55-year old Hayat was sentenced to death in 2003 for 
killing a colleague. He has spent more than 15 years in custody and been in 
solitary confinement since 2012; UN experts learnt as they urged the government 
to halt the execution questioning the veracity of his conviction. Government 
doctors had diagnosed Hayat with schizophrenia in 2008. A petition to move him 
to a mental health facility was dismissed on December 6, 2018. “During his 
trial, no evidence or witnesses were called in his defence and no questions 
were asked regarding his mental health, although he was later diagnosed with a 
mental health condition and has been receiving treatment for the past 10 
years,” UN experts added.”Implementing the death penalty under these conditions 
is unlawful and tantamount to an arbitrary execution, as well as a form of 
cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment,” the UN panel said.

2 years ago, experts from the World Psychiatric Association had also appealed 
the state of Pakistan to halt his execution, saying he was suffering from 
schizophrenia and did not understand the crime he had committed.

(source: dailytimes.com.pk)








NIGERIA:

Judge sentences 5 men to death by hanging for armed robbery



An Osun State High Court sitting in Iwo, on Monday, passed a guilty verdict on 
5 men for their involvement in armed robbery and sentenced them to death by 
hanging.

The convicts, Ifedayo Adebiyi, Semiu Taofeek, Afolabi Ogunwale, Oyeleke Mukaila 
and Ogunbayo Joshua, were arraigned before the court on September 23, 2016, on 
3 counts, Punch Metro reports.

The charges preferred against them were armed robbery and unlawful possession 
of firearms contrary to sections 6 (b), 1 (1) and (2) (a) and punishable under 
Section 1 (1) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, Cap R.11, 
Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2014.

The prosecution counsel, Tijani Adekilekun, said the accused robbed one Mr 
Fabiyi David of his valuables, including a Lexus SUV, at Emmanuel House, 
opposite the P.P. Hotel, Olupona.

The vehicle was later intercepted by the police at the Guru Mahraji area of the 
Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

In his judgement, Justice Akin Oladimeji said the prosecutor proved his case 
beyond reasonable doubt and found the accused guilty of the allegations of 
armed robbery and unlawful possession of firearms.

Justice Oladimeji sentenced the men to death by hanging.

(source: lailasnews.com)