[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

March 21



SOUTH AFRICA:

IFP promises to reopen debate on reinstatement of death penalty



The Inkatha Freedom Party promised safety of Gauteng residents and to reopen 
the debate on the reinstatement of the death penalty as a way to fight crime.

The party held its provincial manifesto launch rally at Zola sports complex in 
Soweto on Thursday.

It said it would reprioritise the SAPS budget to focus on community policing 
and police visibility on the streets, among communities and at business centres 
and public spaces.

Gauteng is notorious for high end crimes such as car hijackings and cash heist 
robberies.

Under IFP rule, all unused land held by the state would be distributed to 
alleviate poverty and address land deprivation.

“South Africa’s people suffered immensely under colonial rule and apartheid. 
Reasonable measures must be taken to redress past injustices and indignities as 
our political democracy cannot thrive if the masses of our people remain 
without land or perceptible prospects for a better life,” said the IFP’s “Our 
Plan for Gauteng”.

Despite being the country’s and the continent’s economic hub, Gauteng was still 
devastated by high unemployment especially among the youth. To address this the 
party promised to create a provincial and municipal database of unemployed 
persons and introduce a subsidised unemployment “job seekers metro card for 
Gautrain, Metrobus and Rea Vaya transit trips”.

Free WiFi would be offered to rural and township businesses to increase access 
to financial services and micro finance for developing entrepreneurs.

To realise its vision of a “world class” education, the IFP promised to 
champion the building of more schools with classes of 500 learners per school 
and free scholar transport. In an IFP-led government all schools would be 
guarded by trained security guards.

High-spirited Zulu maidens and young men in traditional regalia danced to a mix 
of hip hop, maskandi and their own Zulu traditional songs in formations of 
war-styled groups while waiting to be addresse by IFP president Mangosuthu 
Buthelezi.

(source: The Citizen)








NIGERIA:

The case against capital punishment in Nigeria



Nigeria remains one of the few nations in the world where capital punishment is 
still fashionable despite the call to abolish it. And while it is true that the 
1999 constitution (as amended) clearly spelt out death penalty under Sections 
33(1) and 34(1) (a), it has become an outdated and cruel means of dispensing 
justice.

Fundamentally, the truth remains that, society will continue to evolve and as 
it evolves, the laws holding it together will also change. For instance, until 
1807, the slave trade was legal and people were allowed to keep slaves (human 
beings) as private property. But as society gradually progressed from the 
thesis, to the antithesis and to the synthesis, a new consciousness overruled 
the commodification of man. Today, it will be considered a crime against 
humanity if any man or country ever venture into the slave trade because 
civilization has moved forward and new laws have emerged to protect the 
inalienable rights of man.

In the same vein, the Nigerian society has not remained static since the first 
time capital punishment was enshrined in her constitution. As society 
progresses it is expected that laws are reviewed and the constitution amended 
in order to meet the recent social realities and lifestyle. It will not make 
any sense use the laws that were made 20 years ago or thereabout to interpret 
the current challenges in the country. Laws are made for man and not the other 
way round. Therefore, we cannot afford to remain judicially conservative when 
society itself is in the state of flux.

Take for example how people will respond to the killing of twins in the 21st 
century or the gladiator games that defined the beauty and power of the Roman 
civilization. Whereas these were backed by the laws of those days but as man 
attained another rational identity epoch, he found it convenient to describe 
them as barbaric or primitive. If the modern culture could efface slave trade 
and other anti-progress events, then the neo or contemporary culture should 
also swallow all the cruel and outdated laws that support capital punishment, 
especially in Nigeria.

Apart from the fact that the Nigerian society has evolved and by default needs 
better laws to address capital crimes, capital punishment has never been the 
ultimate solution to homicide. There is no proof anywhere that killing 
murderers in Nigeria have been able to deter other people from committing 
murder or other capital crimes that can warrant the death penalty.

Furthermore, the Nigerian system is very disorganized. The security and 
judicial institutions are weak. Nigeria is a country where the police usually 
make a random arrest for no reason and without bothering to do a proper 
investigation whether the people arrested are criminals or not. As a result of 
this, some innocent but unfortunate people may be implicated to have committed 
capital crimes and by so doing, the weak judiciary may condemn them to death. 
However, if Nigeria abolishes capital punishment, the chances of killing the 
innocent will be zero.

More than 100 countries in the world have abolished capital punishment because 
it is no longer a valid means of administering justice. They are now exploring 
other options like life imprisonment, which is far better. Nigeria should also 
explore other options apart from the death penalty, and who knows if the 
criminals will change while serving an interminable sentence in the prison.

(source: qwenu.com)








ZIMBABWE:

Crime of passion: Killing girlfriend, 3 children earns man death penalty, plus 
life imprisonment



A 49-YEAR-old Harare man, who killed his girlfriend and her 3 children by 
burning them alive after he was ditched back in 2013 has been sentenced to hang 
by High Court Judge, Justice Esther Muremba.

Bernard Mazhandu Mucheka was also slapped with a life sentence for attempting 
to kill his late girlfriend’s visitors on the fateful day.

The killer boyfriend was convicted in all four murder counts and four attempted 
murder charges he was facing after a full trial, which took 5 years to 
conclude.

His late girlfriend, Lorraine Mtetwa of Epworth was burnt to death together 
with her 3 children.

Only one child escaped together with Mtetwa’s minor relatives who sustained 
deformities following the arson attack.

In passing sentence, Justice Muremba said this was one of the most heinous 
crimes she had ever presided over. The accused did not submit anything 
mitigatory for what he did.

“All murders are heinous, but this one was more horrendous because it was 
pre-meditated.

“Accused knew that his girlfriend, Lorraine had 4 children and that they were 
sleeping in the house. This shows he had planned to kill his girlfriend 
together with her 4 children,” Judtice Muremba said in her ruling.

“Premeditation to commit murder in the absence of mitigatory circumstances 
calls for the death penalty. The accused, in his warned and cautioned statement 
said he was so angry because Lorraine wasted his time and squandered his money.

“He plainly said the children were just caught in the crossfire and treated it 
as collateral damage. That is not mitigatory.”

The Court heard that Mucheka could have killed 8 people who were in the house 
but the other occupants escaped with serious burns.

The Judge said Mucheka can never be forgiven for what he did.

“It is aggravatory that four people died at the same time. The accused torched 
the house not knowing that 3 more people had visited. Death by fire is 
torturous.

“Murder accompanied by excruciating pain and suffering cannot be tolerated. 
Murdering a minor is aggravatory. In this case the 3 children who died were 
minors and had committed no offence against the accused,” she ruled.

Muremba also said Mucheka did a shameful thing since he is a married man with 3 
children.

It was the State’s case that Mucheka was having an extra marital affair with 
Lorraine for 3 years. The deceased woman is said to have discovered that 
Mucheka was married in February the same year and broke up with him.

This did not go well with Mucheka who then started sending messages threatening 
to harm Lorraine.

On the fateful day, Mucheka who resided in Hatfield bought five litres petrol 
before he boarded a commuter omnibus to Epworth.

The Court heard he waited at a shopping centre close to Lorraine’s place until 
11pm.

Mucheka then proceeded to the place and sprinkled petrol on the door mat before 
he broke Lorraine bedroom window and sprinkled the substance inside.

Prosecutor Beaven Murevanhema proved that he then set the house on fire before 
he fled the scene.

He was arrested 2 weeks later at his rural home in Chivhu.

Court heard Lorraine had told her friend, 19-year-old son and employer about 
the threats which were being sent to her mobile phone by Mucheka before she was 
killed.

She died at Harare hospital 4 days after the arson attack.

Lorraine died on the same day with her 17-year-old daughter. Her other daughter 
aged 16 and a relative of the same age died the following day.

(source: newzimbabwe.com)








INDIA:

High Court Upholds Death Penalty For Seven Convicted In 2015 Gang-Rape & Murder 
Of Woman



The Punjab and Haryana High Court on March 20 upheld the death penalty for 7 
convicts for the rape and murder of a 27-year-old mentally challenged woman 
four years back in Haryana’s Rohtak.

The special division bench comprising Justices AB Chaudhari and Surinder Gupta 
termed the incident as a “Nirbhaya-like incident”. They dismissed the petitions 
filed by the perpetrators and increased the fine imposed on them to Rs 50 lakh 
from Rs 1.75 lakh. It ruled that they can recover the money by attaching or 
selling immovable properties like their agricultural land and houses.

The incident

Back on February 1, 2015, the convicts waylaid the victim and later gang-raped 
and murdered her. She used to live with her elder sister on Rohtak town’s 
outskirts.

The convicts took the victim to two places and gang-raped her after consuming 
alcohol. Afraid after seeing a police jeep pass by, they left the initial spot. 
Further, they bludgeoned the woman with bricks. After killing her, the men 
dumped her body in a deserted part of Akbarpur village along the Rohtak-Hisar 
road. Stones and razor blades were recovered from the victim’s stomach by the 
doctors during the post-mortem examination.

“What must be the excruciating pain to almost half-dead young woman! Then the 
animalism, torment, highest order of cruelty, rather tsunami of cruelty, made 
thereafter is bound to petrify one and all,” the court observed on the evidence 
that some external object had been inserted into the victim’s private parts by 
the convicts.

The verdict

The 7 people arrested in the case were sentenced to death on December 21, 2015, 
by Additional District and Sessions Judge Seema Singha. A fine of Rs 1.75 lakh 
was also imposed on each of them.

While a 9th suspect has committed suicide, an arrested minor is being tried in 
a juvenile court.

While upholding the death sentence, the court said, “We are shocked and aghast 
to see…number of injuries and nature of injuries caused to the victim…with the 
brutal and predatory acts of perpetrators of the barbaric crime.”

In the recent verdict, however, Justice AB Chaudhari said that he hopes 
imposing the enhanced fine on the perpetrators will act as an additional 
deterrent for potential criminals. While 1/2 of the money they give will go to 
the state, the rest will be given to the deceased’s sister. The properties have 
to be sold within 2 months.

The investigation officer, Sub-Inspector Mohammad Ilias, was praised by the 
bench for the professionalism he showed while probing the case. “It is up to 
the government to award him now,” it said.

Haryana additional advocate general Deepak Sabharwal said that the brutality of 
this case is similar to what had happened in the 2012 Nirbhaya gang-rape and 
murder case in Delhi. In that case too, the Supreme Court had upheld the death 
sentence to the accused. A minor convicted in the case was released after he 
completed three years in a juvenile remand home, and another convict died in 
prison. This incident led to widespread protests with people slamming the 
government for allegedly failing to provide enough security to women in the 
national capital.

Crime against women has been on the rise for ages now, and on several 
occasions, justice is delayed or denied. It has been over 6 years that the 
Nirbhaya incident occurred, and the convicts are still alive.

In cases like these, it is perhaps not enough to treat minors any less harshly. 
Perpetrators involved in such heinous crimes should not be shown the least 
amount of mercy.

(source: The Logical Indian)








SINGAPORE:

Mahathir seeks clemency for condemned man in Singapore----Malaysia pleads for 
citizen as Singapore prepares to execute man convicted of murder Mahathir seeks 
clemency for condemned man in Singapore



Barring a last-minute pardon or stay of execution by Singapore authorities, 
Michael Garing will be put to death in the early hours of March 22.

The 30-year-old Malaysian is 1 of 4 men who went on an armed robbery spree in 
the island republic in 2010 that ended in the murder of 41-year-old 
Shanmuganathan Dillidurai.

Michael was given the death sentence for the crime. His family received 
notification last week to make funeral arrangements for him.

The short notice has triggered 11th-hour efforts by human rights activists and 
Malaysian politicians including Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to make 
representations to save his life.

The planned execution of its citizen in the neighboring country comes as 
Malaysia moves towards abolishing the death penalty.

Singapore, in its bid to make the city state crime-free and safe, has kept its 
ruthless approach to murder and drug smuggling and routinely executes 
offenders.

The case has been closely followed in Singapore, which is known for having one 
of the lowest rates of violent crime in the world.

The sharply diverging approaches to crime and punishment between the close 
neighbors could lead to an awkward stand-off.

Speaking to the press after a parliamentary sitting on March 20, Mahathir said 
he hopes Singapore extends clemency to the condemned man and joins Malaysia in 
abolishing the death penalty, which is a contravention of international law.

“We are trying to save his life. As we know in Malaysia now, people think that 
the death penalty is excessive," state news agency Bernama reported him as 
saying. "We hope that other countries will also look at it that way.”

Malaysia’s Law Minister Liew Vui Keong said a letter would be sent to Singapore 
President Halimah Yacob as she has the power to grant pardons or commute the 
sentence of any convicted person.

"I just came to know about this and will work on it,” he told reporters on 
March 19, adding that the government would "write to the president and see what 
she has to say”.

Short notice for family

Prominent Malaysian human rights lawyer N. Surendran was scathing of the rush 
to execute Michael after the condemned man's family from a small town in the 
interior of Sarawak were given 8 days' notice by letter to make funeral 
arrangements.

"The extremely short notice is disturbing and cause for concern. It gives the 
family scant time to spend with Michael in his final days and to make 
preparations,” he said in a statement.

"Michael was only 21 years old when he committed the crime. We accept that it 
was a serious crime and that he must face punishment. But like any young person 
who has committed a crime, Michael must be given an opportunity for 
rehabilitation. By executing him, the state is answering his wrongdoing with an 
even greater wrong.

"Singapore gains nothing by carrying out this execution, except to strengthen 
the perception of indifference and callousness to human life. The death penalty 
has never been proven to be a deterrent to serious crime. Killing Michael only 
entrenches the culture of violence and will not make Singaporeans any safer in 
their daily lives.

"We strongly urge the president of Singapore to exercise clemency and commute 
Michael's sentence to life imprisonment. It is not too late to do so. We 
further urge the government of Singapore to impose a moratorium on all 
executions and work towards abolition of the death penalty."

Amnesty International has also urged Singapore to halt the execution. 
Researcher Rachel Chhoa-Howard said: "No matter how heinous the crime, the 
death penalty is a degrading and inhuman punishment. We denounce its use in all 
circumstances.”

When their trials were held, prosecutors presented Michael and his accomplices 
Tony Imba, Hairee Landak and Donny Meluda as part of a gang of 4 Sarawak 
natives who carried out 4 violent robberies over a few hours in May 2010.

Their first 2 victims were construction worker Sandeep Singh, 24, and national 
serviceman Ang Jun Heng, 19. They were both beaten and slashed with a machete.

A 3rd victim, Indian national Egan Karuppaiah, then 43, had both arms almost 
hacked to the bone.

Their final victim was Shanmuganathan, who was knocked off his bicycle by Tony 
and slashed repeatedly. He died after sustaining a fractured skull and a 
severed jugular vein among other injuries.

Tony is serving life in prison, while Hairee Landak and Donny Meluda each 
received 33 years in jail and 24 strokes of the cane.

Law minister Liew said the Malaysian government's stand was not new, noting 
that it had made similar representation to the Singapore government last year 
to spare the life a man convicted of drug smuggling.

Prabu Pathmanathan, 31, was executed at Changi prison in October 2018. He was 
convicted of smuggling 228 grams of heroin into Singapore in 2014.

Malaysia previously mandated capital punishment for crimes ranging from murder 
and kidnapping to drug offenses and treason. Drug offenses once accounted for 
the largest number of executions in the country.

(source: ucanews.com)