[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Oct. 4




IRAN----executions

Iranian authorities execute 6 prisoners, including 1 in public



Iranian authorities executed 4 prisoners on Wednesday, October 2, at Raja’i 
Shahr Prison in the city of Karaj, near the capital, Tehran.

2 of the victimes identified as Hossein Roshan and Mohsen Kounani were 
sentenced to death on charges related to moharebeh (“enmity against God”), 
while Mohammad Reza Ghanbari and Hamid Sheikhi were hanged on murder charges.

As a consequence of the clerical regime’s failure to categorize murders 
according to their degrees, anyone committing murder is sentenced to death, 
regardless of their motives.

On Wednesday, October 2, the Iranian regime executed a man in public in the 
northern ciry of Rasht. He was hanged for killing a security agent.

Another prisoner identified as 24-year-old Razgar Zandi was executed on 
Tuseday, October 1, in Sanandaj Prison. He was charged with killing a man 
during a group fight.

The clerical regime also executed at least 12 prisoners including 2 women on 
September 24 and 25, 2019. The news of these executions has not been announced 
by any of the state media in Iran.

The unidentified woman hanged with 7 men on September 25, 2019, in Gohardasht 
Prison was accused of deliberately murdering her husband. An eye-witness said 
she had been taken for implementation of her death verdict to Gohardasht from 
either Shahr-e Ray (Qarchak) or Kachouii Prison. The woman has not been 
identified yet as this news is being posted.

Taking into account the execution that took place on September 25, the number 
of women executed during Rouhani’s tenure reaches 96. Eight of these women have 
been hanged in a period of slightly over 3 months. One of these women was Leila 
Zarafshan who was executed on Thursday, September 26, 2019, in the Central 
Prison of Sanandaj.

This should be compared to the 9 women executed during the entire year 2016, 
ten women in 2017, and 6 women in 2018.

The Iranian regime is the world’s top record holder of per capita executions. 
At least 3800 persons have been executed during Rouhani’s terms in office.

(source: Iran Human Rights)








SAUDI ARABIA:

Verdict in Saudi dissident case expected October 10



A Saudi court will issue a verdict in the case of dissident Sheikh Salman 
al-Awda on October 10, the prominent cleric’s son said today, amid concerns he 
will be sentenced to death.

“Today, my father, Salman al-Awda, was present in a Riyadh court,” Abdullah 
al-Awda tweeted. “Next Thursday (October 10) will be the sentencing hearing.”

Awda was among 20 people, including writers and journalists, arrested in 
September 2017 as part of a crackdown on dissent in the ultra-conservative 
kingdom.

Awda’s family and Saudi media have said prosecutors are seeking the death 
penalty.

The charge sheet has not been made public.

Human rights groups have said the trial is a political reprisal against Awda, a 
leading figure in a 1990s Islamist movement associated with the Muslim 
Brotherhood.

In the past 2 weeks, at least 7 sessions in the cleric’s case were convened, 
according to his son.

In one of the hearings, the prosecution presented “what it called evidence 
against (Awda), which was about 2,000 tweets posted to his Twitter account”, he 
added.

The cleric’s family have said Saudi authorities had demanded that Awda and 
other prominent figures publicly back the kingdom in a dispute with 
neighbouring Qatar, but he refused.

Riyadh and several allies cut off all diplomatic and economic ties with Doha in 
June 2017, accusing it of links to Islamist extremists, a charge Qatar has 
denied.

(source: malaymail.com)








INDIA:

SC commutes man’s death penalty to life imprisonment 8 years after awarding 
sentence



The Supreme Court commuted a man’s death penalty to life imprisonment more than 
8 years after the apex court awarded the sentence. The man had been found 
guilty of killing his wife and 4 kids including 10-month-old baby in 
Maharashtra. The Supreme Court has now found fault in its verdict for coming to 
the conclusion about the severity of the offence to justify the extreme 
punishment and commuted his sentence to imprisonment for the entire life.

(source: indiatimes.com)

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

2-year-old baby's rape and murder: India Supreme Court confirms death 
sentence----He kidnapped, apparently kept on assaulting her over 4-5 hours till 
she breathed her last



The Supreme Court on Thursday confirmed the death penalty to a man convicted of 
murder and rape of a 2-year-old girl.

The sentence was confirmed by 2:1 majority by a three-judge bench of Justices 
R. F. Nariman, Surya Kant and R.Subhash Reddy.

The top court was hearing convict Ravi's plea challenging a Bombay High Court 
order which has confirmed the death penalty after holding him guilty of murder 
and rape.

Justices Nariman and Kant observed that the victim was barely a two-year old 
baby whom the convict kidnapped and apparently kept on assaulting over 4-5 
hours till she breathed her last. The bench said that it is a case where trust 
has been betrayed and social values are impaired.

The incident took place in March 2012 in Jalna in Maharashtra. The majority 
judgement held that the "convict had no control over his carnal desires (and) 
surpassed all natural, social and legal limits just to satiate his sexual 
hunger."

"He ruthlessly finished a life which was yet to bloom. The appellant instead of 
showing fatherly love, affection and protection to the child against the evils 
of the society, rather made her the victim of lust," Justices Nariman and Kant 
said.

"The unnatural sex with a two-year old toddler exhibits a dirty and perverted 
mind, showcasing a horrifying tale of brutality. The appellant meticulously 
executed his nefarious design by locking one door of his house from the outside 
and bolting the other one from the inside so as to deceive people into 
believing that nobody was inside. The appellant was thus in his full senses 
while he indulged in this senseless act," the majority judgement said.

However, Justice Reddy dissented and opined that case was based on 
circumstantial evidence and said that death sentence imposed on the appellant 
is modified to life imprisonment, without any remission.

The majority judgement also opined that the Parliament has thought it fit to 
award death penalty for child rape by amending Protection of Children from 
Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) in 2019. In the amendment law, death sentence was 
introduced as a penalty for the offence of aggravated penetrative sexual 
assault on a child below 12 years.

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

In 2 separate cases, Supreme Court imposes Death Penalty on 3 persons



The Supreme Court today imposed death penalty on 3 persons in 2 separate cases.

The judgments in both cases were rendered by the same Bench of Justices 
Rohinton Nariman, R Subhash Reddy and Surya Kant. While Justice Subhash Reddy 
dissented in one of the judgments with respect to the sentence, the 2nd 
judgment was unanimous.

First Case - Ravi S/o Ashok Ghumare v. State of Maharashtra

This was an appeal against a judgment of January 2016 passed by the Bombay High 
Court confirming the death reference in the Sessions Case No. 127 of 2012 
decided by the Additional Sessions Judge, Jalna.

The appellant had been found guilty of committing offences punishable under 
Sections 302, 363, 376 and 377 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and had been 
awarded the sentence of death under Section 302, IPC along with the sentence of 
rigorous imprisonment(s) of different durations with fine for the rest of 
offences. The Trial Court and the High Court had concurrently held that the 
case fell within the exceptional category of `rarest of the rare’ cases where 
all other alternative options but to award death sentence, are foreclosed.

The appellant in the case was charged with the rape and murder of a 
two-year-old girl child. Based on the information received that the appellant 
was found distributing chocolates to children, the father of the deceased child 
along with Police had reached the house of the appellant. One door of the house 
locked from outside while the other was locked from inside. Police broke open 
the door and entered the house along with the informant, his brother and a few 
other persons.

They found the appellant in the house; deceased-victim was lying under the bed 
in a naked and unconscious condition. Blood was oozing out from her private 
parts and had multiple injuries on her body. She was covered in a blanket and 
taken to the hospital where the doctor declared her brought dead.

The Trial Court discussed the evidence at length in the context of each point 
and answered them in the affirmative. It held the appellant guilty of the 
offences referred to above. The Trial Court thereafter compared the 
`aggravating circumstances’ vis-a-vis the `mitigating circumstances’. Having 
found that the crime was committed in a most brutal, diabolical and revolting 
manner which shook the collective conscience of the society, it found that the 
Rarest of Rare Test (RR test) was fully attracted. Hence capital punishment was 
imposed on the appellant under Section 302, IPC.

The High Court considered the death reference as well as the appeal preferred 
by the appellant against the trial Court judgment. After scrutinising the 
prosecution evidence, it held that the same led to the irrefutable conclusion 
that it was the appellant who took away the victim child to his house, sexually 
assaulted her, committed unnatural intercourse and throttled her to death. 
Consequently, the conviction of the appellant under Sections 302, 376, 377 and 
363 of the IPC was upheld.

The High Court thereafter engaged itself on the question of quantum of sentence 
and as to whether the Rarest of Rare Test was attracted to the facts and 
circumstances of this case. The High Court drew up the balance sheet of the 
'aggravating’ and 'mitigating’ circumstances and after their comparative 
analysis, it concurred with the extreme penalty awarded by the trial Court and 
confirmed the death sentence.

This led to the appeal in Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court after a tenacious analysis of the testimonies of the 
witnesses with respect to the facts seen by each one of them concluded that 
there was no doubt that it was the appellant who had committed the crime. 
Scientific evidence also connected the appellant with the crime, the Court 
stated.

Thus, it concluded that an overwhelming eye-witness account, circumstantial 
evidence, medical evidence and DNA analysis on record conclusively proved that 
it was the appellant alone who committed the crime in this case. It, therefore, 
"unhesitatingly" upheld the conviction of the appellant

On the question of sentence, Counsel for the appellant Nitya Ramakrishnan 
vehemently urged that the Courts below were influenced by the 'nature’ and 
'brutality’ of the crime while awarding the sentence of death penalty. She 
referred to a list of 35 decisions rendered by the Supreme Court in the cases 
of rape and murder of a child-victim in which the death sentences were commuted 
to life imprisonment. It was urged that the brutality of the crime alone is not 
sufficient to impose the sentence of death; it is imperative on the State to 
establish that the convict is beyond reform. To this end it is relevant to see 
whether this is the first conviction or there have been previous crimes.

State Counsel Nishant R Katneshwarkar maintained that the instant case 
satisfies the principle of ‘rarest of the rare cases’ and the appellant who 
committed the crime of rape and murder of a barely 2-year old innocent toddler 
in the most dastardly manner does not deserve any leniency.

The Supreme Court placed extensive reliance on the judgments of the Supreme 
Court in Bachan Singh v. State of Punjab and Machhi Singh v. State of Punjab.

In this context, it placed reliance on 2 principles - the “society centric” 
approach and the victims’ rights.

The object and purpose of determining the quantum of sentence has to be 
'society centric’ without being influenced by a `judge’s’ own views, for 
society is the biggest stakeholder in the administration of the criminal 
justice system.

A society has a 'fundamental’ and 'human’ right to live free from any kind of 
psycho fear, threat, danger or insecurity at the hands of anti-social elements. 
The society legitimately expects the Courts to apply doctrine of 
proportionality and impose suitable and deterrent punishment that commensurate 
with the gravity of offence, the Court observed.

Regarding the victim jurisprudence, the Court noted that the de facto sufferer 
of crime has no say in the adjudicatory process and is made to sit outside the 
court as a mute spectator.

“The ethos of criminal justice dispensation to prevent and punish `crime’ would 
surreptitiously turn its back on the `victim’ of such crime whose cries went 
unheard for centuries in the long corridors of the conventional apparatus. A 
few limited rights, including to participate in the trial have now been 
bestowed on a `victim’ in India by the Act No. 5 of 2009 whereby some pragmatic 
changes in Cr.P.C. have been made.”

The Sentencing Policy, therefore, needs to strike a balance between the two 
sides and count upon the twin test of (i) deterrent effect, or (ii) complete 
reformation for the integration of the offender in civil society.

The Court also adverted to the recent amendments carried out by Parliament in 
the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 by way of The 
Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act, 2019.

The unamended Act defines “Aggravated Penetrative Sexual Assault” in Section 5, 
which included, “whoever commits aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a 
child below the age of 12 years.” Originally, the punishment for an aggravated 
sexual assault was rigorous imprisonment for a term not less than 10-years but 
which may extend for imprisonment for life with fine. The same was amended and 
the minimum sentence for an aggravated penetrative sexual assault has now been 
increased from 10 years to 20 years and imprisonment for life has now been 
expressly stated to be imprisonment for the natural life of the person.

Significantly, death sentence has also been introduced as a penalty for the 
offence of aggravated penetrative sexual assault on a child below 12 years, the 
Court noted.

Thus, the Court reasoned that the Legislature has impliedly distanced itself 
from the propounders of “No-Death Sentence” in “No Circumstances” theory and 
has re-stated the will of the people that in the cases of brutal rape of minor 
children below the age of 12 years without murder of the victim, death penalty 
can also be imposed.

Even though the amended statute does not apply in the present case, since the 
crime was committed before the amendment, the amended statute points to the 
latest Legislative Policy, the Court said.

In light of the above, the Court upheld the death sentence while stating that 
his conduct lacked kindness and leads to a belief that he cannot be reformed.

“…the victim was barely a 2-year old baby whom the appellant kidnapped and 
apparently kept on assaulting over 4-5 hours till she breathed her last. The 
appellant who had no control over his carnal desires surpassed all natural, 
social and legal limits just to satiate his sexual hunger. He ruthlessly 
finished a life which was yet to bloom. The appellant instead of showing 
fatherly love, affection and protection to the child against the evils of the 
society, rather made her the victim of lust…The appellant meticulously executed 
his nefarious design by locking one door of his house from the outside and 
bolting the other one from the inside so as to deceive people into believing 
that nobody was inside. The appellant was thus in his full senses while he 
indulged in this senseless act…His deliberate, well-designed silence with a 
standard defence of `false’ accusation reveals his lack of kindness or 
compassion and leads to believe that he can never be reformed.”

Justice R Subhash Reddy wrote a separate judgment in which he upheld the 
conviction but dissented with respect to the sentence by modifying the death 
penalty to life imprisonment.

2nd case - Ishwari Lal Yadav and ors v. State of Chhattisgarh

This case concerned appeals challenging 2 judgments of the Chhattisgarh High 
Court in 2014 and 2016, whereby the death penalty was awarded to a husband-wife 
duo, Ishwari Lal Yadav and Kiran Bai for having murdered 2 children, aged 6 
years and 2 years, pursuant to black magic activities.

The matter dated back to 2010. A 6-year-old girl was reported missing in March 
of that year by her parents. Months later, in November that year, the skeletal 
remains of the girl were found in the compound of the house belonging to the 2 
accused, while searching for a 2-year-old boy who had gone missing.

The 2-year-old boy was found buried in the same compound by a crowd of 
villagers with his head severed and his cheeks slashed. The 2 accused confessed 
to having murdered the boy in furtherance of their tantrik activities. 
Moreover, the duo also confessed to having similarly murdered the 6-year-old, 
months earlier.

Considering the cruel and gruesome nature of the murders, the two accused were 
served the death penalty, whereas their disciples were punished for kidnapping 
the children with the intent to murder and criminal conspiracy. The appellants 
were also punished under Section 201 of the Indian Penal Code for having hidden 
evidence of the 6-year-old girl's murder.

In the appeal before the Court, it was contended that the trial court and the 
High Court had erred in relying on an extra-judicial confession while punishing 
the appellants with death.

The Supreme Court, however, pointed out that extra-judicial confessions could 
be relied upon if there is sufficient corroborative evidence. The Bench 
unanimously ruled that in both cases of murder, there was clear evidence on 
record which lent credence to the confession made by the 2 main accused.

In judgment concerning the murder of two-year old Chiraj, the Bench noted,

"In this case it clear from the evidence on record, the main accused, namely, 
Ishwari Lal Yadav and Kiran Bai have committed the murder of the two year old 
child Chirag as a sacrifice to the God."

As noted in the judgment concerning the murder of six-year-old Manisha,

"It is true that extra judicial confession, is a weak piece of evidence but at 
the same time if the same is corroborated by other evidences on record, such 
confession can be taken into consideration to prove the guilt of the accused. 
In the case on hand, the evidence from independent witnesses is in one voice 
and consistent. The medical evidence on record also substantiated the case of 
the prosecution.... As such it is clearly proved beyond any reasonable doubt 
that the appellants are responsible for the offence alleged against them."

In this case, a DNA test had also proved that the skeletal remains found in the 
compound of the main accused were that of Manisha's.

The Court proceeded to confirm the death penalty of the two main accused in 
both cases, taking into consideration the gruesome nature of the murders 
committed. The Bench observed,

"It is to be noticed, they were having 3 minor children at that time. Inspite 
of the same, they committed the murder of the deceased, a child of 2 years of 
age brutally. The head of the helpless child was severed, his tongue and cheeks 
were also cut. Having regard to age of the accused, they were not possessed of 
the basic humanness, they completely lacked the psyche or mindset which can be 
amenable for any reformation. It is a planned murder committed by the aforesaid 
2 appellants....we are of the view that this is a case of “rarest of rare 
cases” where death sentence imposed by the trial court is rightly confirmed by 
the High Court...."

"Considering the gruesome nature of murder the sentence imposed by the High 
Court is to be confirmed."

However, the Court found that the prosecution had not proved their case as 
regards the charges of kidnapping and conspiracy against the disciples of the 2 
main accused. Therefore, the Court allowed the appeals filed by these persons 
against the imprisonment term imposed for these offences. With respect to these 
appellants, the Bench ruled,

"If we closely analyse the evidence on record the common intention stands 
proved between Ishwari Lal Yadav and Kiran Bai who are main accused but at the 
same time there is no acceptable evidence against all others to prove their 
guilt that they have committed the offence with the common intention. 
Prosecution has failed to prove the common intention of all other appellants 
than the main accused, namely, Ishwari Lal Yadav and Kiran Bai, either to 
kidnap or to murder the deceased child on the day of occurrence."

All the same, in the case concerning the murder of Manisha, the Court found 
that disciples of the main accused were also liable to be punished for hiding 
evidence along with the 2 main accused. The Bench, therefore, ruled,

"... as there is no acceptable evidence on record except the alleged confession 
to prove the offence under Sections 364/34 read with 120B IPC, the appellants 
are entitled for acquittal for offences punishable under Sections 364/34 and 
120B IPC. At the same time, by burying the dead body of the deceased caused 
disappearance of evidence of offence, they are rightly convicted for offence 
under Section 201 IPC."

(soruce: barandbench.com)

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

Death can be awarded on circumstantial evidence: SC



see: 
https://www.deccanherald.com/national/national-politics/death-can-be-awarded-on-circumstantial-evidence-sc-766065.html)




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

Death of justice? 
https://mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com/opinion/columnists/dushyant/death-of-justice/articleshow/71430244.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst 
(source: Opinion, Dushyant, Mumbai Mirror)

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

The Supreme Court made an important comment on the death sentence, said this



Human rights groups in the country often raise questions on the death penalty. 
They demand that at present there is no justification for such punishment. The 
Supreme Court has made an important comment on this. The apex court has said in 
one of its decisions that on the basis of circumstantial evidence, even death 
sentence can be given, but for this the evidence should be correct. A 3-member 
bench headed by Justice NV Ramanna made the remarks, committing this changed 
the death sentence of a Man who killed wife and 4 children to life 
imprisonment.

The apex court has taken this decision while disposing of the review petition. 
The bench has made it clear that the convict will remain behind bars, he will 
not be entitled to any pardon. The Supreme Court has held that the sentencing 
of death sentence in cases based on circumstantial evidence is not dangerous, 
as long as the basis of the circumstantial evidence is based on concrete 
evidence. At the same time, the Supreme Court said that even though the crime 
is heinous and has been carried out under a well thought out strategy, before 
hearing the death sentence, the court has to show the socio-economic background 
of the convict, age, emotionally of the person at the time of the crime.,Things 
etc. should be considered.

(source: newstracklive.com)








PHILIPPINES:

'We don't need the death penalty': 20% of inmates die each year in Philippines 
jail -- Prison hospital chief says about 5,200 die in Bilibid each year, mostly 
from infectious diseases



More than 5,000 inmates at a maximum security jail in the Philippines, or 
around 20% of all inmates, die each year, a Filipino prison hospital chief has 
claimed.

Ernesto Tamayo of the national Bilibid prison (NBP) in Muntinlupa, a few 
kilometres south of Manila, said that the “mortality rate is 20%” for the 
jail’s population of around 26,000, with most of the deaths occurring due to 
infectious diseases in overcrowded cells.

Rappler reported that Tamayo attributed many of the deaths to pulmonary 
tuberculosis, a highly contagious disease that can easily spread in crowded 
conditions. He said that stabbings also contributed to the high death rate.

Tamayo made the claim on Thursday at a senate hearing on the Good Conduct Time 
Allowance law, which allows the early release of prisoners for positive 
behaviour. Following the claim, senate president Vicente Sotto III was quoted 
as saying: “We don’t need [the] death penalty anymore.”

Woeful prison conditions in the Philippines, which has not had the death 
penalty since 2006 despite some politicians calling for its return, have been 
highlighted by the hearing.

Last month it was reported by Rappler that one hospital ward in the NBP, which 
has been criticised by the United Nations as well as Filipino authorities, did 
not provide showers for inmates. Prisoners washed with water poured from drums.

Godfrey Gamboa, a former inmate at the NBP, claimed that many prisoners there 
died due to being given food that had gone bad. “A lot of them die because most 
of the food is already spoiled. They get weak,” he said.

Ursicio Ceñas, a doctor at the NBP, was accused of taking bribes from 
influential prisoners in exchange for granting them extended access in the 
hospital section, away from the main prison areas.

Serial killers and high-profile drug lords have been detained in the NBP, where 
around 43% of inmates are incarcerated for homicide and physical injury-related 
crimes.

(source: The Guardian)








TAIWAN:

Criminals given death sentence in Taiwan will be executed: Premier Su----KMT 
lawmaker calls on government to proceed with executions, premier says law will 
be upheld

Taiwan’s Premier Su Tseng-chang on Friday (Oct. 4) expressed his support for 
upholding the law to carry out the death penalty for certain criminal offenses.

Speaking at a Legislative Yuan hearing, Su said that under the current law, it 
is the state’s responsibility to carry out the sentence if a criminal is given 
the death penalty. He was responding to opposition Kuomintang lawmaker Shen 
Chih-hwei's question as to whether the Tsai administration would hesitate to 
carry out capital punishment.

Taiwan last carried out a death sentence in August 2018, when Lee Hung-chi was 
executed for the murder of his wife and daughter. Lee’s death marked the end of 
a 2-year moratorium on capital punishment in Taiwan and was the 1st death 
sentence carried out under the Tsai administration.

Since Su became premier in January 2019, there have been no executions carried 
out. There are currently 43 people on death row in the country, with the most 
recent being Weng Jen-hsien, the arsonist responsible for the death of 6 
people, including his parents, whose death sentence was confirmed by the 
Supreme Court on July 10. Weng's was the 1st death sentence in the country in 2 
years. In response to Shen’s suggestion that Su was hesitant to carry out the 
death penalty, the premier emphasized that he has no desire to protect those 
who commit evil acts and that sentences handed down by the courts must be 
carried out in accordance with the law.

However, Su also made it clear that the authority to authorize capital 
punishment rests with the Minister of Justice. He clarified that as premier, he 
is not the one to order any executions.

CNA reports that the current Minister of Justice, Tsai Ching-hsiang, has called 
for a “prudent approach” to the death penalty. Tsai believes that the 
government must uphold the law that currently exists but that the country 
should work towards abolishing the death penalty at some point in the future.

Shen criticized the positions of both the minister of justice and the premier, 
declaring that their statements are “vague and unclear.” She recognized that 
neither official has made a clear commitment to carrying out the law, which 
they claim should be upheld.

(source: Taiwan News)








CHINA:

GOLD DIGGER -- 13 tons of gold worth £300million and £30billion cash found at 
home of ‘corrupt’ Chinese mayor who could face the DEATH PENALTY



Officials found a stash of gold bars and £30 billion in cash in the basement of 
an allegedly corrupt Chinese mayor.

The former mayor of Haikou City, 58-year-old Zhang Qi, allegedly also has a 
portfolio of luxury properties - and will face the death penalty if he is found 
guilty of "economic crimes".

Qi was being investigated by the National Supervisory Commission, who found 
13.5 tons of gold worth millions of dollars.

Video shows investigators sifting through the giant pile of gold bars, some of 
which spill out from shelving units onto the floor.

Stacks of cash to the value of billions of dollars found at the home of the 
Community Party politician was in various currencies such as dollars, Chinese 
yuan and euros.

Zhang was the secretary of the Communist Party Committee of Haikou, the 
provincial capital city of Hainan with a population around 9 million people.

His position was equal to that of mayor, according to the ranking of Chinese 
Communist party officials.

He was also a member of the Standing Committee of Hainan Province.

The disgraced former mayor has been stripped of both titles by the Commission 
for Discipline Inspection of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of 
China.

Meanwhile, China's leader, Xi Jinping is cracking down on corruption as it's a 
major policy for the Communist Party.

(source: The Irish Sun)








ZIMBABWE:

‘I killed 4 people’ . . ‘begging for second chance’



An inmate who is on death sentence after killing 4 people believes he should be 
given a 2nd chance in the society.

Doesmatter Vhore who was convicted for killing 4 commercial farmers in 
Mashonaland Central Province said he feels like he is still suitable to stay in 
the society just like other people who did not commit crimes.

The murderer committed the crime with his other 2 accomplices who were also 
slapped with the capital punishment.

“Poor choices got me in jail”

Capital punishment also known as the death penalty, is a government sanction 
practice whereby a person is killed by the State as a punishment for a crime.

They were sent to the gallows after the court found them guilty of murder with 
actual intent.

In an interview during the recent tour of actors, musicians and soccer legends 
tour of the Chikurubi Maximum Security Prison, Vhore said:

“I still think we should be given an opportunity to have a 2nd chance.

“The crime was committed in 2011 and we were sentenced to death last year.

“We have been writing appealing letters but to no avail.

“I am living in fear because I don’t know when I will be hanged.

“When the gates are opened I always think they have come to take me.”

The condemned inmate also told this publication that he wishes to eat one more 
proper meal before his death.

“I miss good food my brother, here we are starving.

“I pray one day I will get a chance to eat good food.

Zimbabwe has not had an execution for over a decade and President Emmerson 
Mnangagwa has indicated that nobody will be hanged under his watch.

He is a strong campaigner against capital punishment.

(source: nehandaradio.com)








CAMEROON:

PEN America to Monitor Trial of Unjustly Incarcerated Cameroonian 
Rapper----Valsero to appear before a military court October 8 after trial 
postponed, could face death penalty



PEN America and its Artists at Risk Connection (ARC) program will closely 
monitor the upcoming trial of Cameroonian rapper Gaston Serval Abe, better 
known as Valsero. Arrested earlier this year in the vicinity of a pro-democracy 
demonstration, Valsero will appear before a military court October 8 and could 
face the death penalty. He’s falsely charged with rebellion against the state, 
terrorism, insurrection, inciting public disorder, and propagating false 
information.

PEN America has called his persecution an “inexcusable violation of artistic 
freedom of expression,” and says the charges must be dropped immediately. Julie 
Trébault, director of ARC at PEN America, is available for interviews in both 
English and French before and after the trial. She has been working with 
artists and allies of Valsero both in Cameroon and globally to call for his 
unconditional release. To request an interview, contact Stephen Fee, PEN 
America’s director of communications, at sfee at pen.org.

PEN America says Valsero is being persecuted for his work, which often includes 
political themes. Songs like “Çe pays tue les jeunes” (“This country kills the 
youth”), “Ne me parlez plus de ce pays” (“Don’t talk about this country to me 
anymore”), and the well-known “Lettre au president” (“Letter to the President”) 
have earned both the ire of the government and admiration of fans across 
Cameroon. Many of his new songs reference current crises in Cameroon and the 
current government, in power for nearly 4 decades.

Valsero was arrested on January 26 in Yaoundé on the margins of a peaceful 
demonstration protesting last year’s national elections, which many deemed to 
be rigged in support of the current president, Paul Biya. Maurice Kamto, the 
opposition leader, had organized marches all over the country on that day, but 
the protestors were met with widespread police suppression, and both Kamto and 
Valsero were detained. Valsero is not a member of the opposition party.

PEN America leads the Artists at Risk Connection (ARC), a program dedicated to 
assisting imperiled artists and fortifying the field of organizations that 
support them. If you or someone you know is an artist at risk, contact ARC at: 
https://artistsatriskconnection.org/contact

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(source: PEN America stands at the intersection of literature and human rights 
to protect open expression in the United States and worldwide)