Nov. 20
JAPAN:
Supreme Court upholds death penalty for 77-year-old woman
The Supreme Court on Friday upheld lower court rulings sentencing a
77-year-old woman to death for killing her husband and another woman for
insurance money. It is the 1st time the top court has backed the death
penalty for a defendant 70 or older since the earliest Supreme Court
records dating to 1966.
According to the ruling, Haruno Sakamoto conspired with her younger sister
and brother-in-law to suffocate her husband, 54, at her house in Muroto,
Kochi Prefecture, in January 1987, and obtained about 50 million yen in
life insurance. In August 1992, she killed a 60-year-old woman in
conspiracy with a former insurance agent to obtain insurance money.
(source: Kyodo News)
UGANDA:
Death Sentence is State Cruelty
It was recently published in the press that the former Internal Affairs
Minister, Chris Rwakasisi, currently on death row in Luzira prison has
been moved from the condemned section to the general prison, Boma.
Sources have it that this could mean a move toward his release if
president Museveni does not sign the decree to hang him. Uganda has not
enforced its death penalty since 28 men were hanged on April 28, 1999.
However, according to the Commissioner of Prisons for Administration,
David Nsalasatta, over 300 inmates are languishing at Luzira prisons under
sentence of death while the high court continues to add to this number.
The Foundation for Human Rights Initiative (FHRI) continues to advocate
the abolition of the death penalty in Uganda and calls upon the state to
abolish capital punishment for all crimes.
"Everywhere experience has shown that executions brutalise those involved
in the process.
Nowhere is it written that the death penalty has any special power to
reduce crimes. It is common knowledge that capital punishment is nothing
less than state-sanctioned murder. Everywhere experience has shown that
executions brutalise those involved in the process.
Nowwhere is it written that the death penalty has any special power to
reduce crime or political violence," says Margaret Sekagya, the
chairperson, FHRI. She believes it is used disproportionately against the
poor and minority groups as a tool of political repression.
Uganda's penal code provides for 15 capital offences: 9 separate offences
grouped under the collective heading "treason and offences against the
state, rape, defilement, murder, aggravated robbery and aggravated
kidnapping. "Death is a mandatory punishment for 6 of the treasonous
offences and a discretionary sentence for the remaining felonies at the
same go.
The death penalty has been highly politicised in Uganda.
It is particularly troubling that more than half of the capital offences
are related to treasonous acts. The president has in the past used his
constitutional powers of clemency in a clearly arbitrary and political
fashion.
Ironically, Article 24 of the constitution of Uganda prohibits the
infliction of "torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment." But capital punishment involves both physical and mental
torture.
In Uganda, executions are carried out by hanging. The prisoner is made to
hang from a rope tied around the neck and is killed by the force of the
rope exerted against the body as the body falls.
Unconsciousness and death are brought about by damage to the spinal code
or if that is insufficient, by asphyxiation due to constriction of the
trachea.
However, whether the prisoner loses consciousness immediately through
trauma to the spinal code, or more slowly through strangulation, depends
on the technique employed.
Hanging which brings about quick death requires skill and experience.
Miscalculations resulting in either slow death by asphyxiation or the
severing of the head from the neck are not uncommon.
Executions in Uganda are not supervised by human rights monitors and
therefore the FHRI is unaware of the kind and quality of training received
by the hangmen.
"The physical pain caused by death cannot be quantified, neither can the
psychological suffering which accompanies the fore knowledge of death at
the hands of the state," says Omara Aliro, a commissioner with Uganda
Human Rights commission.
Many condemned prisoners in Uganda have remained on Luzira's death row in
excess of 10 years. There are even some men who have been waiting to die
since the late 70s!
One wonders how government can continue to espouse the death penalty's
uniquely deterrent effect, when most capital offenders are dying in prison
of natural causes.
The psychological suffering which accompanies a protracted stay on death
row has been identified as the "death row phenomenon."
Such extended waiting is violative of the right to freedom from cruel and
inhuman treatment. the pain of such long waits is greatly exacerbated by
the deplorable conditions of Luzira death row.
At least 250 condemned prisoners share cell space originally designed to
house only 60. FHRI recently learned that neither beds nor beddings are
provided by Uganda Prisons and that such items had to be provided by a
private donor.
Every year hundreds of prisoners are pardoned by the president as he
exercises his prerogative of mercy conferred upon him by the constitution.
Families which receive back those they had lost to law rejoice. It is
however not comforting to know that many of those released, if not all,
increase the number of people with doubtful reputation on the loose.
It is a a brilliant gesture for the president to try and decongest prisons
in one bold stroke. It is even sensible to do so, considering that the
prison system is so overloaded that the institutions are proving to be
death chambers.
The president's prerogative of mercy, though welcome, is not enough.
prisons need to be opened up to scrutiny of the media and human rights
groups.
Commensurate with that step must be the improvement of the administration
of justice.
(source: Opinion, Stephen Abili, New Vision)
