[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Dec. 4



CANADA:

Harper should seek clemency for Canadian facing death penalty


Canadians and the Canadian government take pride in living in a country
that is ruled by law. We assume that the law applies to every Canadian
regardless of social status, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or age.

Our law does not allow the state to kill; that is, there is no crime for
which a Canadian can be legally executed.

Right now there is a Canadian citizen, Ronald Allen Smith, sitting on
death row in the U.S. The current government in Ottawa refuses to plead
with the U.S. authorities for clemency and/or the return of Mr. Smith to
Canada to serve his sentence.

The justice minister and the public safety minister have given weak
rationalizations for their refusal to continue the long-standing Canadian
policy of seeking clemency for Canadians sentenced to death in foreign
lands. These include cheap appeals to emotion such as: what about the
American victims Mr. Smith admits to killing? His crime was heinous and
therefore not worthy of our efforts to lobby the US authorities. We will
consider any instances of a Canadian sentenced to death abroad on a
case-by-case basis. We will not interfere with the judgment of a
democratic country such as the U.S. which is subject to the rule of law.

What our government, the government that we elected, is really saying is
that it can unilaterally decide who is or is not a Canadian citizen with
all of the rights that citizenship bestows.

This is not about Mr. Smith's crime, his innocence or guilt or his
relative worth as a person; it is about a Canadian citizen who is
sentenced to die.

The U.S. is the only western democratic state that continues to impose a
death penalty. Now it can do so with the complicity of the Canadian
government.

Margaret Thatcher once said: "This lady is not for turning." We say to
Prime Minister Harper and his government, "this Canadian is not for
killing".

-- George Harding, John Howard Society, Prince George (source: Letter to
the Editor, Prince George Citizen)






SPAIN/PHILIPPINES:

Spanish king lauds RP for junking death penalty, thanks OFWs


His Majesty King Juan Carlos I praised President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo
for the abolition of the death penalty in the Philippines last year.

In his speech in Spanish at the gala dinner in honor of Arroyo at the
Royal Palace Monday night, the king said, "The Philippines returned on 24
June last year to the forefront of liberties and the defense of human
rights with the abolition of the death penalty, a gesture which gave us
great satisfaction."

Copies of the speeches of Juan Carlos I and the President were provided to
media covering the state visit since they were not allowed to cover the
gala dinner.

His Majesty said the repeal of the capital punishment in the Philippines
was one of the reasons why the President would "deservedly" receive the
University of Alcala de Henares Gold Medal this Tuesday.

"The move was applauded by the international community and by Spain in
particular, and for which you will, tomorrow and deservedly, receive the
University of Alcala de Henares Gold Medal," he said without mentioning
that Spanish national Francisco Larranaga was among those spared from
capital punishment with the action.

At the same time, the king mentioned the estimated 50,000 Filipinos living
and working in Spain. "May I address all our affection and gratitude to
the large Philippine community living in Spain and contributing to our
well-being," he said.

His Majesty said Spain was committed to help the Philippines achieve peace
and progress.

"Your country has been and will continue to be a target of special
attention by Spanish Cooperation in AsiaWe wish to reiterate to you our
willingness to actively back the peace processes you have begun," he said.

Quoting Filipino national hero Jose Rizal, who said that the Philippines
was "The Pearl of the Orient Sea," His Majesty noted that his country's
former colony was "privileged by nature." He said the Philippines'
"prudent and intelligent use" of its natural resources would guarantee
sustainable development.

Juan Carlos I toasted the President's "personal venture, and that of your
husband, and the fraternal ties linking the Philippines and Spain."

In response, the President thanked King Juan Carlos I and his wife, Queen
Sofia de Grecia, for the warm welcome she and her delegation have received
from the Spanish government and the Spanish people.

Except for the "Mabuhay" toward the end of her speech, Arroyo spoke in
Spanish.

The President also thanked the Spanish government for its continued
support of her "legitimate" administration, which "represents
constitutional order."

"My government has overcome the attempts to of undemocratic [forces]," she
said in a rough translation by the INQUIRER.net.

"I hope that Spain always continues to support my government," she added.

Arroyo said the relationship between the 2 countries was further enhanced
by the presence of a large Filipino community in Spain. "We are proud of
their contributions to this country," she said.

Like Juan Carlos I, the President quoted Rizal. "Espana esta all, alli
donde deja sentir su influencia bienhechora, y aunque desapareciese su
bandera, quedara su recuerdo, eterno, imperecedero (Spain is there, there
where she lets us feel her beneficent influence, and although her flag has
disappeared, she would be left in our eternal memory)," she said, citing
this quote from the Filipino Renaissance man whose works inspired the
revolution against Spain.

The President also offered her condolences to the Spanish people for the
death of a guardia civil (policeman) in the hands of the Basque separatist
group ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna or Basque for "Basque Homeland and
Freedom").

ETA has been banned as a terrorist organization by both the Spanish and
French authorities as well as the European Union as a whole, the United
States, and the United Nations.

(Saturday's assassination of the Spanish policeman who was taking part in
a surveillance operation in France was one of the biggest stories here.)

The President also mentioned the Philippine ratification of the Treaty for
the Transfer of Sentenced Persons and her directive ordering the promotion
of the Spanish language throughout the country. She talked of the various
opportunities for trade and investments in the Philippines.

Arroyo toasted to Their Majesties' "health, well-being, and happiness."

(source: Philippine Inquirer)






EGYPT:

Top Muslim cleric says death penalty should not be abolished


One of Egypt's prominent Muslim leaders has rejected calls to abolish the
death penalty, saying it is an intrinsic part of Islamic law.

Muhammad Sayd Tantawi is the grand sheikh of the Egyptian Islamic
University of al-Azhar, one of the most presitigious Islamic universities
in the world.

"The death penalty is one of the orders of Allah, abolishing it means
abolishing one of the rules dictated by Allah," Tantawi said in an
interview with the local newspaper al-Ahram.

"We at al-Ashzar will fight this proposal in every way through our experts
should it become a legal proposal."

According to the Egyptian imam, the presence of the death penalty in the
judicial system of the country does not exclude the possibility of
defending human rights.

"This penalty is part of the guarantees given by Sharia for people's
protection, for their well-being and their honour," Tantawi said.

"The Koran says this is one way of making life more secure."

Stressing that the death penalty is also explored in the sacred texts of
other religions, the sheikh does not exclude the possibility of applying
it in specific cases.

"The existence of the death penalty does not mean it should be applied in
every case," he said. "Based on the crime committed, you need to evaluate
the situation and the possibility of having recourse to other types of
penalties."

(source: AKI News)






IRAQ:

Iraqi leader wants 'Chemical Ali,' others executed ---- 3 men were slated
to be executed in October, but orders still await signatures

The men were sentenced to death for '80s campaign that killed thousands

Delays blamed on legal issues, but officials say sectarian issues at play

Western official predicts compromise: Only "Chemical Ali" will be executed


Iraq's prime minister wants the American military to hand over "Chemical
Ali" and two other convicted officials from Saddam Hussein's regime for
execution, an Iraqi official said Tuesday, but the move could widen the
divide between Iraq's Sunni and Shiite Muslim communities.

Ali Hassan al-Majeed, aka "Chemical Ali," was sentenced to death in June
for his role in the 1988 Anfal campaign.

1 of 3 Ali Hassan al-Majeed (aka "Chemical Ali"), Sultan Hashem Ahmed and
Hussein Rashid were sentenced to death in June for their roles in the 1988
Anfal campaign, an Iraqi army operation in Kurdish-dominated northern Iraq
that killed tens of thousands of people.

The three were to be executed in October, 30 days after their appeals were
exhausted, but the three members of Iraq's presidency council have not
signed the execution orders, as Iraqi law requires.

Many Sunni Arabs and U.S. officials don't think Ahmed and Rashid should be
executed because such a move could anger Sunnis. Only recently have U.S.
efforts to bring Sunni Arabs into the Iraqi political fold paid off.

After the toppling of Hussein's Sunni-dominated government and the
emergence of the Shiite-dominated power structure, Sunni Arabs began
supporting the insurgency. The United States since has made it a political
priority to include Sunnis in the Iraqi power structure.

At the same time, Iraq's Shiites might be angry if the three men aren't
executed. Shiites were persecuted under Hussein, and they want to punish
convicted members of the former regime.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki wrote a letter to President Bush last week
asking him to order the military to hand over the three men, but it was
unclear if Bush replied, the official in al-Maliki's office said.

Though the Iraqi High Tribunal sentenced the men to death in June, the
three remain in U.S. custody. The delay in their executions has been
attributed to legal and procedural issues. U.S. officials said the men
will be handed over when those issues are resolved.

On Sunday, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte told reporters
in Baghdad that there are disagreements on what to do about the situation.

"Once the government of Iraq has reached a consensus on what they wish to
do about these detainees, we will then take action, but at the moment the
government of Iraq itself has not reached its own consensus as to what to
do about this situation. So we await that," Negroponte said.

Iraqi law requires the 3 members of Iraq's presidency council sign the
execution warrants, but the law doesn't explain what happens if leaders
don't sign the warrants.

Jalal Talabani, the Kurdish president and Tariq al-Hashimi, the Sunni vice
president, are unwilling to sign an execution order. The 3rd member of the
council is the Shiite vice president, Adel Abdul Mahdi.

A Western official close to the case said last month that Iraqi courts
have not addressed whether the council's inaction constitutes a de facto
pardon or a stay of execution.

The official further said Rashid was not "criminally culpable for anything
that happened during Anfal" and that Ahmed and is "extremely popular"
among military officials. Ahmed's constituency "cuts across Sunni-Shia
lines," the official said.

"At the end of the day, what I think that we shall see is a compromise:
The life of Ali Hassan al-Majeed will be traded for the savings of the
lives" of Ahmed and Rashid, the Western official said.

Other developments

 Commercial airline travel from the largest city in northern Iraq has
resumed for the first time in 14 years, a development called a
"significant step for the revitalization of the economy" in the northern
region, according to a U.S. military news release. A flight carrying 152
Muslim pilgrims for the annual hajj pilgrimage to the Saudi Arabian city
of Mecca left the Mosul airport Sunday , the military said. The airport,
built in 1992, hasn't had commercial airline traffic since a "no-fly" zone
was declared in 1993 by American troops during the Hussein era.

 The U.S. military said Tuesday it had killed a high-ranking al Qaeda in
Iraq operative who had been an adviser to the group's leader Abu Ayyub
al-Masri and to its former leader, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who was killed in
a U.S.-led coalition raid last year. Abu Maysara, aka Abu Basha'ir, was
killed northeast of Samarra on November 17 during a coalition operation.
He was identified using DNA, the military said.

(source: CNN)