[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

June 19


LIBYA:

Death row medics launch last-ditch appeal in Libya


6 foreign medics sentenced to death for infecting children with HIV in
Libya launch their final appeal on Wednesday, after more than eight years
in jail for a crime they say they did not commit.

Libya's supreme court is expected to uphold the death penalty against the
5 Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor, but the verdict is expected
to pave the way for a compensation package and for the sentences to be
commuted.

Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi's son, Seif al-Islam, said on Saturday that
he expected compensation for the infected childrens' families to be worked
out between the Bulgarian government and the European Union.

"Immediately after the verdict, we will begin to work ... on a package (of
measures) with a view to a solution," Islam told Italy's Corriere della
Sera newspaper.

Libyan sources close to the case said that provided the package was
agreed, a final decision on the medics' fate could be reached by the end
of the week.

The medics were sentenced to death in May 2004 after being convicted of
infecting 438 children with HIV-tainted blood at a hospital in the
Mediterranean city of Benghazi. Fifty-six children have since died.

The accused have denied the charges and foreign health experts have said
the AIDS epidemic in Benghazi, Libya's second city which lies on the
Mediterranean coast, was probably the result of poor hygiene.

The case has sparked mounting criticism from the European Union and the
United States and hindered Libya's efforts at rapprochment with the West
after Kadhafi's regime renounced efforts to develop weapons of mass
destruction in December 2003.

US President George W. Bush appealed for the release of the medics last
week during a visit to Bulgaria.

"They should be released and they should be allowed to return to their
families. We will continue to make clear to Libya that the release of
these nurses is a higher priority" for Bulgaria, Bush said.

A date for the final appeal hearing was only decided after senior EU
diplomats including External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner
visited Libya earlier this month.

Othman al-Bizanti, a Libyan lawyer for the medics, has said he will ask
for an adjournment at Wednesday's hearing as he has not had enough time to
prepare a defence.

The 5 nurses -- Kristiana Valcheva, Nasya Nenova, Valya Cherveniashka,
Valentina Siropulo, and Snezhana Dimitrova -- and the Palestinian doctor,
Ashraf Juma Hajuj, are said to have suffered depression and other mental
stress during their lengthy wait on death row.

Sofia on Tuesday said it had granted Hajuj Bulgarian citizenship as it
would allow his extradition to Bulgaria together with the nurses in the
event of a favourable development of their case.

Kadhafi's son said any compensation for the victims would include medical
assistance for the infected children and EU financing of Libya's "national
action plan against AIDS."

The relatives initially asked for compensation of 10 million euros (about
13 million dollars) for each victim, saying however that the amount was
negotiable.

(source: Focus News Agency)





SAUDI ARABIA----execution

Saudi beheaded for murder


A man was beheaded by the sword on Tuesday for murdering a fellow Saudi,
the interior ministry announced, adding to an execution tally already more
than double that of 2006.

Falah bin Mikhlef Al Shimari was convicted of shooting dead Jorayaan bin
Fawaz Al Shimiri after an argument, it said in a statement carried by the
SPA state news agency. He was executed in the northern border town of
Arar.

The beheading brings to 96 the number of executions announced by the Saudi
government so far this year, the highest tally since 2000 when at least
113 people were executed.

In 2006 at least 37 people were executed, while 83 were put to death in
2005 and 35 the year before, according to AFP tallies based on official
statements.

Executions are usually carried out in public in Saudi Arabia, which
applies a strict form of sharia, or Islamic law. Rape, murder, apostasy,
armed robbery and drug trafficking can all carry the death penalty.

(source: Agence France Presse)


EUROPE:

A European Day Against the Death Penalty


The European Commission today proposed to establish an annual European Day
against the death penalty on October 10. The joint declaration
establishing the day is to be signed by the European Parliament, the EU
Presidency, the European Commission and the Council of Europe in order to
support the promotion of universal abolition of the death penalty.

"The death penalty is a violation of the most fundamental of human rights,
namely the right to life," said European Commission Vice President Franco
Frattini. "Nothing justifies the death penalty, whether it is considered
effective in combating crime or not. Such practice is ethically
unacceptable, cruel, legally wrong and can all too often lead to innocent
people being killed where no redress is possible. There are a growing
number of countries abolishing the death penalty. I felt great emotion at
Monday's Conference 'Africa for Life', for African Justice Ministers, at
the 'Community of Sant'Egidio' and this has renewed my hope and enthusiasm
in pursuing the fight against capital punishment. By creating a European
Day against the death penalty we are showing our resolve and commitment to
not stop fighting this practice until it is abolished worldwide."

There has been no instance since 1997 of capital punishment in any part of
the geographical area made up by the 47 member countries of the Council of
Europe, including the European Union Member States. Moreover, abolition of
the death penalty is assumed as a natural condition of membership in
either of the two European organizations.

"The continued existence and application of the death penalty in many
parts of the world remains a serious concern for us," said Commissioner
for External Relations and Neighborhood Policy, Benita Ferrero-Waldner.
"This is why its abolition is a top human rights priority in our relations
with third countries and in international fora, like the United Nations.
We Europeans are the number one advocate against the death penalty and for
its universal abolition. And we will not rest until the death penalty
becomes history in every country of the world."

Background

In the context of the Council of Europe, Protocol 6 to the European
Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) unconditionally abolishes the death
penalty in peacetime. All 27 European Union Member States have ratified
Protocol 6. Protocol 13 to the same Convention prohibits the death penalty
in all circumstances. 22 Member States have ratified Protocol 13; 5 Member
States (France, Italy, Latvia, Poland and Spain) have signed but not yet
ratified it.

Similarly, Article 2(2) of the European Union Charter of Fundamental
Rights prohibits the death penalty in the following terms: "No one shall
be condemned to the death penalty, or executed."

EU activities around the world to fight death penalty seek to encourage
public debate, to strengthen public opposition and to put pressure on
retentionist countries to abolish the death penalty. The political
commitment of the EU has been matched by substantial financial support for
concrete projects under the European Initiative for Democracy and Human
Rights (EIDHR) in which abolition of the death penalty has been identified
as one of the priorities. More than 11 million euros have been allocated
to support civil society projects since 1994 aimed at raising public
awareness in retentionist countries through public education, outreach to
influence public opinion, studies on how states' death penalty systems
comply with international minimum standards, informing and supporting
strategies for replacing the death penalty and efforts for securing the
access of death row inmates to appropriate levels of legal support and
training for lawyers.

Over half the countries in the world have now abolished the death penalty
in law or practice:

89 countries and territories have abolished the death penalty for all
crimes;

10 countries have abolished the death penalty for all but exceptional
crimes such as wartime crimes;

30 countries can be considered abolitionist in practice. They retain the
death penalty in law but have not carried out any executions for the past
10 years or more and are believed to have a policy or established practice
of not carrying out executions.

This makes a total of 129 countries which have abolished the death penalty
in law or practice.

However, figures of death penalty application around the world still
remind worrying. During 2006, at least 1,591 people were executed in 25
countries and at least 3,861 people were sentenced to death in 55
countries. The EUs action, as the worldwide leader on the fight against
death penalty, remains urgent and necessary.

(source: Business Wire)






KUWAIT:

Kuwait court commutes 4 Qaeda death sentences


Kuwait's highest court on Tuesday commuted death sentences passed on 4
militants suspected of links to al Qaeda to life imprisonment.

A court ruling read out to reporters also confirmed life sentences for 2
other militants.

The four militants had appealed against death sentences handed down by a
criminal court in 2005 for bloody attacks in the Gulf Arab state, a
staunch U.S. ally.

An appeals court had confirmed the death sentences in 2006. The court
named the four as Mohammad Saad Ali bin Noun, Abdullah Saeed Habib
al-Shimmari, Saleh Abdallah Rabia Khalaf and Mohammad Issa Nawaf
al-Shimmari.

The militants were convicted for their part in clashes with police in 2005
in which four security officers and 9 militants were killed.

They were convicted of charges including belonging to an "extremist"
group, calling for attacks on state facilities, and trying to kill Kuwaiti
security officers as well as members of "friendly forces" in the major oil
producer, which hosts thousands of U.S. troops.

The defendants were among 37 Islamists on trial as members of the group
calling itself Peninsula Lions which is suspected of having links to Osama
bin Laden's al Qaeda network. The only woman among them has since died
after being treated for cancer.

7 defendants have been acquitted, while others were handed prison
sentences in previous rulings.

They include 25 Kuwaitis, 7 stateless Arabs, 2 Jordanians, a Saudi, an
Australian and a Somali.

Kuwait has cracked down on Islamists opposing the U.S. military presence
there.

(source: Reuters)


ALGERIA:

Algeria sentences 13 to death


An Algerian court handed death sentences Tuesday to 13 Islamists, the
Algerian News Agency (APS) reported.

The condemned, who were in absentia from the court in Boumerdes, east of
the capital Algiers, were found guilty of "belonging to an armed terrorist
group", kidnapping, issuing death threats, and murder, the report said.

The tribunal also sentenced, in absentia, 3 other Islamists to life in
prison for "creating a terrorist group", APS said.

On Monday, 24 Islamists were sentenced to death in the same court for
"belonging to and creating an armed terrorist group, trying to commit
premeditated murder, and planting explosives".

No death sentence has been carried out in Algeria since August 1993 when 7
Islamists were executed by firing squad for their role in an Algiers
airport bombing that had left 9 people dead and about 30 wounded a year
earlier.

(source: SAPA-AFP)






MALAWI:

Judges and Lawyers Bring Relief To Condemned


Malawi's death row prisoners are breathing more easily after three High
Court judges unanimously agreed in a test case that the courts are not
bound to sentence anyone to death for murder, as this would be a violation
of that person's human rights.

"The mandatory death penalty violates an individual's right that protects
one from inhuman treatment or punishment and denies them the right to fair
trial and have the sentence reviewed by a higher tribunal," said Justice
Elton Singini, reading out the joint judgment on Apr. 27.

This made article 210 of the penal code "invalid". The article stipulates
that the only sentence available to judges for a murder conviction is
death by hanging.

In the crisply-worded ruling the judges took Malawi a step forward along
the road to abolishing the death penalty.

But they were careful to note that their decision did not ban capital
punishment for the crime of taking a life. "For the removal of doubt, we
state that our declaration does not outlaw the death penalty for the
offence of murder, but only the mandatory requirement of the death penalty
for that office," the judgment said.

The ruling was immediately praised by death penalty abolition campaigners.

"This decision is a milestone in the international campaign against the
death penalty," said Saul Lehrfreund and Parvis Jabbar, two human rights
lawyers based in the United Kingdom. "The implications for future murder
trails will be the introduction of a complete new set of procedures
restricting the imposition of the death penalty in the first instance.

"We are delighted that the jurisprudence from Uganda and other regions in
the world has now been accepted in Malawi. The decision reflects the
notion that law should move progressively towards greater protection of
human rights."

The High Court ruling involved the case of Francis Kafantayeni and 5 other
death row inmates at Malawi's high-security prison, Zomba. Kafantayeni was
sentenced to death following his conviction in 2002 for admitting to the
killing of his 2-year-old stepson. In mitigation he claimed to have been
acting in a state of temporary insanity induced by smoking cannabis.

The High Court judges ruled that the six must now be brought back before
the courts for a review of their death sentences. These could be
confirmed, though the ruling suggests that alternative sentences of
fixed-term life imprisonment will be handed down.

Noel Chalamanda, a member of the local team of lawyers which represented
the six death row inmates, assisted by British lawyers, told IPS that the
review would take place towards the end of June. He said depending on the
outcome, the same legal team would start a similar action for the
remaining prisoners on death row.

"As of now there are about 30 persons on death row and we have undertaken
to do the exercise for them all," he said. "We are confident that the
mandatory death sentence could go altogether and the number on death row
could start to be reduced."

The number facing execution was substantially reduced when 79 death row
inmates had their sentences commuted to life imprisonment by presidential
degree in April 2004, according to Amnesty International.

The lawyers working for an end to the death penalty in Malawi form part of
the Death Penalty Project, an international human rights organisation
which has been providing free legal representation since 2003 to those
facing capital punishment in the Caribbean and Africa. It is run in
association with the British solicitors Simonds and Burton, Keir Starner
QC and Joseph Middleton of Doughty Street Chambers.

One local lawyer stressed the limitations of the ruling.

"The death penalty is not only prescribed for murder but for other
offences," Blantyre-based Sheen Msusa told IPS. "The court was only
dealing with the mandatory requirement of the death penalty in murder
cases. By necessary inference, the judgment has nothing to do with
mandatory capital punishment like in case of treason."

Apart from murder, the Malawi constitution stipulates that treason, rape,
burglary and armed robbery are punishable by death.

At present the courts are dealing with a high-profile treason case
involving the vice president, Cassim Chilumpha, accused of plotting to
overthrow the government of President Bingu wa Mutharika. Chilumpha denies
the charge, but remains under restrictive bail conditions.

Human rights activists and lawyers argue that the next logical step is for
Malawi to take the death penalty out of its constitution.

"It's encouraging that for over 10 years, our two presidents never signed
for the hanging of death row convicts. Why then should we have it in the
law?" asked Undule Mwakasungula, executive director of the Centre for
Human Rights and Rehabilitation, a vocal rights watchdog in Malawi.

Mwakasungula said it was unfortunate that due to lack of civic education,
certain sectors of society had rallied behind the death penalty during
Malawi's second Constitutional Review Conference in April.

The conference was convened by the Malawi Law Commission, an independent
institution established under the constitution to make recommendations on
the repeal and amendment of legislation.

"The majority of the responses indicated that people are in favour of
retaining the death penalty," notes a report by the commission.

The High Court ruling offering hope to all Malawi's death row inmates also
puts the spotlight on the kind of life facing them in prison if they are
re-sentenced to fixed life terms.

Amnesty International describes the conditions in Malawi's jails as
"life-threatening". In its annual report released in April, the global
human rights watchdog noted that there were more than 280 deaths in the
prisons last year, an average of 23 inmates a month among the
10,000-strong prison population.

"This was a sharp increase from the 14 deaths per month recorded in 2005.
Most of the deaths were linked to inadequate diet," Amnesty said.

Chalamanda said this was one of the reasons the team of lawyer activists
had brought the case of Kafantayeni and others to the High Court.

"Most of these inmates are in poor health and desperately need redress.
Our focus now is to try and secure less severe sentences for them,
depending on the levels of criminal culpability," he said.

(source: IPS source)


NIGERIA:

Death for Death Penalty!


The understanding that former President Olusegun Obasanjo showed towards
the issue of the abolition of death penalty has enamoured Nigerian civil
society organisations and given impetus to the campaign for the abolition
of death penalty. However, opinion has been divided on the controversial
issue.

A section of the Nigerian populace has out rightly denounced the idea
based on religious convictions. While some are of the view that death
penalty does not necessarily serve as deterrence to violent crimes, some
are of the view the whole concept of abolition is propaganda, sponsored by
foreign aid donors and benefactors. From whatever perspective the issue is
viewed, one stack reality that stares pro-abolition and anti-abolition
campaigners in the face is that there are no concrete data to back
assertions that capital punishment does or does not deter violent crimes.

Examples from the United States show that some states retain death penalty
while some have abolished. But how this has impacted on crime statistics
is yet to be ascertained. In South Africa for instance, death penalty was
abolished some years ago, but with the sudden upsurge in violent crimes
the country had a quick reversal. Today, death penalty is back in their
statute books of that country.

The Nigerian situation is even more complex. When the Obasanjo
Administration came to power in May 1999, it was clear that his government
was favourably disposed to the abolition of death penalty. Some were of
the view that having served time on death row the former presidents stance
on the issue was understandable.

Few others were of the opinion that the administration was under pressure
from the European Community to abolish capital punishment. As a
demonstration of its commitment to the abolition of death penalty, the
Federal Government under the auspices of he Ministry of Justice set up a
National Study Group (NSG) to engage in nationwide consultation with
stakeholders on the issue.

That group is still standing and its report still being collated. But so
far, the cheering news is that Nigeria has not witnessed any official
executions in the past 10 years. Interestingly, there have been quite a
number of extra-judicial killings in some parts of the country.

The Human Rights Law Service (HURILAWS) is one of the non-governmental
organisations (NGOs) that have taken the pro-abolition campaign to
national discus. In the past few years, it has even facilitated a
coalition of many other Nigerian pro-abolition NGOs to lobby for the
passage of a Moratorium Bill in the National Assembly on death penalty.

The Executive Director of HURILAWS recently explained to THISDAY what
informed her position on the issue and: "Our campaign for the abolition of
the death penalty stems from our firm belief in the sanctity of human life
and the rule of law. It is also inspired by our commitment to influencing
positive change in the society using law as a tool of social engineering.
We also believe that the abolition of the death penalty would signal
advancement of the Nigerian jurisprudence, in line with international
trends and also be in fulfillment of Nigerias obligations to international
instruments to which Nigeria is signatory."

For example she said "The Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR),
African Charter on Human and Peoples" Rights amongst others are some of
the bodies. We also believe that positive change can only come with
sustained advocacy and so no matter the opposition or the unacceptability
of the idea at the moment, change will surely come, though incrementally.
We are, therefore, not deterred by the seeming unacceptability of the
abolition of the death penalty.'

The Nigerian Constitution recognises capital punishment. How does her
organisation intend to deal with that challenge? She says, "It is
disheartening that the right to life is qualified in our constitution.
This was affirmed by the Supreme Court in 1999 in the case of Onuorah Kalu
vs The State, when our Senior Counsel and Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN)
Olisa Agbakoba, brought the constitutionality of the death penalty before
the apex court. The Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty was
constitutional and was not a matter to be dealt with by the courts, but by
the legislature. Nigeria was not yet a democracy at that time, and so we
strategised and began legislative advocacy immediately Nigeria transited
to democratic rule on May 29, 1999.

"We toyed with the idea of seeking a constitutional amendment, which
proved to be Herculean, and then refocused our advocacy on seeking a
moratorium on executions, while the issue of the retention or abolition of
the death penalty is discussed by Nigerians. We also try to deal with the
challenge by instating class action cases on other issues around the death
penalty, like death row conditions, mode of execution among others.

"We also engaged key stakeholders in the justice sector like the police,
judiciary, prosecutors, the executive and legislative arms of government
for its abolition. Recently, we began refocusing our advocacy on the state
governments, since these sentences will be carried out only when state
governors sign the warrant for execution, thus where a states law does not
provide for capital punishment there can be no executions even if the
constitution says so, this is another way in which we feel we can scale
the constitutional hurdle."

This kind of advocacy does not come without its peculiar challenges and
Mrs. Ogwo agrees: "The obstacles have been diverse and enormous, depending
on the geographical region of the country. However, our greatest obstacle
has been the general support for the retention of the death penalty based
on an erroneous notion that it is an effective deterrent to crime.

"This mistaken belief of the magical restraint the death penalty inspires
can be attributed to the general fear and insecurity of lives and
properties in the country, mainly as a result of widespread and deepening
poverty and unemployment. Our campaign and public advocacy is continuous
and we have and are using a multi-pronged approach in dealing with the
issue.

"I think that we have managed to convince a good number of the populace
that the death penalty should not be used in the 21st century and is an
example of how not to punish in the 21st century by a civilised society.
In wooing our target audience, we employ different tools, namely, public
advocacy, which involves, publishing books and articles on the issue;
legislative advocacy, which entails introducing a bill on moratorium to
the National Assembly and pushing for its passage into law; courting
stakeholders in the justice delivery, which includes the police, the
judiciary and the prisons.

"In line with this, HURILAWS is currently producing a documentary on the
death penalty, which will help to raise public awareness and appreciation
of the issues involved in the death penalty beyond the prima facie issues
of eye for an eye and revenge. We have been able to do these over the
years with support from our partners and donors including Open Society
Initiative for West Africa (OSIWA), which is supporting the production of
the documentary; MacArthur Foundation as well as the Danish Embassy," she
said.

On the push for the moratorium option, Ms. Ogwo said, "since 2004, her
organisation and others came together and formed a coalition known as the
National Coalition on Death Penalty Abolition (NCDPA). The coalition has
its secretariat at the HURILAWS office, but with regional offices and
coordinators located in the six geo-political zones of the country.

"We have been challenged by the publics' reaction and I must say the
reception has been frosty and in some cases hostile. And the hostility is
not limited to the uninformed and uneducated, even professional bodies and
intellectuals have violently opposed us. For instance, I was invited to
make a presentation to the national executive committee meeting of the
Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) at Owerri, recently and I thought we would
be able to strike out a good collaboration.

"To my greatest surprise, my presentation was met with deep opposition and
I was vehemently told that abolishing the death penalty would mean an open
invitation to anarchy in the society. This is obviously based on the
mistaken view that the death penalty deters criminals from crime, even
when it has been proven that it does not. This again exposed the challenge
before us to continue working to garner support and collaboration for this
campaign," she further said.

>From the fall out of the Public Dialogue organised in Abuja from March 7
to 9, by HURILAWS, there seemed to be a consensus of opinion that a lot
still needs to be done in the area of sensitising the public. Ogwo is of
the view that "first, we intend to do a reappraisal of our strategies and
techniques, and then also look at all the suggestions and criticisms from
the dialogue.

"But basically, some things won't change, like our continued advocacy and
sensitisation drive to raise awareness, legislative campaign to ensure the
National Assembly passes the Death Penalty Moratorium Bill, continuous
engagement of key stakeholders and government, amongst others.
Furthermore, my organisation intends to work more with religious
organisations and leaders as well as local communities.

"Our advocacy will also shift tremendously from the federal to the state
governments. We also intend to use the medium of the documentary, which
will be premiered in our cinema houses to raise public awareness on the
issue in question. HURILAWS would also engage the youth to catch them
young as it is said so as to change mindsets before they are fully
entrenched.

"We want also use the advocacy tools to draw attention to the underlying
problems in the society that disposes the otherwise 'good citizen' to
crime. We will also draw attention to the victims of crime and proffer
alternatives to the death penalty, for instance, life imprisonment without
option of parole," the crusader said.

(source: This Day)






ITALY:

ITALY "ABSOLUTELY" DETERMINED TO IMMEDIATELY TABLE A PRO-MORATORIUM
RESOLUTION AT THE CURRENT UN GENERAL ASSEMBLY, PRODY SAYS


Prime Minister Prodi announces that the Italian Government is "absolutely"
determined to immediately table at the current UN General Assembly a
pro-Moratorium Resolution in full respect of the parliamentary mandates,
responding to the international appeal of Nobel Laureates and the
political, parliamentary and nonviolent campaign of Hands Off Cain and the
Transnational Radical Party.

Emma Bonino has informed President Prodi and Minister DAlema that France
and Spain are ready to support the Italian initiative. The Dalai Lama,
Mikhail Gorbachev and Lech Walesa have joined the over 50 Nobel Laureates
that have signed, together with former Spanish President Felipe Gonzales
and over 500 Parliamentarians, the appeal to the Italian Government.

On 14 June, in a meeting at his office in Rome, Italian President of the
Council of Ministers Romano Prodi informed Minister Emma Bonino, Marco
Pannella, MEP, and Sergio DElia, MP of his absolute determination to
table, at the current session of the UN General Assembly, a Resolution on
a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty with the necessary urgency
informing the EU General Affaire Committee scheduled to meet on Monday 18
June in Brussels.

Such a decision is in full respect of the various mandates of the Italian
and European Parliaments, and will be in line with the commitments
announced last 2 January. The text will fully correspond, also literally,
to the political declaration (proposed by the Italian Government) that has
already received  thanks to Italys efforts and paternity  the formal
support of 93 UN Member States of the UN (of which only some 50 maintain
in their national legislations, and practice, the death penalty).

As a result of that, the international campaign of the Transnational
Radical Party and Hands Off Cain in support of the Italian Government has
been intensified.

1) Yesterday, under the initiative of Sergio DElia, MP (Radical  Rose in
the Fist) the Foreign Affaire Committee of the Italian Parliament,
mandated, for the 3rd time, the Government to table in the next few days
the pro-Moratorium Resolution, informing the European Union but with a
list of co-sponsors from the various regional groupings within the UN.

2) On that same day, under the initiative of the President of the
Liberal-Democrats at the EP, Graham Watson (UK), and Radical MEP Marco
Cappato, all Parliamentary Groups at the European Parliament have
officially confirmed their resolve and the one of all the EP Resolutions
of last 2 February and 25 April to reach that goal.

3) At the same time, Minister Emma Bonino informed President Prodi and
Foreign Affairs Minister Massimo DAlema, that French Minister of Foreign
Affairs Bernard Kouchner and his Spanish Colleague Miguel Angel Moratinos,
had responded to her personal appeal in a positive way ensuring their full
support to the initiative of the Italian Government and the one of the
European Parliament, against any possible "postponement" of the tabling,
and the subsequent vote, of the Resolution for a Universal Moratorium on
the Death Penalty.

4) The international political parliamentary and nonviolent campaign of
Hands Off Cain and the Transnational Radical Party continues: the dozens
of activists that have been on a hunger strike since mid April have
decided to continue until the objective is reached to support the Italian
Government.

Over 50 Nobel Laureates such as the Dalai Lama, Michail Gorbachev and Lech
Walesa have signed the appeal to President Prodi together with over 500
Parliamentarians and scores of politicians from all over the world and
opinion makers like Bernardo Bertolucci, David Grossman and Fernando
Savater.

(source: UN Observer; Marco Pannella----Member of European Parliament)