[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 25


CHINA:

Going Easy on Executions Ahead of Olympics


Conscious of the need to burnish its international image ahead of the 2008
Beijing Olympic Games, China has been more sparing in applying the death
penalty this year -- but the country is far from abolishing capital
punishment.

When the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) human rights committee
passed a draft resolution calling for an end to the death penalty on Nov.
15, China criticised the move as a "severe interference" in a countrys
sovereign affairs and denounced it as "inappropriate".

"To discuss a complex issue such as the death penalty in such a highly
politicised setting as the UNGA would only lead to further complications,"
Zhang Dan, counsellor and alternative representative of the Chinese
delegation to the assembly, said in a statement.

"There does not exist an international consensus on the death penalty and
attempting to pass a U.N. resolution on a moratorium would not change the
difference in opinions that various countries hold on the issue," she
said.

China ranks among the worlds top executioners and rights activists say
more people are put to death in China every year than in the rest of the
world combined. Some estimates put the number of court-ordered executions
as high as 10,000 a year.

Based on public reports available, in 2006 Amnesty International recorded
1,010 executions, or about two-thirds of the known total worldwide.
Beijing however does not release official figures, which are designated
state secrets. More than 60 types of crimes -- including economic ones
like tax fraud and bribery -- are punishable by death in China.

In recent years the country has been under increasing international and
domestic pressure to improve its much-criticised death penalty system.
With the approach of the 2008 Olympic games, which Beijing is hosting, and
the international attention focusing on Chinas human rights record,
domestic media has been bolder exposing cases of wrongful executions,
sparking national outrage.

In one of the latest examples of publicised "unjust cases", public opinion
has rallied behind the 12-year-long quest of a mother to clear the name of
her son who she claims was wrongfully executed for a crime he did not
commit.

Nie Shuwu was executed in 1995 for a rape and murder. For ten years after
the sentence was carried out, his mother challenged the authorities
repeatedly to reverse the conviction with no success. But when in 2005, a
serial rapist and killer was arrested and confessed to have killed Nies
alleged victim, public opinion erupted in fury over the apparent bungled
dispense of justice.

In January Beijing took the unusual step of reinstating a requirement that
every death sentence must be reviewed and approved by the countrys Supreme
Court. Observers have stated that in the past many court-ordered
executions were based on forced confessions and rushed trials that often
took less than a day.

Since the review by the Supreme Court was reinstated, the country has
reported fewer executions and observers say Beijing expects a 10-year low
this year.

With the Olympics drawing nearer, the apex court recently ordered judges
to be more cautious in the imposition of the death penalty.

An order on its website in September said executions should be reserved
for "an extremely small number of serious offenders", while the ultimate
punishment should be withheld in certain cases of crimes of passion or
some economic crimes.

But the statement was unequivocal in backing the continued use of the
death penalty as a crime deterrent. "We must hand down and carry out
immediate capital punishment for heinous cases with iron-clad evidence
that they have resulted in serious social damage," it said.

Even as the draft U.N. resolution calling for a global moratorium on the
death penalty was about to be presented for a committee vote, China did
not baulk at publicising its decision to sentence 5 ethnic Muslims to
death for allegedly masterminding separatist activities in the countrys
far western region of Xinjiang.

"In order to split the nation they carried out extreme religious
activities and advocated holy war and established a terrorist training
base," the state news agency Xinhua said on Nov 11 in its report on the
sentencing.

The U.N. draft resolution, which was co-sponsored by European Union and 60
other countries, must still be submitted to the entire 192-member General
Assembly for a vote expected in mid-December. If approved, it will be
non-binding but will give a moral boost to those in China campaigning for
death penalty abolition.

The text calls on all states still maintaining the death sentence to
respect a moratorium "with a view to abolishing the death penalty". It
urges them to "progressively restrict the use of the death penalty" and
calls upon the 130 states which have already abolished the ultimate
penalty not to reintroduce it.

Chinese academics claim that the public continues overwhelmingly to
support the use of death penalty as a crime deterrent and as an ultimate
tool in settling the wrongs suffered by innocent crime victims.

"Even if the death penalty had no deterrent force whatsoever but provided
only consolation to the people, it would still be necessary," argues Yang
Zhizhu, a researcher with the China Youth College for Political and Legal
Studies.

"While China is still in the process of building its legal system, the
death penalty is necessary for public consolation in the same way that a
painkiller is needed when no cure is available for an acute disease," Yang
wrote in a commentary in the Southern Weekend newspaper.

(source: IPS News)






CANADA:

Don't mess with the death penalty----Conservative steps towards capital
punishment are steps backward


The Conservative government may be starting Canada on the path back to the
archaic practice that is capital punishment. 2 recent decisions by the
Harper government certainly seem to be steps--baby steps perhaps, but
steps nonetheless--toward that end.

It was announced that Canada's "New Government" would no longer seek to
have the death sentence commuted for Canadians who have gone through a
fair trial in a democratic country Nov. 1. A week later, they followed
this up with the announcement that Canada would not co-sponsor a
resolution in the United Nations General Assembly calling on a global
moratorium on the death penalty. These 2 decisions, made on a whim by the
Conservatives without a Parliamentary debate, go against decades of
Canadian foreign policy.

The decision to no longer seek to have the death penalty commuted stems
from the case of an Albertan on death row in Montana. Robert Allen Smith
is facing execution by lethal injection for murdering two Blackfoot men in
August 1982 and his fate now seems sealed. That there is growing concern
about the use of lethal injection and whether or not it is a humane way
for the state to execute someone is not the issue here. Nor is the
argument by opponents of capital punishment--that there is always the risk
that an innocent person will be killed--relevant in this case: Smith has
admitted his guilt; he is a cold-blooded killer.

Canada's use of capital punishment was formally abolished in 1976 and this
position was reaffirmed in a parliamentary vote which saw the Mulroney
government's bill to reintroduce its use defeated by the opposition in
1987. Aside from abolishing it within Canada, the federal government is
obliged to ensure that they will not extradite Canadian citizens if there
is a possibility they will face the death penalty in the host country. As
mentioned, until recently, it has been the policy of the feds to attempt
to have Canadian sentences commuted from execution to life in prison.

Back to Smith. He is a citizen of Canada and as such, our government is
responsible to look after his well being, to a degree. Don't let the fact
he is a dastardly murderer and the emotions associated with this cloud
your judgement. This policy was intended for criminals such as him. Our
society has proclaimed we do not support state-sanctioned murder and it is
the government's responsibility to see this through by lobbying for a stay
of execution.

Harper and his ministers have attempted to deliberately confuse the issue,
stating they don't think it would be in the best interest of Canadians to
bring Smith and others like him back to Canada where they would face
lenient parole conditions and may end up as a threat back on Canadian
streets. This is a clear diversionary tactic. No one is calling for either
extradition nor clemency for Smith. Simply, the policy has always been to
attempt to have the sentence commuted to life in prison and that is what
the government should be lobbying for in Smith's case.

The decision to no longer get involved in these cases has been met with
opposition from a number of fronts, including all 3 opposition parties as
well as the Green Party and, not surprisingly, Human Rights Watch and
Amnesty International. Has Harper's party forgotten their minority status
in Parliament? The 2nd decision, to no longer co-sponsor the UN resolution
calling on a global moratorium on capital punishment is strictly symbolic.
But it is what the symbolism represents that causes unease. If the
minority Conservatives, lacking a clear mandate or support from the other
parties, feels comfortable enough to change decade-old policy, they may
have something more daunting up their sleeve if they ever were to attain a
majority.

(source: Opinion, Tyler Wolfe, The Gauntlet)

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

Opposition urges clemency for Canadian on U.S. death row


Liberal Leader Stephane Dion and NDP Leader Jack Layton, each condemning
Canada's new hands-off policy towards Canadians on death row in the U.S.,
have appealed directly to the governor of Montana to spare the life of an
Alberta man facing execution for murdering two American men in 1982.

The opposition leaders announced Thursday they have both written letters
to Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, urging him to commute the death sentence
of 50-year-old Red Deer native Ronald Smith, despite the Conservative
government's controversial decision not to intervene.

Smith, whose case has sparked a new national debate over capital
punishment, had been backed by Canada for two decades in his bid for
clemency. However, the government abruptly decided last month to stop
seeking commutation for any Canadian sentenced to death in "democratic"
countries, such as the U.S., that have "fair trials."

But, apparently emboldened by a recent poll showing that most Canadians
disapprove of the government's decision - and by a string of high-profile
international denunciations of the new policy, including one this week
from Europe's top human rights council - Dion led fresh attacks on the
government's stance during Thursday's question period in the Commons.

"Canada abolished the death penalty 31 years ago. Previous governments
have constantly upheld this principle for Canadians abroad. That is why I
wrote to the governor of Montana today asking that he commute the death
sentence against a Canadian there," Dion said. "Will the government do the
same and demand the state of Montana not use the death penalty against a
Canadian citizen?"

Justice Minister Rob Nicholson said Canadians "who commit multiple murders
or mass murders abroad in a democratic country that adheres to the rule of
law cannot necessarily count on the Canadian government to claim clemency
and patriation back to this country."

Dion's deputy leader, Michael Ignatieff, said "every international human
rights organization" has condemned Canada's new policy and he accused the
government of being "hell-bent on sacrificing an international reputation
on human rights that was won by Liberals like Pierre Trudeau and
Conservatives like Joe Clark."

In his letter to Montana's governor, Dion said he was appealing "on behalf
of Canadians of all political stripes, beliefs, creeds and religions to
respectfully urge you to commute the death sentence for Mr. Ronald Allen
Smith, a Canadian citizen sentenced to death for the murder of 2 men in
1982.

"I am not asking for you to pardon Mr. Smith, nor do I question the
validity of his conviction. I believe that the state of Montana has every
right to convict and punish Mr. Smith for his crimes and that is why I am
not seeking his return to Canada. I ask only that you commute Mr. Smith's
death sentence."

Dion noted that Canada abolished the death penalty more than 30 years ago
and added that "the majority of Canadians continue to believe that we must
oppose its use, both domestically and in cases where Canadian citizens
face this punishment abroad."

"I share this belief and, as leader of the official Opposition in our
Parliament, it is my duty to convey to you the conviction of millions of
Canadians who want to see Mr. Smith's sentence commuted."

In his letter to Schweitzer, Layton asserted: "Canadians hold deep
convictions on the issue of the death penalty. We do not dispute that
Ronald Smith has committed offences for which he deserves punishment; he
must pay his due to society and be kept from doing further harm to the
American public."

But he argued that Canadians are "morally opposed to the practice of
executing a human being," and urged the Montana governor to commute
Smith's sentence to life in prison.

A recent Harris/Decima poll on Canada's new policy found 50 per cent of
respondents opposed and 43 %in favour. Just 58 % of Conservative
supporters said they backed the government's decision.

In an interview with CanWest News Service Monday, the secretary general of
the Council of Europe, the continent's top human rights watchdog, likened
the Harper government to Pontius Pilate, the Roman governor who "washed
his hands" of the decision to crucify Jesus Christ because a mob demanded
Christ's execution.

"I'm just amazed that the Canadian government would wash its hands, just
like Pontius Pilate," said the council's secretary general Terry Davies.
"In effect, what I think is that the people in government in Canada are
subcontracting the death penalty."

(source: CanWest News)

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

Death penalty policy hangs in uncertainty


The Conservative government is not saying if it has re-opened the door to
seeking clemency for certain Canadians on death row in the U.S.

Questions about whether the government has shifted its stance - which
federal officials have not confirmed or denied despite repeated requests
from CanWest News Service - arose after comments made last week by Justice
Minister Rob Nicholson in which he said Canada would consider "each case
on its merits."

Nicholson's other comments in the House of Commons last week suggest the
government might consider seeking clemency for Canadians convicted of a
single killing, but not for convicts facing execution for "multiple" or
"mass" murders - such as Ronald Smith, the 50-year-old double-killer from
Alberta who is currently under a death sentence in Montana.

Justice Minister Rob Nicholson's comments in the House of Commons last
week suggest the government might consider seeking clemency for Canadians
convicted of a single killing, but not for convicts facing execution for
"multiple" or "mass" murders.

The latest twist in the clemency controversy follows a string of
high-profile international denunciations of Canada for its recent adoption
of a hands-off policy toward Canadians on death row in "democratic"
countries such as the U.S.

In late October, the Harper government ended long-standing foreign policy
- rooted in Canada's 1976 abolition of capital punishment - of
automatically seeking clemency for any Canadian on death row in any
country beyond our borders.

The new policy - first revealed to CanWest News Service on Oct. 31 after
several inquiries about Smith's bid for clemency - stated that Canada
would no longer fight for the lives of Canadians on death row in
"democratic" countries, such as the U.S., which have "fair trials."

Smith is the only Canadian on death row anywhere in the world.

But last week in the House of Commons, under questioning from an
opposition united in its condemnation of the new policy, Nicholson
appeared to soften the government's position.

Instead of a blanket refusal to seek clemency for Canadians on death row,
Nicholson said "we will look at each case." And each time he defended the
new policy, he pointedly stated that Canada would no longer "necessarily"
intervene to help Canadians on death row who have been convicted of
"multiple" or "mass" murders.

On Friday, Nicholson said: "We indicated yesterday and previous days that
an individual who gets convicted of multiple murders, or a mass murderer,
can no longer count on the Canadian government to necessarily intervene
where an individual has been tried in a democracy that adheres to the rule
of law. I think we have been very clear on that and we will look at each
case."

Nicholson used the same phrasing earlier in the week, as well: "If any
Canadians go abroad to a democratic country where there is the rule of
law, they cannot be guaranteed that Canada will intervene if they become
multiple or mass murderers."

Asked by CanWest News Service if the government's automatic refusal to
seek clemency now applied only to those who commit more than one murder, a
spokesman for Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier responded: "I refer
you to the minister's (Nicholson's) answer in the House - he was quite
clear on this."

Despite numerous requests for clarification put to an array of federal
officials, CanWest News Service has received no further response.

Former Liberal justice minister Irwin Cotler, now the party's human rights
critic, has slammed the government for "making policy on the fly" as it
struggles to defend an "illogical" and "untenable" position.

He argued in an interview with CanWest News Service that a case-by-case
clemency policy would give the Conservative government an executioner's
power over life and death.

Cotler added that when it comes to capital punishment, Canadian law "does
not make a distinction" between those convicted of a single murder and
those found guilty of multiple murders.

"Canada said no to the death penalty, no to the death penalty
internationally, and our Supreme Court has determined that it constitutes
cruel and unusual punishment, even in the case of multiple murders,"
Cotler said during question period on Friday.

Critics have also pointed out that the government's initial refusal to
seek clemency in "democratic" countries is fraught with problems, since
the definition of "democracy" in Asia, South America and other parts of
the world is open to debate.

The government has not supplied a list of the countries deemed democratic
for the purposes of the clemency policy.

Liberal justice critic Marlene Jennings said the Opposition expects to
sustain the pressure this week, possibly taking the fight over clemency to
a Commons committee and devoting more opposition time in the House to the
controversy. The federal Opposition parties have already stepped up their
attacks in the House of Commons over the issue, which in recent weeks has
revived Canada's long-latent national debate over capital punishment.

Both Liberal leader Stephane Dion and NDP leader Jack Layton have bypassed
the Conservative government and written directly to Montana Governor Brian
Schweitzer, asking him to commute Smith's sentence and claiming to speak
on behalf of the majority of Canadians.

A recent Harris-Decima poll suggests a bare majority of Canadians are
opposed to the government's new stand on the clemency issue.

Bloc Quebecois leader Gilles Duceppe is also spearheading a petition of
MPs seeking a return to Canada's traditional policy of opposing execution,
in all cases, for Canadians on death row in other countries.

Smith, who is pursuing a final appeal of his death sentence in a U.S.
federal court, faces lethal injection for murdering 2 Native American men
in 1982.

Smith was hitchhiking through Montana when he killed Harvey Mad Man, 24,
and Thomas Running Rabbit, 20, to steal their car.

For more than 20 years, until Oct. 26, Canadian policy had been to seek
clemency for Smith - and any other Canadian facing execution - "on
humanitarian grounds."

But following a CanWest News Service story about efforts by Canadian
diplomats to help Smith, the policy was rewritten by Oct. 31: "We are not
going to seek clemency in cases in democratic countries, like the United
States, where there has been a fair trial."

Precisely what the policy is today, a month later, awaits further
illumination from the government.

(source: CanWest News)

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

Online forums reveal divided Canada in Smith case


As Canadian political leaders spar over whether or not Montana death row
inmate and native Albertan Ronald Smith's sentence should be commuted, the
public on both sides of the border is weighing in on the matter through
online newspaper forums.

Two opposition leaders to Canada's ruling Conservative Party wrote Montana
Gov. Brian Schweitzer on Thursday, asking him to commute the sentence of
Smith, who was sentenced to death for killing two Browning men in August
1982. The men picked up Smith while he was hitchhiking on the Blackfeet
Indian Reservation.

Canada abolished the death penalty in 1976 and up until early this month,
had regularly sought clemency for Canadians sentenced to death abroad.

On the Web site of Canada's largest national newspaper, The Globe and
Mail, bloggers engaged in sometimes heated exchanges over the letters to
Schweitzer and the death penalty in general. "Canadians have already
concluded that the death penalty is wrong. The free vote in Parliament 20
years ago affirmed it. That being the case, the present government has an
obligation to speak up for Canadians facing execution," wrote "Allen
Jones" of Toronto on the Globe and Mail Web site.

Jones is one of about 250 people who posted their opinions on the site as
of Sunday.

Others say Liberal Party Leader Stephane Dion's letter to Schweitzer,
which stated that most Canadians want Smith's sentence commuted, is a
false representation of many Canadian citizens. The Liberals are a
minority party in the country's Parliament.

"Oh man, I'm surprised that people aren't more (ticked) off at the fact
that the leader of the opposition is writing letters on behalf of the
Canadian people to other levels of foreign government. That is the role of
the Canadian government and currently, the Liberal party does not form the
government," "Stevie Dee" of Canada wrote.

"Mr. Dion is reflecting the majority Canadian public opinion here and all
power to him for doing it. Lest we fall into the barbaric practices of
savage countries like the United States, China, Iran and Saudi Arabia,"
said "David N." of Toronto.

Earlier this month, the Canadian government announced that it would no
longer seek clemency for death row inmates abroad, and eased up its
pressure on the governor to commute the sentence.

On Thursday, leaders of the two opposition parties wrote personal letters
to Schweitzer asking him to commute Smith's sentence. The governor is
expecting the letters to arrive later this week. Smith, 50, is the only
Canadian on death row in the United States.

In 1982, Harvey Mad Man Jr., 24, and Thomas Running Rabbit III, 20,
victims picked up Smith in their vehicle and headed west on U.S. Highway
2. Near Marias Pass, Smith pulled out a sawed-off .22-caliber rifle and
marched the two men into the woods, shooting them both in the back of the
head.

After his capture in Wyoming he told authorities that he wanted to see
what it was like to kill somebody and he wanted to steal their car. Smith
has been in the Montana State Prison since 1984.

Family members of the victims are worried that if Smith's sentence is
commuted, he would be released from a Canadian jail within several years
because a life sentence in the Canadian judicial system is 25 years. The
families and Blackfeet tribal leaders met with Schweitzer on Oct. 31 in
Helena and asked him to keep Smith in Montana and to carry out his
sentence.

In an interview with CanWest News Service earlier this month, Smith said
that he wouldn't asked to be released from prison for at least five years
if his sentence was commuted.

"I have to prepare myself, so that's what I'm looking at," he told the
news agency. He also said he was "dumbstruck" that the Canadian government
stopped fighting for his life, but hoped to one day "hit the streets"
again in his home country.

Smith has exhausted all of his appeals in the Montana Supreme Court and
has filed an appeal with the 9th U.S. District Court of Appeals.

But like the Running Rabbit and Mad Man families, some of Smith's fellow
citizens worry that if his sentence is commuted, he might repeat his
Montana offenses.

"Just think, had Ronald Smith committed his crimes in Canada he would have
been out of prison long ago, likely to commit more crimes. Just goes to
highlight the joke that is our justice system. When traveling, one should
always be aware of the punishment for crimes in foreign lands. Better yet,
don't do crime. I have already wasted enough time commenting on the fate
of Ronald Smith. Dion is an embarrassment to Canada," said a posting by
"agent sixtynine" of Calgary.

One Montana blogger on the Tribune's Web site steered clear of the debate
and questioned why Smith hadn't yet received his sentence of death by
lethal injection.

"Why's he even around after such a length of time," wrote "freeonelb" of
Loma.

All executions by lethal injection are effectively on hold in the United
States. The U.S. Supreme Court plans to hold a hearing early next year on
whether lethal injections constitute cruel and unusual punishment. A
decision is expected by June, according to the Associated Press.

(source: Great Falls (Mont.) Tribune)