Sept. 29
INDIA:
Omar Abdullah fears rise in militancy if Afzal Guru is hanged
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Wednesday said he was worried
that the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru could revive militancy
in the state.
"I have to be concerned about the hanging of Afzal Guru. It has implications
not just for the state but for the centre too," he told a television news
channel.
He noted that a generation of militants was born in Kashmir following the
execution of Jammu and Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF) leader Muhammad Maqbool
Bhat in 1984.
"I cannot and will not forget that an entire generation of militants was born
because of the hanging of Maqbool Bhat. I have to be concerned that Afzal
Guru's hanging can once again revive militancy at a time when it is down,"
Abdullah said.
"I am not in favour of the death penalty. It has not served as a deterrent for
either murders or terrorism," he said.
The state assembly was set to debate the resolution seeking clemency for Afzal
Guru on Wednesday but this did not happen due to disruptions.
Abdullah also questioned the policies of some political parties on similar
issues like clemency for people on death row.
"While it is okay to ask clemency for Rajiv Gandhi's killers and while it is
okay also to ask mercy for (Khalistani terrorist Devinder Pal Singh) Bhullar,
why is it wrong for J and K to even discuss and debate clemency? Is it because
Afzal Guru is a Kashmiri Muslim?" he asked.
He also questioned why Jammu and Kashmir is constantly called upon to prove
that they are a part of India when no other state is asked to do the same.
"Death sentences should satisfy legal needs, not public perception," he said,
adding that death sentence only converts convicts into martyrs.
"It is better to put them in jail for the rest of their lives because then most
people will forget about them," he suggested.
The chief minister also took a dig at the separatists and questioned their
so-called desire not to seen Afzal Guru hang.
"I can tell you that privately they will be thrilled if he is hanged because it
will give them a boost," he said.
On his tweets on controversial issues, he said: "I will be tweeting less on
controversial issues but there is no way I am quitting Twitter. It is an
effective medium to communicate. I will not betray my 60,000 followers."
***********
What about condemned prisoners who have no backing, asks SC
The Supreme Court on Wednesday took note of the legislative clamour to appeal
for clemency to condemned prisoners in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case and
Afzal Guru and wondered what happens to the cases of other convicts facing
death penalty who have not been able to garner such support. Hearing the
petition filed by condemned prisoner Devender Pal Singh Bhullar challenging the
eight-year delay on the Centre's part to decide his mercy plea, a bench of
Justices G S Singhvi and S J Mukhopadhaya said such petitions should be decided
looking into constitutional issues.
"But, we see that there are 20-odd people facing death penalty. Some have got
backing from some quarter. Should it depend on which quarter they get the
backing from? What about the rest of the condemned prisoners who have got no
backing from any quarter," the bench asked.
First it was the Tamil Nadu assembly which passed a resolution seeking
commutation of death penalty to Rajiv assassination convicts Santhan, Arivu and
Perarivalan. A similar resolution favouring life sentence to Afzal Guru, who
was awarded death penalty in the Parliament attack case, was to be debated in
the Jammu and Kashmir assembly on Wednesday but the House was adjourned amidst
pandemonium.
The apex court asked the Union government to file an affidavit by October 10
explaining the reasons for the delay in deciding the mercy plea of Khalistan
Liberation Front militant Bhullar, who was sentenced to death for the 1983 bomb
blast in Delhi. The case would now be heard on October 19.
President Pratibha Patil, on the advice of the UPA government, had rejected
Bhullar's mercy plea on May 24, a day after he had approached the SC seeking
commutation of death sentence on grounds of delay.
He had also pleaded mental illness. Senior advovate K T S Tulsi informed the
bench that Bhullar was being treated at the Institute of Human Behaviour for
mental illness, allegedly caused by being kept on death row for a long time.
Bhullar had alleged that though the Delhi government had given its views
favouring rejection of mercy petition as far back as 2003, the Centre sat on it
for 8 years forcing the man to develop psychotic disorder.
Bhullar had filed the mercy petition on January 14, 2003, with the President.
The Delhi government had sent its recommendation to the Union home ministry on
May 27, 2003, favouring rejection of the plea.
In the September 11, 1993, bomb blast on Raisina Road, 9 persons were killed
and then Indian Youth Congress president Maninderjit Singh Bitta was seriously
injured.
(source for both: Times of India)
IRAN:
Naderkhani Refuses To Repent For Converting to Christianity; Awaiting Final
Ruling on Apostasy Death Sentence
The last court session for Youcef Naderkhani, a Christian pastor charged with
apostasy was held on the morning of Wednesday, 28 September, and despite the
judge’s repeated requests from Youcef Naderkhani, he did not repent and
remained a Christian. Youcef Naderkhani’s lawyer, Mohammd Ali Dadkhah,
expressed hope that the court would eventually rule for his client’s innocence,
and told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran, “He was brought
to court to repent for 3 days. He denied repentance on all three days. I said
in my last defense that his execution is not an appropriate and legal action
from the viewpoint of Sharia Law, our own laws, and international laws, and I
believe that the court accepted my opinion. I hope that the court would vote
for his acquittal and that he is released over the coming week. His apostasy
charges were eliminated before, and I provided the necessary defense regarding
the illegality of repentance.”
Youcef Naderkhani, is a 32-year-old pastor who was born of Muslim parents who
converted to Christianity at the age of 19. Prior to his arrest, he was a
pastor for a 400-person congregation of Christians in the city of Rasht. His
death sentence on the charge of apostasy was upheld on 23 August 2010 by Branch
11 of Gilan Province Appeals Court. The death sentence was overturned on 28
June, pending Naderkhani’s repentance. The suspect’s 1st court date was held on
25 September and continued through 3 more sessions until Wednesday.
(source: Iran Human Rights)
*******************
Iranian Christian Pastor Death Sentence may be Overturned
We have just received a report from our source in Iran that a judge has agreed
to overturn Christian Pastor Youcef Nadarkhani’s death penalty sentence.
However, at this time, ACLJ representatives have not received official notice
from the court and are working to confirm this report. By no means does this
mean that Pastor Youcef will be set free without some additional punishment,
potentially a long jail sentence or worse.
The ACLJ will continue to pressure the U.S. government, United Nations, and
Iranian government to prevent this execution until we have absolute
confirmation that his death sentence has been overturned and he has been
released from prison. Please continue to pray for Pastor Youcef, his family,
and his legal team in Iran.
(source: themoralliberal.com)
*******************************
Iran urged to spare Iranian pastor
Iran is drawing widespread criticism for the imminent execution of Yousef
Nadarkhani, an Iranian pastor sentenced to death for apostasy.
AFP reports that British Foreign Secretary William Hague urged Iran to overturn
Nadarkhani’s sentence, expressing concern over reports that his execution is
imminent after he refused to recant his Christian beliefs and return to Islam.
At the same time, U.S. House Speaker John Boehner called on Iran to spare
Nadarkhani’s life, saying: “I urge Iran’s leaders to abandon this dark path,
spare Yousef Nadarkhani's life, and grant him a full and unconditional
release.”
Nadarkhani, an Iranian Baptist pastor, was arrested along with his wife in
October 2009 in the city of Rasht. Both had converted from Islam to
Christianity.
Nadarkhani was charged with “apostasy, inviting other Muslims to Christianity,
setting up a secret church at his home and blatant opposition to Islam.”
His death sentence for the crime of reverting from Islam was approved by the
Gilan provincial appellate court. But in July, the SupremeCourt announced that
if Nadarkhani repented, the death sentence would be rescinded.
His trial began Sunday and stretched until yesterday, when he refused to recant
his Christian faith.
British Foreign Secretary Hague reacted by saying: “I deplore reports that
Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani, an Iranian Church leader, could be executed
imminently after refusing an order by the Supreme Court of Iran to recant his
faith.”
He went on to accuse Iran of “an unwillingness to abide by its constitutional
and international obligations to respect religious freedom.”
The 32-year-old Nadarkhani converted to Christianity at the age of 19 and is a
pastor for a small group of missionaries that go by the name of the Church of
Iran.
His attorney, Mohammadali Dadkhah, says neither Iranian law nor the clergy have
ever stipulated the death sentence as punishment for converting to Christianity
from Islam.
The activities of Christian missionaries are considered illegal in Iran, and
the Tehran governor referred to them earlier as a “corrupt and deviated”
movement.
(source: Radio Zamaneh)
BAHRAIN:
Bahrain court sentences protester to death, gives doctors who treated
demonstrators jail time
Bahrain’s special security court on Thursday sentenced a protester to death for
killing a policeman, and gave doctors and nurses who treated injured protesters
during the country’s uprising earlier this year lengthy prison sentences, a
lawyer said.
Attorney Mohsen al-Alawi said the tribunal, set up during Bahrain’s emergency
rule, convicted and sentenced 13 medical professionals each to 15 years in
prison. In addition, 2 doctors were sentenced to 10 years each while 5 other
medics got 5-year prison terms.
The harsh sentences in the 2 separate court cases suggest the Sunni authorities
in the Gulf kingdom will not relent in pursing and punishing those they accuse
of supporting the Shiite-led opposition and participating in dissent that has
roiled the tiny island nation.
Earlier this year, the same special court sentenced 2 other protesters to death
for killing a police officer in a separate incident.
Al-Alawi, who was the defense lawyer for several medics, said the 20 medical
professionals, who were charged with various anti-state crimes, and the
protester who got the death sentence on Thursday can all appeal their verdicts.
A Bahraini rights group identified the protester as Ali Yousef Abdulwahab
al-Taweel. The Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights said that another
suspect, Ali Attia Mahdi, was convicted on Thursday as al-Taweel’s accomplice
and sentenced to life imprisonment.
The tribunal’s military prosecutor, Yousef Rashid Flaifel, said the two men
were convicted of premeditated murder in the killing of an officer in the oil
hub of Sitra. In comments to the state-run Bahrain News Agency, Flaifel said
the men committed a “terror act” by running over the policeman with 2 cars. He
didn’t say when the incident occurred.
The prosecutor said the men were also convicted of other charges, including
participating in a “public protest,” and “spreading terror and fear.”
As for the case of the medics, Flaifel said they were convicted on charges that
include taking part in efforts to “topple the regime,” possessing “unlicensed
light weapons” and “spreading fabricated stories and lies.”
Human rights groups blasted the ruling against the medics and said legal
proceedings against Bahrain’s doctors and nurses were a “travesty of justice.”
“These are simply ludicrous charges against civilian professionals who were
working to save lives,” said Philip Luther of Amnesty International.
Hundreds of activists have been imprisoned since March when Bahrain’s rulers
imposed martial law to deal with protests by the country’s Shiite majority
demanding greater rights and freedoms.
More than 30 people have been killed since the protests began in February,
inspired by Arab uprisings elsewhere. The Sunni monarchy that rules this
strategically important Gulf nation, which is home to the U.S. Navy’s 5th
Fleet, responded with a violent crackdown.
Thursday’s sentences came a day after the tribunal upheld sentences for 21
activists convicted for their roles in the protests, including eight prominent
political figures who were given life terms on charges of trying to overthrow
the kingdom’s rulers.
(source: Washington Post)
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