Jan. 9
EGYPT:
Lawyers demand death sentence for Mubarak
Civil rights lawyers demanded the death penalty for former Egyptian President
Hosni Mubarak on Monday, joining prosecutor's calls for him to be executed.
"We merged our voice with the prosecutor's closing arguments from last week's
hearing and demanded the death sentence to Mubarak, his former interior
minister Habib El Adly, and four of his aides for killing hundreds of
protesters and injuring thousands more," attorney Khalid Abu Bakr told CNN. "We
have proof Mubarak is directly responsible for the killings along with El Adly
and his aides."
Abu Bakr said Mubarak deserved to die for violating Egypt's criminal law 77.
"His negligence and actions led to endangering the national security of the
country," he said.
The attorney also provided the court with a list of alleged suspects he wants
indicted, including police officers he said where caught on camera firing their
weapons on protesters.
Another lawyer, Sameh Ashour, said he provided evidence to the court "of
communication between security forces that prove the presence of snipers on
rooftop buildings during the revolution."
The judge, Ahmed Refaat, has set aside Monday and Tuesday to hear from at least
10 civil rights lawyers. The defense is expected to make its closing arguments
later in the week.
"The judge will then decide on a day to announce the final verdict," said Adel
Saeed, the official spokesman of the General Prosecutor's office. "If he is
fast, we may see a verdict before January 25th" -- the day the Egyptian
uprising began last year.
Last week, the Russian foreign ministry issued a statement, expressing its
"deep concern" over the prosecutor's request for a death sentence to Mubarak
and calling on Egypt to consider Mubarak's old age and poor health. Germany and
France also issued statements of "concern."
Mubarak is accused of corruption and ordering protesters killed during the
country's uprising last year. He has denied the charges.
2 of Mubarak's sons are also on trial on a variety of charges. The sons, Gamal
and Alaa, have pleaded not guilty.
Lawyers familiar with the case said it is unlikely Mubarak and his fellow
defendants will receive the death penalty.
This is in part because of the difficulty in proving the president ordered the
killings, the lawyers said.
Analysts agreed that while some Egyptians might welcome a death sentence for
Mubarak, particularly at a time of heightened tension as the anniversary of the
uprising approaches, he is more likely to receive a prison term.
Many Egyptians have criticized the court proceedings and some worry that
Mubarak may be acquitted of the murder charges. Five police officers accused of
killing protesters already have been acquitted.
Amnesty International had estimated more than 840 protesters were killed and
6,000 injured. Saeed, the prosecutor's spokesman, said the prosecutor's
estimate of 225 deaths and more than 1,300 injured is lower "because there has
been a differentiation between those killed outside police stations while
attacking the precinct and those shot while protesting."
(source: CNN)
BAHRAIN:
Bahrain court overturns 2 death sentences----Cassation court annulls
protesters' death sentences, while civil court continues trials of 20 medics.
The court of cassation in Bahrain has overturned a ruling by the court of
appeals that had sentenced 2 Bahraini anti-government protesters to execution.
Monday's decision will require the court of appeals to re-examine the case and
issue a new verdict for the 2 protesters earlier sentenced to death, and 5
others who had been sentenced to life in prison.
The defendents, 2 of whom were tried in absentia, were accused of "deliberately
killing" 2 policemen in March.
According to court documents, the accused hit Kashef Ahmad Manzoor and Mohammad
Farouq Abdul Samad, both working for the interior ministry at the time, with
large vans. The defendents are then said to have run over the officers in an
open area near Manama's Pearl Roundabout.
"This is a positive verdict. We are optimistic," said Mohsen al-Alawi, a member
of the team defending one of the men whose death sentence was annulled.
He said that a new witness, a policeman, had come forward after the appeal
verdict was initially announced, claiming that the charges were "fabricated".
"His statement has been taken by the public prosecution and we shall use it",
in the forthcoming retrial, he said.
Medics retrial resumes
Elsewhere in the Bahraini capital, a civil court has begun a new hearing for a
group of 20 medical staff who were convicted of taking part in crimes against
the state during anti-government protests that rocked the country last year.
The doctors, nurses and paramedics were handed sentences, ranging from 5 to 15
years in prison, on September 28, over a raft of charges, including incitement
to overthrow the the ruling Al Khalifa family.
But a retrial was initiated on October 23 after prosecutors dropped confessions
from the defendants, who had protested that the statements were extracted under
torture.
The hearing for the new trial had been adjourned in November.
Most of the staff worked or volunteered at the Salmaniya Medical Centre in
Manama, which was stormed by security forces in mid-March after they drove
protesters out of nearby Pearl Roundabout.
The workers received the heavy jail terms from the military-run National Safety
Court, but are now being tried in a civil court.
They are also being charged with occupying the medical centre and possessing
weapons, while denying Sunni Muslims access to the hospital as mainly Shia
demonstrators camped in the complex's car park.
The medical professionals also stand accused of spreading false news,
particularly concerning the condition of wounded protesters, the illegal
acquisition of medicines and medical facilities, and participating in
demonstrations.
In November, independent investigators tasked by Bahrain's king to probe the
unrest were highly critical of the special security court that had tried the
medics, along with opposition leaders and activists behind closed doors.
A 500-page report by the Bahrain Independent Commission of Inquiry said the
court has issued harsh sentences -including life in prison and death penalties
- and "denied most defendants elementary fair trial guarantees".
The document also spotlighted abuses at the Salmaniya Medical Centre.
Rights activist denied entry
A top official from Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) said on Sunday that he
was barred from entering Bahrain to attend the trial.
Richard Sollom, deputy director of the US-based organisation, told Al Jazeera
that the country's ministry of human rights and social development had rejected
his entry after he arrived at Manama's airport.
Sollom who has a five-year multiple entry visa told the AFP news agency that
security officials said representatives from non-governmental organisations
required special permits to enter the country.
"As soon as I arrived at the airport, immigration officials learned that I was
representing the PHR, they immediately pulled me aside," he said.
"They called the ministry of human rights and social development, who told
those officials to turn me back and that I was not welcome."
Sollom said he was told by an immigration officer that "it doesn't matter if
you have a visa. We are under orders to ensure that NGO representatives get
special permission".
Speaking to the AFP, Sollom said he does not believe the situation at the
airport to be a matter of miscommunication.
"Unfortunately, I believe the prime minister does not want human rights groups
or international journalists to be covering these trials, and to bear witness
to the human rights violations that are still occuring in Bahrain."
(source: Aljazeera)
INDIA:
‘Pendency of mercy plea isn’t cruelty’
The government took 11 years to reject the mercy pleas of three condemned
prisoners in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case and 5 years to decide a
similar request by Parliament attack case convict Afzal Guru but it told the
Supreme Court that long pendency of such pleas could not be termed as cruel
acts that added to the suffering of the person awarded death penalty.
"The pendency of mercy petition cannot be said to be an act of cruelty or an
act which adds to the suffering of the prisoner. In fact, it is the pendency of
the mercy petition which has given a lease of life to the prisoner, albeit in
prison, until a decision is taken on the mercy petition," the ministry of home
affairs said in an affidavit filed in the apex court on Friday.
"The court cannot prescribe a time limit for the disposal of the mercy petition
after itself having found that in public interest, as per the procedure
established by law, a convict must be deprived of his right to life," the
ministry's affidavit filed through advocate T A Khan said in response to a PIL
by NGO 'Justice on Trial Trust'.
The NGO had alleged that because of absence of policy, framework or guidelines
for deciding mercy pleas of condemned prisoners, the government took an unduly
long time to either commute the death sentences to life imprisonment or reject
the request for mercy.
The ministry said the delay in deciding the mercy petition augured well for
condemned prisoners. "Looking at it from the point of view of the prisoner, he
would like his mercy petition to be allowed and if it is not allowed
immediately, he would like his mercy petition to remain pending as long as
possible and certainly not be rejected," it said.
It said time taken for disposal of mercy petitions depended on the number of
such pleas submitted on behalf of the convicted person. But the delay could
never be argued as ground for commutation of death penalty by the condemned
prisoner before the courts, it added.
"Delay in disposal of mercy petition is not a mitigating circumstance for the
commutation of death sentence and also does not reduce the gravity of the
crime. The powers of the President (to allow commutation of death sentence to
life imprisonment) under Article 72 of the Constitution are discretionary
powers which cannot be taken away by any statutory provision and cannot be
altered, modified or interfered in any manner whatsoever by any authority," the
ministry said.
"No time frame can be set up for the President in this regard. Delay by itself
does not entitle a person under the sentence of death to demand the quashing of
the sentence and converting it into life imprisonment. Besides, no period can
be fixed for determining whether the sentence of death has become unexecutable
due to delay," the ministry said.
It said the rate of disposal of mercy petitions by the President during UPA-2
had increased. It said 28 mercy pleas were pending in October 2009 and five
more were received between 2009 and 2011.
"After the new government was formed, in September 2009 it was decided to
recall the cases pending with the President's secretariat for review in the
ministry of home affairs, to assist in expediting a decision by the President
of India in each case," it said.
"Recalling of the cases was not under a constitutional provision but an
administrative decision to ensure fair and equal treatment of all cases and to
assist in expediting a decision by the President. Till December 29, 2011, 27
mercy petitions were submitted/re-submitted to the President's secretariat. The
President decided one mercy petition in November 2009, 4 in 2010 and 8 in 2011
(till December 29, 2011)," the ministry said.
"Thus, a total of 13 mercy petitions have been decided by the President since
November 2009. As on December 29, 2011, 20 mercy petitions are pending under
Article 72 of the Constitution, of which 16 are pending with the President's
secretariat and 4 are pending with ministry of home affairs (including 3 new
mercy petitions received in 2011)," it said.
(source: The Times of India)
PHILIPPINES/SAUDI ARABIA:
OFW in Saudi death row to be freed soon----Family of victim signs affidavit of
forgiveness
The overseas Filipino worker (OFW) who is facing the death penalty for killing
a fellow Filipino in Saudi Arabia is expected to be released within 3 months
after the victim’s family signed the “tanazul,” or affidavit of forgiveness in
the presence of Vice President Jejomar C. Binay at the Coconut Palace Monday.
The affidavit of forgiveness is a gesture of peace and goodwill under Shari’a
law that waives all private or civil rights against the accused.
According to the tanazul signed by the family of the victim Robertson Mendoza,
they no longer demand punishment of “qisas” (death by beheading) against Jonard
Langamin nor would they object to his subsequent release from prison and
deportation.
“We were told by the DFA [Department of Foreign Affairs] that Langamin could be
released within 3 months,” Binay said. “He has been given a new life, and we
are thankful to the Lord for touching the heart of the victim’s father.”
Reports from the DFA said that Langamin stabbed Mendoza to death in 2008
because the victim was preventing the former from singing.
Meanwhile, former ambassador Enrico Endaya, executive director of the Office of
the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA), said that the “tanazul”
would be immediately sent to the Philippine Embassy in Saudi Arabia.
The embassy will then present it to the Damman Higher Court and Langamin may be
freed within 3 months.
The Vice President had earlier facilitated the reconciliation of both families
in a meeting with Mendoza’s father, Bert; and Langamin’s mother, Editha at the
Coconut Palace last week.
(source: Philippine Inquirer)
BANGLADESH:
Student, Muhammad Ruhul Khandaker, fears death penalty for Facebook comment
A BANGLADESHI PhD student at Perth's Curtin University faces a possible death
sentence after the Bangladesh High Court ordered he be charged with sedition
for posting a message on Facebook deemed insulting to his country's Prime
Minister.
Muhammad Ruhul Khandaker, 29, was charged in absentia with contempt of court in
the capital Dhaka last week and sentenced to 6 months in jail for failing to
appear before the High Court to explain why he should not face trial for
posting a derogatory comment about Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on his private
Facebook wall. On Sunday, the court instructed police to prepare charges of
sedition against him by January 15, indicating the court's intention to
fast-track the case.
Mr Khandaker, a tutor and PhD scholarship student at Curtin's electrical and
computer engineering department who is on a student visa that expires in June
next year, said yesterday he had little option now but to apply for a
protection visa.
..."I am worried the government might want to make an example of me to stop any
other citizen from criticising the government," he said. "I have talked to the
Immigration Department here and they have said they will have a look at the
matter and that I should wait and see if it cools down. But it's not cooling
down because they're very aggressive on this."
Mr Khandaker said he was now in an impossible bind because he had been advised
by a lawyer in Bangladesh, as well as family and friends, that it was not safe
for him to return.
But under Bangladeshi law he may not appoint a lawyer to appear for him in
court unless he first appears in court himself.
Mr Khandaker's troubles stem from comments he posted on his Facebook wall last
August, which were leaked to the media. These comments mourned the road
accident death of acclaimed Bangladeshi filmmaker Tareq Masud and condemned the
government for allegedly issuing thousands of licences to unqualified drivers.
"Tareq Masud died as a result of government giving licence to unqualified
drivers. Many die, why does not Sheikh Hasina die?" Bangladeshi court officials
claimed his Facebook post said.
Mr Khandaker says he read the comments on another social networking site and
then cut and pasted them on to his wall to demonstrate the depth of anger over
Masud's death.
After they were leaked - he believes by a Bangladesh university colleague - and
received widespread media attention the High Court demanded Mr Khandaker and
his employers at Jahangirnagar University in Dhaka explain why he should not
face trial for insulting Ms Hasina.
An Immigration Department spokeswoman said "any person that is onshore can
apply for a protection visa and their claim is assessed on its individual
merits".
(source: The Australian)
TANZANIA:
Impose death penalty on economic saboteurs
Tanzania could have saved billions of shillings from radar, EPA, Richmond and
mining and other illicit deals had the death penalty been in statute books for
convicts of economic sabotage.
Since looting from our coffers is a priority of many politicians, the death
penalty is fit for such greedy individuals.
Tougher penalties such as freezing their bank accounts, confiscating their
houses and all ill-gotten wealth should also be imposed and applied impartially
to the maximum.
Look at how few corrupt people are causing misery to the whole nation! We are
indeed suffering and frustrated.
It is a pity that many Tanzanian politicians keep on undermining our faith in
the judicial system. The situation must change and the saying that “crime
doesn’t pay” should appear relevant.
Look how the ministry of Minerals and Energy tried to bribe its way to have its
2011/12 budget endorsed!
Look at the ministry of Tourism and Natural Resources that has been responsible
for the airlifting of live game such as giraffes to Arab countries!
Look at our National Assembly whose allowances to MPs seem to be
uncontrollable!
Look at the Bank of Tanzania's inflated construction costs! Corruption is
ingrained in society.
So, how can we fight this monster without killing offenders to silence them
forever and deter others who are dreaming of looting public funds?
We are one of the poorest countries on earth although we have abundant natural
resources. You can’t unlock such potential in a country that is full of
thieves. The death penalty should serve as a warning to all greedy officials.
If we do so, it’s when we will have a crop of clean politicians and public
servants to develop the country.
A clause on hanging or shooting economic saboteurs till they die should be in
the new Constitution.
Frustrated Citizen, Dar es Salaam
(source: Letter to the Editor, The Citizen)
IRAN----executions
One man was hanged publicly in western Iran- At least 40 executions in the 1st
week of 2012
1 man was hanged in public in a Gachsaran (western Iran) reported the Iranian
state media.
According to the state run Iranian news agency ISNA, a man who was not
identified by name, was hanged publicly in a village near Gachsaran yesterday
Saturday.
The man was convicted of rape said the report.
************** 5 prisoners were hanged in western Iran
5 prisoners were hanged in the prison of Zanjan reported the state run Iranian
news agency Fars.
According to the report the prisoners were not identified by name, were
convicted of drug trafficking.
The executions took place on Wednesday January 4.
(source: Iran Human Rights)
*******************
Iran ratchets up cold war with America by handing the DEATH sentence to former
U.S. Marine accused of being a 'CIA spy'Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, 28, convicted by
Iran's Revolutionary Court
Tensions rise between U.S. and Iran following announcement
Tehran also claims to have 'uncovered U.S.-linked spy network'
U.S. State Department demands his release
Uranium enrichment starts at underground site protected from air strikes
Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta says move 'crosses a red line'
Iran is set to execute an American man it has accused of being a CIA spy.
Former U.S. Marine Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, 28, received the death penalty for
spying after he was convicted at Iran's Revolutionary Court. The sentence was
handed down on the same day that the country's security forces claimed to have
smashed a U.S. spy network.
In a further development, it was revealed that Iran has started uranium
enrichment at a site deep under a mountain near the Shi'ite Muslim holy city of
Qom.
Uranium enrichment in the Fordow bunker is probably the single most
controversial part of Iran's nuclear programme, which Tehran says is peaceful
but the West says is aimed at building an atomic bomb.
The long-simmering nuclear dispute has come to a boil in recent weeks, with the
West imposing new sanctions that are having a real impact on Iran's economy,
and Tehran responding with threats to international shipping that rattled oil
markets.
There had been hopes in some quarters that relations might improve between the
U.S. and Iran after the U.S. Navy rescued 13 Iranian fishermen held by Somali
pirates. The U.S. State Department has said Mr Hekmati had been falsely accused
and has already demanded his immediate release.
The 28-year-old former military translator, who has 20 days to appeal, was born
in Arizona and graduated from a high school in Michigan. His family is of
Iranian origin. He was arrested weeks into his first trip into the country when
he was spending time with his Iranian grandmothers.
He is said to have received special training and served at U.S. military bases
in Iraq and Afghanistan before heading to Iran for 'an intelligence mission'.
He was filmed in December 'confessing' to his crimes on Iranian state
television, months after being allegedly arrested in August. But his father, a
professor at a community college in Flint, Michigan, said his son was not a CIA
spy and was simply visiting family when arrested.
He has also complained about the legal system in Iran. A family statement said:
'We have struggled to provide Amir with an attorney in Iran. 'We have sought to
hire at least 10 different attorneys to no avail. His only advocate in Iran was
a government-appointed lawyer who he met on the 1st day of his trial.'
News of the execution comes on the same day Iran said it had broken up a
'U.S.-linked spy network' that planned to 'fuel unrest' ahead of the March
parliamentary election, the first nationwide vote since the country's 2009
disputed presidential vote that kept controversial Mahmoud Ahmedinejad in
power.
Intelligence Minister Haydar Moslehi said: 'The detained spies were in contact
with foreign countries through cyberspace.' But he did not say how many had
been detained or their nationalities.
Iran, which often accuses its foes of trying to destabilise its Islamic system,
said in May it had arrested 30 people on suspicion of spying for the United
States and later 15 people were indicted for spying for Washington and Israel.
Also causing problems is Iran’s determination to stick to its nuclear course
despite mounting international pressure and sharpened rhetoric.
Iran had finally carried out a long-planned step to begin enrichment of uranium
at a site deep under a mountain near the Shi'ite Muslim holy city of Qom, the
placement of which is undoubtedly strategic as any actions that take place near
the religious site would clearly make headlines.
U.S. Secretary of Defence Leon Panetta was very clear that the news that the
country was 'trying to develop nuclear capability' was not welcomed.
'That’s what concerns us. And our red line to Iran is do not develop a nuclear
weapon. That’s a red line for us,' he said Sunday. Iran's refusal to halt
nuclear enrichment - which can have both military and civilian purposes - has
drawn four rounds of U.N. sanctions since 2006 and separate U.S. and European
steps.
Iran has threatened to close Gulf oil shipping lanes through the Strait of
Hormuz that are vital to the global economy if the West carries out mooted
plans to bar Iranian crude exports, or if Iranian nuclear sites came under
military attack.
Mr Panetta responded in kind, saying that if it should come to that, the U.S.
‘would take action and reopen the strait’.
Though relations between the 2 countries have been tense for decades, they
became even more fraught after the June 2009 presidential election, which was
followed by 8 months of anti-government street protests. Iranian authorities
accused Washington and its allies of supporting the opposition unrest to
overthrow Tehran's clerical establishment.
The few details that the Iranians have divulged about the most recent case show
that they deeply fear the idea of American intrusion. The Iranian court
convicted Mr Hekmati of working with a hostile country, belonging to the CIA
and trying to accuse Iran of involvement in terrorism.
In its ruling, a branch of Tehran Revolutionary Court described Mr Hekmati as a
mohareb, an Islamic term that means a fighter against God, and a mofsed, or one
who spreads corruption on earth. Both terms appear frequently in Iranian court
rulings.
In a closed court hearing in late December, the prosecution asked for the death
sentence for Mr Hekmati. The U.S. government has called on Iranian authorities
to grant Swiss diplomats access to Mr Hekmati in prison.
The Swiss government represents U.S. interests in Iran because the two
countries do not have diplomatic relations. Mr Hekmati is a dual U.S.-Iranian
national. Iran considers him an Iranian since the country's law does not
recognise dual citizenship.
Similar cases against Americans accused of spying have heightened tensions
throughout a years-long stand-off over Iran's nuclear ambition. Iran arrested 3
Americans in July 2009 along the border with Iraq and accused them of
espionage, though the Americans said they were just hiking in the scenic and
relatively peaceful Kurdish region of northern Iraq. They were eventually
released and returned to the United States.
Mr Hekmati’s case made international news on December 18, Iran's state TV
broadcast video of him delivering a purported confession in which he said he
was part of a plot to infiltrate Iran's Intelligence Ministry.
‘It was their [the CIA's] plan to first burn some useful information, give it
to them [the Iranians] and let Iran's Intelligence Ministry think that this is
good material,’ Mr Hekmati said in the video.
In a statement released the same day, the Intelligence Ministry said its agents
identified Mr Hekmati before his arrival in Iran, at Bagram Air Field in
neighbouring Afghanistan.
Bagram is the main base for American and other international forces outside
Kabul, the Afghan capital. It is not clear exactly when he was arrested.
Iranian news reports have said he was detained in late August or early
September.
Mr Hekmati's father, Ali, said in a December interview that his son was a
former Arabic translator in the U.S. Marines who entered Iran about four months
earlier to visit his grandmothers.
‘My son is no spy. He is innocent. He's a good fellow, a good citizen, a good
man. These are all unfounded allegations and a bunch of lies,’ Ali has told ABC
News.
At the time, he was working in Qatar as a contractor for a company 'that served
the Marines', his father said, without providing more specific details.
His family has been left without answers for months, and though the Iranian
government has not given many details about the nature of his arrest, Mr
Hekmati’s family have been trying to put the pieces together.
‘The Iranian government detained Amir on August 29, 2011 without any charges,
and urged our family to remain silent with the promise of an eventual release,’
they said in a statement.
(source: Daily Mail)
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