NOTE----my postings to this list will resume July 9
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June 30
IRELAND:
British hangman cut a bargain deal with Free State Authorities in 1925; Irish
government availed of 'buy one get one half price' offer
The Irish government availed of a 'buy one get one half price deal' in 1925 -
from the notorious English hangman Thomas Pierrepoint.
Newly revealed documents confirm that Pierrepoint struck a deal with the Dublin
authorities to carry out the execution of Annie Walsh (31) and her nephew
Michael Talbot (24).
They were sentenced to the death penalty for the murder of Annie's elderly
husband, Edward Walsh, at his County Limerick farm.
Pierrepoint was the hangman of choice for the Free State government who chose
not to employ an Irish executioner after the War of Independence.
The Englishman would regularly travel from his home in Yorkshire to carry out
hangings in Ireland at a cost of 10 pounds per execution.
In August of 1925 he travelled to Mountjoy Prison in Dublin for the rare double
hanging and struck a bargain price deal with the Irish authorities.
His invoice totalled just 15 pounds, with the hangman slashing the price for
the 2nd execution to just 5 pounds - or 50% off.
Now his invoice and expenses claim, submitted to Ireland's Department of
Finance, is to be auctioned by the Mealy's sales house in March.
The Irish Times reports that the document, handwritten in spidery black ink, is
possibly the most macabre ever submitted to the department.
The letter, from his home address near the city of Bradford, requests
reimbursement of fees and travel expenses for Pierrepoint an unnamed assistant,
believed to be his nephew Albert Pierrepoint, who was later appointed hangman.
The senior hangman travelled 1st class, by rail and saloon, according to his
expense claim, while his nephew went by 3rd class travel.
They spent the night before the execution in Mountjoy Prison where they rested
the gallows equipment. According to the report, refreshments for each man
amounted to only '10 shillings' as 'hangmen were discouraged from drinking
alcohol the night before a job'.
Auctioneer George F Mealy believes the letter could fetch a thousand dollars.
"It might appeal to collectors and is interesting as a curiosity and a
historical manuscript,' he told the paper.
A total of 35 hangings took place in Dublin between November 1923 and April
1954.
Walsh was the only woman hanged in the history of the Free State although the
British did pardon 6 women sentenced to execution during their stay.
(source: Irish Central)
NIGERIA:
'Nigeria will not drop the death penalty'
The Nigerian Federal Government has sealed the fate of homosexuals and those
clamouring for the abolition of the death penalty in the Criminal Code,
according to the local PUNCH newspaper Saturday.
The paper said the government has rejected the recommendation by the United
Nations Human Rights Council on the protection of same sex marriage and
abolition of the death penalty.
This is contained in the draft report to the United Nations Human Rights
Council on resolution 16/20 discussed at a Stakeholders' Consultative Forum on
the 2nd cycle of Nigeria's Universal Periodic Review in Abuja on Friday.
The Nigerian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Olugbenga Ashiru, said
same sex marriage was against the tradition and customs of Nigeria, so it could
not be imposed on the country by external forces.
Ashiru, who wondered why gay rights had generated interest from the United
Nations, queried the negative campaign against polygamy, which, according to
him, was allowed in African tradition.
He said, "You should not shy away from defending what you believe is right.
Whatever is in our constitution, you must defend it. We must stand by our
constitution. We must stand by our customs and tradition.
"If you want to have gay rights in your constitution; fine, but we have our own
constitution. The same human rights they want to protect for gay people; how
about people that want to go into polygamy if they so desire and women are
willing to marry them. Polygamy is human rights in our tradition."
On the abolition of the death penalty, the minister said Nigeria should not be
blamed because the Criminal Code in use was enacted by the colonial masters,
saying, "If anything is wrong about it, why are they blaming us?"
Ashiru also denied allegations of extra-judicial killings by the military
against the Boko Haram insurgents in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, where
emergency rule had been proclaimed by President Goodluck Jonathan.
Challenging those with credible evidence to come forward, Ashiru maintained
that the record of Nigeria???s military in peace keeping mission was
unassailable.
The Executive Secretary of the National Human Rights Commission, Prof. Bem
Angwe, said Nigeria had done creditably well in Human Rights.
Although he noted that the country had some obligations to the United Nations,
he said no country could dictate to another because as a sovereign nation,
Nigeria has the right to protect the interests of its citizens.
(soruce: AfriqueJet)
PAKISTAN:
Humanity required: Stay on executions
This is a country with serious law and order problems in several areas. While
many remedies can be explored, the least acceptable is that implied in a
complaint made by the Sindh High Court Bar Association in a petition against
the targeted killings of lawyers and others in Karachi: that capital punishment
is not being meted out to prisoners on death row, which, in the petitioner's
view, sends out the message that those responsible for heinous crimes go
unpunished.
This newspaper opposes capital punishment, not just for being a cruel and
degrading punishment but also because it is only in a few cases that guilt is
proved beyond a shadow of doubt. Most countries have removed this punishment
from the law books. The strong pro-death penalty lobby in Pakistan, though, has
meant that we have not done so, even though the country is amongst the states
with the highest number of prisoners on death row. A middle ground of sorts was
found in recent years when the earlier PPP government took charge: a de facto
moratorium over executions being carried out has been in place since 2008, the
only exception being the hanging in November in Mianwali Jail of a soldier
sentenced to death for having killed a superior officer.
As an interior ministry official informed the Sindh High Court on Friday, the
presidential stay on executions expires today. He added that the current
government is also reviewing the moratorium policy. This should take the
direction suggested late last year by the presidential spokesperson, who said
that the government was planning to introduce a bill in parliament converting
the death penalty into life imprisonment. It is to be regretted that this bill
never emerged. The current government should take up the matter. Furthermore,
the state would be better advised to turn its attention to the glaring flaws in
a justice system where those who commit crime get away with it more often than
not, and where the rates of successful prosecution are abysmal even in cases
where suspects have been arrested. The problems are well known: to name just a
few, the limited capabilities of investigators, the lack of forensic expertise,
the inefficiencies in piecing evidence together to build a solid case.
Meanwhile, there are factors that compound crime, such as petty or juvenile
offenders being incarcerated with hardened criminals, and our jails being
merely places to keep prisoners rather than functioning as correctional
facilities. The moratorium on executions should be extended and the country
should work towards abolishing the death penalty altogether.
(source: Dawn newspapers)
INDIA:
2 sentenced to death for rape and murder
7 years after a 19-year-old girl from Kalmeshwar was raped and murdered in a
gruesome manner, the court on Friday sentenced the perpetrators - 2 hardened
criminals - to the gallows. Rakesh Kamble (25), a resident of Gaurakshan slums
in Wardha, and Amarsing Thakur (27), from Bajrang Nagar in city, were convicted
for kidnapping, murder, and rape of Kanchan Meshram, a resident of Lonara slums
in Kalmeshwar on December 18, 2005.
These 2 join 7 others in the 'death penalty' club of Nagpur court over the last
5 years.
Looking at the past criminal record of the accused duo, including fleeing from
police custody, the third district and sessions judge Vibha Ingle had no
hesitation in putting the dastardly act under "rarest of rare" category. "They
be hanged by neck till dead," the court mentioned while reading out an
operative order in the packed courtroom.
Apart from the capital punishment, the duo was awarded lifer for gang rape, 20
years rigorous imprisonment for kidnapping for murder and another 10 years for
criminal intimidation and trespassing into house at night. They were also fined
Rs 22,000 on various counts. All the jail terms will run concurrently, the
court ordered.
However, the duo was acquitted of charges under the Arms Act and Scheduled
Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. Citing
testimony of 19 witnesses, including the girl's parents, brother and other
villagers, assistant public prosecutor (APP) Kalpana Pande strongly advocated
the maximum punishment, contending that the accused were serial offenders and
showed no signs of reformation.
Security was tight inside and outside the courtroom, considering the fact that
the accused duo had a history of fleeing from custody and had created trouble
every time they were brought for a hearing. Even Sadar PI Rajratan Bansod was
personally present. There was no remorse on the faces of the convicts when the
verdict was announced and they even threatened media persons with dire
consequences.
The night of horror
Pande said the history-sheeter duo were friends with a cousin of the deceased
and used to tease her. A few days before the incident, Kanchan had even rapped
Rakesh for indecent behaviour and thrown a slipper at him. An enraged Rakesh
then decided to teach her a lesson. He barged into the girl's small hut with
Amarsing at about 3am, when she was sleeping with her parents and brother. Both
were armed with knives and a country-made revolver.
Sensing trouble, Kanchan's mother signalled her to escape. She ran away from
home and took shelter under the bed in her uncle's house. However, the goons
entered by breaking open the front door and dragged her out. Her parents and
other villagers tried their best to stop them, but the goons brandished their
weapons to keep them at bay while taking her away.
Next morning, Kanchan's naked body was found at a nearby farm with 14 injuries,
including stab marks and scratches on her private parts. Her blood stained
clothes were lying all over the farm and blood was found splattered at many
places, providing ample testimony of the spine chilling torment she underwent.
The post mortem report confirmed her rape and murder.
The accused had fled to an unknown place after committing the crime. After a
complaint was lodged at Kalmeshwar police, Rakesh was arrested at Khamgaon in
Buldhana on June 6, 2006, 6 months after the incident. However, it took over 5
years for the police to nab the other accused Amarsing on May 29, 2005. In
fact, he was arrested by Gwalior police for some other offence and was brought
to the city for this case.
(source: The Times of India)
PHILIPPINES/CHINA:
Binay calls off China appeal trip for drug mule
Philippine Vice President Jejomar Binay called off a proposed visit to China
Sunday to save a Filipina from being executed there for drug trafficking,
saying Beijing had declined to receive him.
Binay said he was to have left during the day, carrying a letter from President
Benigno Aquino III to Chinese President Xi Jinping asking him to spare the
woman.
"This Saturday, I was informed that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China
has sent word that now would not be a convenient time for me to visit China,"
Binay said in a statement.
"I wanted to go to China to personally appeal for compassion. I am sad however
that China has chosen to take this position regarding my visit," he added.
"Given this development, I am left with no option but to cancel my trip to
China. I ask for prayers for our compatriot and her family."
The woman was 1 of 2 Filipinos arrested for smuggling more than 12 kilograms
(26 pounds) of high-grade heroin into China in 2011.
The execution is due to take place Tuesday, Binay???s office has said, while
the man had his execution set back by 2 years.
Chinese embassy spokesmen in Manila could not be reached for comment Sunday.
Aquino had previously sent Binay to China in February 2011 to seek a reprieve
for 3 Filipinos also convicted of drug trafficking, but the three were executed
the following month.
The executions triggered widespread condemnation in the Philippines, which
abolished the death penalty in 2006.
The latest case comes amid already rocky bilateral relations between the two
countries soured by overlapping territorial claims in the South China Sea.
About 1/10 of the Philippines' 100 million population work abroad, many of them
under harsh conditions where drug traffickers sometimes exploit them into
becoming drug mules.
The Philippine foreign department says 213 Filipinos have been jailed in
drug-related cases in China.
(source: Philippine Inquirer)
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