Dec. 9
IRAN----executions
15 prisoners executed in Kermanshah and Ilam
15 prisoners have been hanged in Diesel Abad prison of Kermanshah and Ilam
central prison on Thursday November 5th.
According to the report of Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), there
have been 7 prisoners hanged on charge of drug trafficking in Diesel Abad
prison of Kermanshah. The identities of them is still unknown.
There have been also 8 prisoners hanged in Ilam central prison.
There is no report of their identities and charges yet.
The official Iranian media have not published any report of these executions
yet.
(source: Human Rights Activists News Agency)
SINGAPORE:
Norazita's case management fixed on Jan 24
The 36-year-old Indonesian security guard who was charged with the murder of
AmBank operations manager Norazita Abu Talib was fixed for case management on
Jan 24.
High Court registrar Hanie Dzatul Akhmar Zulkefli recorded the date in chambers
when the case came up before her during case management today.
La Ode Ardi Rasila was accused of murdering Norazita, 37, at an AmBank branch
in USJ Sentral, Subang Jaya, between 6pm and 6.30pm on Oct 23.
He faces the death penalty if found guilty under Section 302 of the Penal Code.
He was also charged with committing the scheduled offence of robbery during
which he allegedly fired a shot from a pump gun, killing Norazita.
The guard was first charged on Nov 19 at the Petaling Jaya Magistrates Court
before being transferred here.
Deputy public prosecutor N.Parimalaah appeared for prosecution while the
accused was represented by counsel S. Selvi, who was appointed by Indonesian
embassy.
(source: New Striats Times)
MALAYSIA:
Gerakan campaign against death penalty----Party welcomes Pakatan Rakyat and
concerned citizens to be involved in a signature drive against capital
punishment
Gerakan today launched its anti-death penalty campaign in a bid to abolish the
controversial law in Malaysia.
Party president Mah Siew Keong said his party aims to collect at least 100,000
signatures against capital punishment.
"Many studies have shown that the death penalty does not deter crime
effectively," he said during the launch of the campaign at Gerakan headquarters
here.
"We are involved in this petition because need to have political will against
the death penalty and we believe this is the way forward," he added.
Mah pointed out that Malaysia is one of several countries which still practices
capital punishment despite the United Nation's call to abolish the death
penalty.
He acknowledged that the abolition of the law was not a straightforward
mission, but believes that with enough support, it would put significant
pressure on Parliament to repeal the law.
"We will definitely ask our partners in BN to join us. When it comes to
decision making, it involves the whole government," he said. "However, we feel
this issue is not only about BN, as I'm sure a lot of people will agree with
us.
"We will seek the cooperation of Pakatan Rakyat, and together, with enough
signatures, maybe Parliament can amend the law," he added.
Realistic target
Mah said a party's struggle need not be popular nor political, and hoped both
sides of the political divide can come together to fight for an issue which
would benefit the country.
"Gerakan believes the issue does not have to be popular one, we can forget
about that. We fight because we believe in the cause and hope to achieve
something good for the country," he said.
"Enough of politicking. If you want to fight, there is always the general
election in four years' time," he added.
Asked why Gerakan was hoping to collect only 100,000 signatures in contrast to
Himpunan Hijau's 1-million signature drive in the anti-Lynas campaign, Mah said
his party was being realistic.
"When we fight for issues, we must be realistic. Let???s not have big fanciful
figures," he said.
However, he expressed confidence that the end figure would be more than their
target of 100,000 signatures in 3 months.
Gerakan central committee member Lau Hoi Keong said the party would submit the
signatures along with a memorandum to the Attorney-General as well as Prime
Minister's Office for consideration.
"We want to bring it to their attention that there is a lot of support for the
abolition of the death penalty in this country," he said. "Our aim is to
respect life, and guarantee all aspects of humanity and justice."
The party proposed that the death penalty should instead be replaced with life
imprisonment, with or without parole.
(source: Free Malaysia Today)
BANGLADESH:
Bangladesh: Halt Execution of War Crimes Accused
The death sentence against Abdul Qader Mollah, a leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami
party convicted of war crimes during Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence,
should immediately be stayed due to fair trial concerns, Human Rights Watch
said today. Mollah should be granted a right to appeal against the conviction
and death sentence.
"Human Rights Watch opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as an
irreversible, degrading, and cruel punishment," said Brad Adams, Asia director.
"It is particularly reprehensible in cases where laws were retroactively passed
in order to enable the death penalty, and where the right to appeal against
such a final judgment is not allowed."
The death sentence was handed down based on retroactively amended legislation,
a move which violates international fair trial standards. On February 5, 2013,
Mollah was sentenced to life in prison by the International Crimes Tribunal
(ICT), a domestic court holding trials for the atrocities in Bangladesh's 1971
war of liberation from West Pakistan. He was convicted on 5 of 6 counts,
including murder and rape as crimes against humanity and war crimes. He was
acquitted on 1 count of murder.
In response to large public protests demanding the death sentence for Mollah,
the government passed amendments to the ICT law on February 17, allowing the
prosecution to appeal the sentence. Until the Mollah case, the prosecution was
only allowed to appeal if the accused was acquitted.
On September 17, the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court reversed the life
sentence on Mollah and imposed the death penalty for murder and rape as crimes
against humanity. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR), to which Bangladesh is a state party, prohibits the retroactive
application of criminal law that has a negative effect on the defense. Although
people sentenced to death in Bangladesh in regular courts are allowed the right
to appeal, government authorities, including the Attorney General, stated that
Mollah has no such right and have insisted that Mollah exhausted all legal
options.
The only recourse left open to Mollah, according to government authorities, is
to appeal to the President of Bangladesh for clemency. The ICCPR states that
everyone convicted of a crime has the right to have their conviction and
sentence reviewed by a higher tribunal according to law.
"Human Rights Watch has long supported justice and accountability for the
horrific crimes that occurred in 1971, but we have also stated repeatedly that
these trials must meet the highest standards in order to properly deliver on
those promises for the victims," Adams said. "Hanging Mollah on the basis of
retroactive legislation and then denying him the right to appeal against this
sentence is a grave violation of his fundamental rights."
The United Nations Human Rights Committee, which interprets the ICCPR, has said
that "in cases of trials leading to the imposition of the death penalty,
scrupulous respect of the guarantees of fair trial is particularly important"
and that any death penalty imposed after an unfair trial would be a violation
of the right to a fair trial.
Although the Bangladeshi constitution contains a safeguard against retroactive
application of laws, a subsequent amendment removes these protections from
those accused of war crimes. Human Rights Watch has long called for the repeal
of this amendment as it violates international law.
"The denial of the right to appeal against the death penalty, in a case so
fraught with problems, highlights the need for the government to revoke this
retrograde amendment to the Constitution," Adams said. "Justice is needed - and
especially for the sake of the victims, these trials must not be tainted." Of
particular concern in the Mollah case is the fact that the count on which the
Appellate Division of the Supreme Court sentenced Mollah to death rests on
accusations of which he was acquitted during the trial phase.
"Human Rights Watch takes no position on the guilt or innocence of any of the
accused at the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh," Adams said. "But
delivering real justice involves adhering to Bangladeshi and international
standards - not hanging a man based on a law hastily enacted retroactively."
(source: Human Rights Watch)
SOUTH AFRICA:
Israel lobbied against death penalty for Nelson Mandela, new documents show
Newly declassified documents reveal that the Israeli Foreign Ministry, under
the leadership of future prime minister Golda Meir, in 1964 convinced Jewish
philosopher Martin Buber and Israeli author Haim Hazaz to send a letter asking
the South African apartheid government not to seek the death penalty against
Nelson Mandela and other African National Congress (ANC) members in their
trial.
"Talk to them. Listen to them. They have something to say. You will not silence
their voices by hanging them. ... From the land of Israel, we ask you to assert
your faith in the nobility of man, whatever the color of his skin. And if you
'do unto others' in accordance with this faith, the future is yours, and theirs
- and the world's," Buber and Hazaz wrote, according to documents released
Sunday by the Israel State Archives, Israel Hayom reported.
Mandela, who died Dec. 5, had been indicted for sabotage and conspiracy. He was
sentenced to life in prison, but earned his freedom in 1990 and became South
African president in 1994.
(source: JNS.org)
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