Jan. 6
INDONESIA:
Drug trafficking former police worker Andrea Waldeck tells court of her shame
A former police community support officer spoke of the shame she had brought on
her country and family by smuggling drugs into Indonesia.
Andrea Waldeck's defence was making its final plea before she hears her
sentence for bringing 1.4kg (3lb) of crystal methamphetamine into the country.
The maximum sentence she could face is the death penalty.
The 43-year-old, who lived in Cheltenham, gave a 2-minute speech today at
Surabaya District Court, in reaction to a recommended 16-year jail sentence and
2bn rupiah (100,000 pounds) fine.
Waldeck was arrested at a hotel in East Java in April last year and the drugs
found hidden in her underwear.
She is due to hear her fate in a few weeks' time.
(source: Gloucestershire Echo)
MAURITANIA:
Young Muslim faces death penalty for criticising Mohammed
A young Muslim in Mauritania is facing a possible death sentence after being
convicted of apostasy and jailed for having written an article criticising the
Prophet Mohammed, a judicial source said Monday.
He was arrested on Thursday in Nouadhibou in the northwest of the country, an
Islamic republic, and "was convicted of lack of respect for the prophet," and
jailed, the source told AFP.
The author of the article will be brought before a judge and given the chance
to repent but if he refuses, "he risks the death penalty," the source added.
In the article, which was published on several Mauritanian websites but later
removed, he questioned the decisions taken by Islam's prophet and his
companions during the holy wars.
He also accused Mauritanian society of perpetuating "a sinful social order" and
defended those at the bottom rungs of society who he described as "marginalised
and discriminated against from birth."
It marked the 1st time an article criticising Islam and the prophet had been
published in Mauritania, where Sharia law is enforced - although severe
punishments like death sentences have not been applied since the 1980s.
(source: PM News Nigeria)
VIETNAM:
Death Penalty Asked for Drug Traffickers
A court from Vietnamese province of Quang Ninh filed a lawsuit against 89 drug
traffickers, most of whom could be given death penalties, reported today Than
Nhien newspaper.
According to the newspaper, the prosecutor asked capital punishment for 66 drug
dealers in the trial, the verdict of which will be announced on January 22nd.
The defendants, who are members of a criminal ring, were charged with bringing
in more than 1 ton of heroin, 35 kilograms of methamphetamine and other
psychotropic substances from Laos to transport them to China.
Some of them were also charged with gunrunning, illegal trading, falsification
of documents and bribery.
Vietnam is one of the countries with most severe legislations to fight drug
trafficking, which establishes death sentences for those that carry or traffic
more than 600 grams of heroin or 300 grams of other illegal drugs.
(source: Prensa Latina)
TUNISIA:
Tunisia to maintain capital punishment in future constitution
The National Constituent Assembly (NCA) voted for maintaining capital
punishment in the upcoming constitution. The votes were by 135 yes against a
total of 174. The NCA is voting on the draft constitution article by article
separately. The deputies will participate in a general vote where 2/3 majority
will be needed in order to enact Tunisia's 2nd constitution as after its
independence from France, 1956.
The article 27 says that "The right for life is scared and cannot be violated,
except in extreme cases regulated by the law,"
Reactions
Deputy Nadia Chaabbene from Almasar party called out for the cancellation of
capital punishment. Chaabane said that death penalty was used in the Bourguiba
era to exterminate individuals for their political convictions. Tunisia's 1959
constitution allows the judiciary body to use capital punishment as a sentence.
Statistically-speaking, 137 was executed between 1956 and 1987, 129 of them for
political reasons.
Death penalty history in Tunisia
Death penalty was last used in 1991. In the same year, a man was sentenced to
death penalty for charges of raping 14 children. It has been argued that the
Tunisian judiciary body has commuted the use of capital punishment using long
imprisonment sentences in lieu of the death penalty. According to estimates
made by Human Rights Watch, there were around 40 prisoners sentenced to death
in Tunisia as of February 2011. The estimations are based on an interview with
an official from the Ministry of Justice.
(source: Tunis Times)
*************
After Banning Takfir, Assembly Continues Vote to Approve Constitution
After a contentious Sunday session, Tunisia's National Constituent Assembly
(NCA) today resumed article by article voting on the new constitution.
The assembly has been tasked with approving the entire 146-article document by
January 13.
Monday's plenary session was supposed to be scheduled for the selection of the
membership of the board of elections. However, the NCA committee tasked with
submitting a final list of nominees to an NCA plenary session has not reached
consensus, deputy Karima Souid tweeted.
The NCA started the vote on the Rights and Liberties Chapter of the
constitution by adopting nine articles during today's morning session.
Among these are Article 21, which states that "life is sacred." This article,
however, maintains the legality of the the death penalty in "extreme cases
regulated by law." Proposed amendments to abolish this punishment were
rejected.
Though the death penalty has always existed in Tunisian law, the last execution
dates back to 1991.
Other articles approved today ban torture (Article 22), guarantee the right to
privacy and personal data protection (Article 23), and the right to a fair
trial (Article 26).
On Sunday, however, the constituent assembly did not achieve much progress on
approving the constitution. The day???s plenary session was disrupted by death
threats allegedly received by Popular Front opposition member Mongi Rahoui.
Rahoui reported receiving death threats following the declarations by Ennahdha
deputy Habib Ellouze, in which he referred to him as an "enemy of Islam."
In response to Rahoui's declaration, the opposition proposed an amendment to
Article 6 banning "takfir" (accusations of apostasy) to Article 6, which
guarantees freedom of conscience and religion. The amendment, which also bans
"incitement to violence," was approved by 131 votes in the 217-seat assembly.
Under Article 6, the state acts as the "guarantor of the neutrality of places
of worship" and "protector of the Sacred."
Amira Yahyaoui, president of NCA monitoring organization Al-Bawsala, criticized
the amendment and described it as "draconian" in a post on Twitter.
NCA deputies "from the Islamist camp till the so-called democratic one have
today voted against freedom of expression," she said on Sunday.
The NCA kicked off voting on the constitution last Friday by adopting the
preamble.
On Saturday, a total of 15 articles were adopted including the 1st 2 defining
Tunisia as a Republic and a "civil state governed by the supremacy of Law" and
establishing Islam as the state religion.
Proposed amendments to make the Quran and Sunnah (teachings of the Prophet
Mohammed) main sources of legislation were rejected.
(source: tunisia-live.net)
INDIA:
Rights activists to intensify campaign against death penalty ---- Efforts on to
create consensus among political parties, says Amnesty
With the Supreme Court refusing to entertain a petition filed by 4 death-row
convicts seeking retrial of their cases last Friday, human rights activists
have planned to intensify their campaign seeking abolition of capital
punishment. Associates of the slain forest brigand Veerappan - Simon,
Gnanaprakash, Bilavendra and Madhaiah - sought retrial on the ground that fresh
evidence had emerged in their cases.
While Amnesty International has plans to expedite its mission to forge a
political will and public consensus against the death penalty, the People's
Union for Civil Liberties urged the Government of India to exercise its
constitutional power of granting pardon when the situation warranted.
The basis of Veerappan's aides seeking retrial has a similarity with the case
of Perarivalan, on death row in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, who is
pinning his hopes on the statement of a former CBI official.
Retired Superintendent of Police V. Thiagarajan, who was involved in the
investigation of the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, said in a recent
interview that he had not recorded verbatim the statement of Perarivalan.
Amnesty International, India, Chief Executive G. Ananthapadmanabhan said
efforts were on to create consensus among political parties on the need to
abolish the death penalty. "We are in the process of formulating a strategy
where public opinion will be created and all political parties persuaded to
voice against death as a form of punishment," he said.
PUCL national general secretary V. Suresh said it was unfortunate the Supreme
Court refused to look into fresh evidence that raised doubts over the
involvement of the accused persons. "If fresh evidence goes to the root of the
case and raises doubts over the involvement of the accused in a crime, it
should be a ground for the court to order re-examination of the case."
(source: The Hindu)
****************
Perarivalan's mother alleges sons's imprisonment "unjustified"
Mother of a death row convict in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, today
alleged that the imprisonment of her son for over 22 years was unjustified
"since the conviction was based on his confessional statement that lacked
clarity and facts".
Talking to reporters here, Arputhammal referred to a documentary by People's
Movement Against Death Penalty, in which S P Thiyagarajan, former CBI officer
involved in the investigation into the case, had purportedly stated he had not
recorded verbatim A G Perarivalan,'s statement, and said that it established
that her son had no role in the conspiracy.
Thiyagarajan had said he had not recorded the part where the accused had told
him, he (Perarivalan) was not aware why he was asked to purchase the batteries.
Perarivalan alias Arivu was sentenced to death for buying battery cells to make
the belt bomb used to kill the former Prime Minister during an election rally
at Sriperumbudur here in May 1991.
"We finally see a ray of hope, my family is happy. We welcome Thiagarajan's
statement. This established our stand that my son had no role in the conspiracy
and knew nothing about the assassination", she said.
Perarivalan and 2 other death row convicts in the case, Murugan and Santhan,
have challenged the rejection of their mercy pleas by then President Pratibha
Patil.
(source: Business Standard)
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