May 22
IRAN:
23 executions in 2 days ---- Iranian Resistance calls for saving the lives of
10 young prisoners facing the gallows
At a time when 23 prisoners were executed on May 17 and 18 in the prisons of
Urumieh, Tabriz, Yazd, Yasouj, Sari and Mashhad across Iran, another 10 young
prisoners between the ages of 21 and 25 are currently facing imminent
execution. On Saturday, May 21, these inmates were transferred from various
wards, including the youths' ward, in Gohardasht Prison in Karaj (west of
Tehran) to solitary confinement in the quarantine ward of this facility,
specifically allocated for prisoners before being sent to the gallows. The
Iranian Resistance calls on the international community and especially human
rights organizations to take urgent action aimed at preventing these vicious
executions. The goal of the mullahs' regime in Iran, already engulfed in
crises, in increasing the horrendous use of executions is to cement a climate
of fear in society to rein in increasing social protests.
Yasouj public prosecutor Mehrdad Karimi said that these executions "will teach
a lesson for others in the society, and the judiciary will take action with the
utmost severity and full jurisdiction."
"There is no longer any time for counseling and this is a black month for
hooligans and thugs; a new trend has been launched in the judiciary system ...
in the next few days several hooligans and thugs will be executed," said
Isfahan Province police chief Abdulreza Agha-Khani while launching the
oppressive "Social Security" plan from May 21 and announcing the arrest of 7
individuals described as 'hooligans and thugs.'
In implementing the plan to improve security, the struggle against hooligans
and thugs is priority number one, and actions will be taken against drug
distributors, people harassing women, raucousness regarding vice and hijab
regulations, violating luxurious halls and restaurants, dog runners and
vehicles with +20% tinted windows," he added. (State-run Tasnim news agency -
May 21, 2016).
(source: Secretariat of the National Council of Resistance of Iran)
ISRAEL:
A Death Penalty Only for Palestinians ---- There are so many reasons to oppose
capital punishment. But Avigdor Lieberman's attempt to adopt it is particularly
odious.
The question of the death penalty is once again on the public agenda, because
this was one of MK Avigdor Lieberman's demands in his negotiations to bring his
Yisrael Beiteinu party into the coalition. But Lieberman will apparently give
up on a bill sponsored by Sharon Gal, a former Knesset member from his party,
that would have allowed Israel's civilian courts to impose the death penalty
for terrorist murders.
Instead, he is focusing on an attempt to actualize an existing but hitherto
dormant legal provision allowing military courts in the territories to impose
the death penalty. This would be done by scrapping the rule that capital
punishment can be imposed only if it is unanimously approved by the military
judges hearing the case. Lieberman's proposal would allow capital punishment
even if only a majority of the judicial bench supports it.
It should be noted that as long as the military prosecution's policy of not
even seeking the death penalty remains unaltered, the possibility of capital
punishment is unlikely to arise. Nevertheless, it's clear that the new
legislation is also an attempt to sway the military prosecution and instruct it
on how to behave.
Therefore, to all the known arguments against the death penalty - which have
led to its abolition in all Western democracies aside from a few U.S. states -
an additional argument must be added, one that justifies a special and vigorous
opposition to the current effort to enact capital punishment: This is an
attempt to apply the death penalty to only one population group only: the
Palestinians. After all, an Israeli citizen who perpetrates a terrorist murder
(like the murder of a Palestinian family in the West Bank village of Duma,
according to the indictment) will be brought to trial in a civilian court, not
a military one.
This selective application of the death penalty (which admittedly already
exists on paper, but which the government is now seeking to implement) is
liable to further erode Israel's international legitimacy as a country aspiring
to belong to the family of democratic states. And on this issue, it won't be
possible to rely on the American precedent, because capital punishment in
America isn't applied selectively to a certain population group.
Aside from the discrimination the government is seeking to promote, the very
fact that this demand to allow capital punishment, whether by military or
civilian courts, is even being discussed in principle ought to worry us.
Morally, this is a shocking punishment: A state is taking a life in the name of
its citizens. And this is happening at a time when even the best researchers
haven't succeeded in proving that capital punishment creates deterrence, and
despite the possibility, which has occurred in practice, that an innocent
person might be convicted.
The claim that the state ought to have the authority to put terrorists to death
by court order also leads to support for executions motivated by revenge. This
is the road to moral degeneration, ending in a violent, undemocratic society
that lacks the rule of law. In this regard, it's possible to see a link between
the circumstances under which Lieberman is replacing Defense Minister Moshe
Ya'alon and Lieberman's insistence on adopting capital punishment.
(source: Editorial, Ha'aretz)
*************
Introducing capital punishment for terrorists was one of Lieberman's
preconditions for joining the coalition
Avigdor Lieberman, who is set to become Israel's minister of defense, has
withdrawn his demand of introducing capital punishment for terrorists as a
precondition for joining Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's coalition, the
Times of Israel website reported Saturday.
The leader of the nationalist party Yisrael Beitenu (Israel is our home) is
expected to replace Moshe Ya'alon, who resigned on Friday saying extremists had
taken over the country.
Yaalon said he no longer trusted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after the
hawkish premier offered his post to Lieberman in a bid to expand the governing
coalition's wafer-thin majority.
Capital punishment is currently not practiced in Israel, and only 2 people were
executed in the state's history: the Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann and a
soldier accused of treason and exonerated posthumously.
Last year, Lieberman's bill was voted down in the 1st reading by 94-6.
(source: i24news.tv)
ZIMBABWE:
Killing, Murder and the Death Sentence
It is common knowledge that the original scripts of the modern day Bible were
written in either Hebrew, Greek or Latin languages. On translation into
English, it should be an acceptable fact that in some instances improper
English words could have been used to describe certain original meanings.
The sixth of the first 10 commandments of Mount Sinai states (Exodus 20 verse
13); "You shall not kill". This is a simple statement of a verbal command as it
does not give any guidelines on how and when the killing constitutes a sin.
Killing is to deprive of life. The commandment does not distinguish whether the
killing is against humans, animals or any other creatures. This would render
the killing of anything to be unlawful and a sin. It lacks clarity. This,
therefore, creates the problems of interpretation and the subsequent debates on
the death sentence.
For that reason, the proper English word which should have been used in the
commandment is "murder" and not "kill".
Murder confines the killing to only that of other humans. "Killing" is too
ambiguous for the word to give a properly defined meaning to the commandment.
The Lord our God actually defines the prohibited act of ending life, in Exodus
21, verse 14. He spoke directly to the people of Israel at Mount Sinai, saying;
"If a man wilfully attacks another to kill him treacherously, you shall take
him from my altar that he may die". In simpler terms He is talking of murder,
the deliberate ending of the life of another by deceitful means and with an
evil intention. There is no justified purpose to kill in this instance. God
expands on the definition to speak of the acts of killing that do not
constitute a sin. Verse 13 of Exodus 21 quotes Him saying, "But if he did not
lie in wait for him, but God let him fall into his hand, then I will appoint
for you a place to which he may flee". He is, therefore, seeking to exonerate
those who kill other humans by accident or for lawful purposes. He gives them
protection from accusation of murder. He, therefore, recognises that there are
circumstances when the killing of another human can be excused. This,
therefore, brings us to the current debates on the validity or justification
for the imposition of the death sentences.
Proponents of human rights would argue that no one has a right to end the life
of any other human, no matter the reason behind it. They have at times fought
successfully against the death sentence, regardless of how gruesome the crime.
In cases where an individual has wilfully and treacherously murdered another,
as God put it, the first question to be asked is whose rights then should be
valued more, the rights of the murderer or the vanquished rights of the victim?
The 2nd question is, if the murderer shows no remorse at all for ending the
life of an innocent soul, or even gives pride to his actions for whatever
reason, should his life be valued over that of the innocent victim?
Surprisingly, people support rights to abortion to end the lives of many unborn
little innocent children.
Therefore, on one side the human rights proponents are fighting for the
abolition of the death penalty and on the other they are calling for allowing
for the right to murder an unborn baby. What kind of confusion is this? While I
support the concept of human rights, it is obvious that sometimes these rights
are being misapplied.
The Lord our God does not want anyone to treacherously take out the life which
He created, since that life belongs to Him. The punishment for such a crime is
death, so says the Lord. In the book of Genesis, chapter 9 verse 6, God spoke
to Noah and his sons, saying; "Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his
blood be shed, for God made man in his own image". This is the authority that
the Lord our God vested in mankind to shed the blood of callous and unrepentant
murderers.
Let's go back to the question on whether it is right or wrong to pronounce and
effect a death sentence on anyone. God's answer is simply "Yes", if it is
proved beyond any reasonable doubt that the crime was committed wilfully and
for evil intent. If the murderer shows no remorse at all for the crime, and no
value to human life, he should be taken out of society to die. He is a danger
to society even in the prisons where he might be kept. To protect other
innocent lives, he should lose his life. However, where there are extenuating
circumstances, any mitigating factors, and if the murderer regrets his actions
and pleads for forgiveness, then and only then should there be a "stay of
execution". God forgives those who seek repentance. He is a merciful God.
Some people have argued that at times some people are sentenced to death for
the crimes they did not commit. While this is true, it is the duty of the
courts to ensure that adequate guidelines and measures are put in place to
avoid such occurrences. Even the Lord our God gave mankind the guidelines to
follow to avoid sentencing innocent people to death. In the book of Deuteronomy
17 verse 6, He put a law into place for judges and for the courts, saying; "On
the evidence of 2 witnesses or of 3 witnesses he that is to die shall be put to
death". He reiterated the same thing in the book of Numbers, chapter 35 verse
30, saying; "If anyone kills a person, the murderer shall be put to death on
the evidence of witnesses; but no person shall be put to death on the testimony
of one witness". He, therefore, seeks to eliminate wrong convictions. This
should be strictly adhered to, to prevent any such mishaps.
Being a Christian and a follower of Jesus Christ, I would want to quote the
teachings He gave to mankind (Matthew 5 verse 21-26); "You have heard that it
was said to the man of old, 'You shall not kill; and whoever kills shall be
liable to judgement'. But I say to you everyone who is angry with his brother
shall be liable to judgement. Whoever insults his brother shall be liable to
the council, and whoever says, 'you fool' shall be liable to the hell of fire.
So if you are offering your gift at the altar, and there you remember that your
brother has something against you, leave your gift there by the altar and go;
first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. Make
friends quickly with your accuser, while you are going with him to court, lest
your accuser land you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be
put in prison. Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you pay the
last penny".
(source: Opinion, Prosper Tingini, The Standard)
SINGAPORE:
Human rights lawyer to file complaint in UN for denial of Kho Jabing's right to
counsel
Human rights lawyer M Ravi has said in a Facebook post that Kho Jabing suffered
an egregious breach of his constitutional right to counsel just hours before he
was executed.
Mr Ravi said that he was with lawyer Alfred Dodwell and other activists outside
the Chambers of the judge on Thursday (19 May) evening, and so know that
Jabing's family had instructed both lawyers Alfred Dodwell and Jeannette
Chong-Aruldoss to represent him at the hearing which was fixed before Judicial
Commissioner (JC) Kannan.
In pointing out that there were 3 state counsels present at the hearing, Mr
Ravi said that he was astounded when Mr Dodwell was denied entry into the
Judge's Chambers by the court officer. Only Mrs Chong-Aruldoss was allowed into
the Chambers. Mr Ravi said that this was very unusual and that after three
hours of hearing, Ms Chong-Aruldoss came out of the chambers to inform the
activists and him that that Mr Dodwell was not allowed.
"When the state had 3 counsels, why can't Kho Jabing have 2 counsels to
represent him," asked Mr Ravi.
"This is his constitutional right," said Mr Ravi in pointing out Article 9(3)
of the Constitution which said: "Where a person is arrested, he ... shall be
allowed to consult and be defended by a legal practitioner of his choice."
Mr Ravi said that the JC "had clearly breached Article 9(3) of the Constitution
of Kho Jabing's right to counsel and to be defended by a lawyer or any number
of lawyers of his choice."
"I will be shortly filing a complaint against the Singapore State in this
matter with Mr. Christof Heyes, who is the UN Special Rapporteur on Extra
Judicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions or Killing," he added.
Meanwhile Mr Dodwell in thanking blogger Andrew Loh for writing a Facebook note
thanking the anti-death penalty activists and lawyers who defend death-row
inmates said that he "could choose to sue Bilahari for his defamatory statement
that it was "politically motivated"."
He added: "I reflected on it and I will take the high road and don't waste my
life on insignificant people whose views really does not matter. It's venomous
and erroneous."
Mr Bilahari Kausikan, Singapore's Ambassador-at-large, had in sharing the news
report of the lawyers' attempts to save the murderer's life suggested that it
was politically motivated.
Mr Kausikan said: "This politically motivated 11th hour attempt to stay
execution is despicable. If there were no new facts or arguments, they must -
unless they were totally incompetent lawyers - have known that the appeal would
fail. So they raised false hope in Mr Kho's family and perhaps in Mr Kho
himself for their own political agenda. That is completely cynical and ought to
be condemned."
(source: The Independent)
VIETNAM:
Australia-bound woman arrested in Vietnam 'with 1 kilogram of methamphetamines'
A Vietnamese woman has been arrested at Ho Chi Minh's international airport
bound for Australia allegedly with 1 kilogram of methamphetamine.
Vietnamese officials said the arrest of the 76-year-old woman, late on Friday,
came as she prepared to board a Vietnam Airlines flight to Sydney.
Vietnamese media said security officers made the arrest after allegedly
uncovering the methamphetamine pills in 2 jars of fish paste - a delicacy in
many Asian dishes.
Officers said investigations were continuing looking into the case.
The arrest follows the detention last December of a 71-year-old
Vietnamese-Australian woman after police allegedly uncovered some three
kilograms of heroin hidden in 36 soap containers in her luggage.
The 71-year-old was also arrested at Tan Son Nhat international airport in Ho
Chi Minh City as she was checking in on a Sydney bound flight. The heroin had
an estimated value of $647,526.
In August 2015, Vietnamese authorities sentenced 39-year-old Australian Nguyen
Ly Toan to 20 years' jail for attempting to send drug precursor chemicals
through the postal service.
Nguyen had been arrested in July 2013 after Vietnamese customs officials
uncovered the chemicals in the packages bound for Australia.
Vietnam is reported to have among the world's toughest drug enforcement laws,
with the death penalty for those convicted of smuggling more than 600 grams of
heroin or of methamphetamines.
(source: news.com.au)
BANGLADESH:
Gazipur court orders death sentences for 4 in 2006 murder of businessman
4 men have been sentenced to death in Gazipur for killing a businessman to
extort money. On the night of Jan 27, 2006, Moksed Ali Sentu was hacked to
death at Tongi, a place in the district, after he refused to pay the money the
miscreants demanded.
In its verdict, delivered on Sunday, the court of Gazipur's Additional District
and Sessions Judge found four people guilty of the murder and ordered the death
penalty.
The convicts are Md Rubel alias Tiger Rubel, 35, 'Babu', 32, Ashraf Ali, 31,
and 'Soleman', 31.
All of them are absconding, said Additional Public Prosecutor Md Makbul Hossain
Kajal.
He said that each of the convicts have also been slapped a fine of Tk 10, 000
each and given 14 years rigorous imprisonment and another Tk 10,000 fine for a
separate charge.
(source: bdnews24.com)
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