July 11
BOTSWANA:
Death row 'hit men' plead for justice ---- 2 death row inmates have pleaded
with the Court of Appeal (CoA) to overturn their fate with their maker arguing
that they were never the masterminds behind the killing of an innocent old man
in 2008.
In an emotionally charged court appearance yesterday the duo, Daniel Semi (30)
and Gaolatlhe Thusang (35) through their respective lawyers called on the bench
to consider the circumstances leading to the killing of 1 Motlhanka Motukwa in
what was described as a motive for financial stimulus.
The duo, who hail from Ntlhantlhe in the Southern District, were condemned to
death in 2010 by Lobatse High Court Judge Michael Leburu despite pronouncement
by Judge Tshepo Motswagole that the death penalty was unconstitutional.
Leburu had squashed the declaration by Motswagole and proceeded to sentence the
2 to death and according to evidence that was before court, they were hired as
hitmen by their co-accused at the time, Agisanyang Motukwa.
Agisanyang was said to have hired the 2 to kill his father after believing he
was bewitching him. They had pleaded not guilty to the charge of murder.
Semi's lawyer Dumezweni Mthimkhulu in his submissions said he was not happy
that his client received the harshest sentence while the principal mastermind
behind the killing walked away with murder.
He said the court should serve justice by ordering a retrial or at least meting
a lesser sentence to the duo because they were never the masterminds from the
beginning to the end when they murdered the old man.
With emotions running high and often reminded by the bench to calm down,
Mthimkhulu explained there was extensive planning from the mastermind
Agisanyang and accomplice witness, Modise Sekai to murder the old man at a
particular time and that his client was only roped in to do the dirty work
following their recruitment by Sekai.
"The principal masterminds should have been the ones receiving the harshest
punishment, it is not fair that they had a custodial sentence while those who
did not even plan to kill were given death sentences; a retrial would at least
allow the convicts to be satisfied that they had been given a fair trial," he
argued.
He submitted that there was no evidence that his client benefited from the
money they were promised as hitmen but only that they were made to believe that
the old man was bewitching his son.
"Motukwa as the principal mastermind had such an influence on them and had made
them believe that his father was bewitching him.
With the little education that they had, they believed and looked up to him,
that's when even when they were recruited they never asked any questions. There
is no evidence that they benefited from the criminal act," Mthimkhulu said.
On the evidence of the accomplice witness that was used to convict the 2,
Mthimkhulu said the court erred in holding that he was a credible witness as
the evidence demonstrated that he was an unreliable witness and a liar in many
respects.
He said the accomplice had even admitted to court to have lied on other issues
but nonetheless the court formed the opinion that he gave evidence in a simple
and in a straightforward manner.
"The trial court never dealt with the contradictory evidence of the accomplice
witness even though he had admitted to have made up certain things. What else
did he lie about? Yet his testimony was used to convict our clients," he
submitted.
Thusang's lawyer Moses Kayde who appeared emotionally charged and often clashed
with the judges in his submissions called for a lesser sentence saying even the
cause of death was unascertained by the pathologist therefore making the
conviction of the two not safe. He submitted that since the pathologist has
explained in findings and given 2 scenarios about the body, the court should
not have blindly accepted his evidence but should have decided for itself.
Kayde argued that there were also extenuating circumstances that the two were
brainwashed to believe that the old man was bewitching his son since they too
believed in witchcraft.
"The first appellant was the instigating force behind and he even brainwashed
the 2 to completely believe in him and believe that he was being bewitched;
they only acted on that basis," he maintained.
State lawyer, Rahim Khan had a tough time pleasing the judges about
Agisanyang's lucky escape of 25 years while he was the mastermind behind the
killing of his father.
After failing to convince the judge and trying to justify the duo's death
sentence, Khan said it was all up the judges to decide the suitable punishment
for the 2.
"Even though I maintain that the 2 are guilty and have acted to kill the old
man, its all up to Your Lordships to interfere with the sentence and decide
what is best," he said.
Meanwhile Agisanyang (34) who is said to have hired the 2 hitmen for insurance
money also appeared in person as he tried to overturn his conviction and
sentence.
Having submitted a lengthy heads of argument the court only allowed him a
minimal time in which he asked the court to take into account that at the time
he was said to have confessed to killing his father, he was not under the right
state of mind.
He asked the bench to take into consideration the evidence of the traditional
doctor that at the time he looked to have been mentally unstable.
"The traditional doctor should be taken as a person of authority and that his
evidence should be taken into account as at the time he was my doctor and I had
confessed to him," he said.
(source: Mmegi.bw)
INDIA:
Teenager seeks death penalty for mother in India----Woman accused of hiring
killers to murder husband
A teenager in Bihar has sought the death penalty for his mother after she was
accused of hiring a contract killer to kill her husband, officials said on
Monday.
The accused woman, along with the contract killers, are being held in custody.
The man was allegedly killed over an extramarital affair his wife had with a
youth.
"My father loved us a lot but my mother got him killed. I will never forgive
her. I want death for my mother," the teenager, identified as Sunny Kumar, said
on Monday.
It was left to the young man to performed the last rites of his father Ashok
Kumar Singh, a painter.
He said he would die rather than stay with his mother. At present, he has moved
in with his uncle.
"My father was a kind-hearted person," Kumar said.
Singh's killing at the weekend led to strong protests in the area.
Even his wife Rani Devi had joined the villagers' protests, crying hysterically
and seeking the arrest of the culprits, which made police suspicious.
Investigations into the case later found it was the victim's wife, 40, who had
hatched the conspiracy along with her boyfriend to murder her husband.
According to the police, she had hired the killers for Rs50,000 (Dh2,734). She
was handing over the 1st instalment of a Rs20,000 cheque to the killers, using
funds she had been provided by the local administration as ex-gratia money,
when the accused persons were arrested by the police.
"The murder case has been solved now. The murder of the victim was planned by
his wife who had an extramarital affair with her boyfriend," the local district
superintendent of police Rakesh Kumar said.
(source: Gulf News)
***************
Delhi gangrape: Supreme Court to fast-track appeals filed by 4 convicts
challenging death penalty----A special bench of the apex court decided to hear
their plea from 2 pm to 6 pm every day, July 18 onwards.
Supreme Court to fast-track appeals filed by 4 convicts challenging death
penalty
The Supreme Court on Monday decided to work extra hours to fast-track a hearing
in the December 16, 2012 Delhi gangrape and murder case. The 4 convicts in the
case - Mukesh Singh, Akshay Thakur, Pawan Gupta and Vinay Sharma - challenged
the death sentence awarded to them by the Delhi High Court. A special bench
will hear their plea from 2 pm to 6 pm every day, July 18 onwards, ANI
reported.
6 individuals had gangraped a 23-year-old woman in a moving bus in Delhi on
December 16, 2012. The victim, whom they had brutally abused, had succumbed to
her injuries on December 29 the same year at a hospital in Singapore.
The incident had triggered countrywide protests and demands to ensure better
safety for women in India. The outrage had forced the government to introduce
new laws on rape.
The prime accused in the case, Ram Singh, committed suicide in Tihar Jail on
March 11, 2013, while the 6th convict - a juvenile - was released on December
20 last year after serving a 3-year sentence under the Juvenile Justice Act.
(soruce: scroll.in)
MALDIVES:
The 1st execution in 60 years - help stop this
The Maldives are preparing to resume executions, and Hussain Humaam Ahmed will
be the 1st death row inmate to be killed in over 60 years.
There are serious concerns about the fairness of the murder trial, and without
your help Humaam could be hung within 30 days. Call on the authorities in the
Maldives to halt the execution before it's too late.
23 year old Humaam was sentenced to death after he was found guilty of
murdering MP Afrasheem Ali. The Maldives President pledged to hang death row
inmates within 30 days of the Supreme Court upholding a guilty verdict, which
means Humaam's days are now numbered.
A key piece of evidence in the trial was Humaam's 'confession' which he later
explained was extracted by force after authorities threatened the safety of his
family.
Humaam and his family also maintain that he suffers from a mental disability
which was not assessed or considered during the trial.
If carried out, this execution will be the 1st in more than 60 years. There are
17 other prisoners on death row that could be next, at least 5 of which are
juvenile offenders.
(source: Amnesty Internatnional)
INDONESIA:
Indonesia to ramp up number of executions - including foreigners killed by
firing squads - in war on drugs
Indonesia is to increase the number of prisoners executed by firing squad in
its war on drugs.
The country's attorney general Muhammad Prasetyo has said at least 2 convicts
will be lined up and shot soon for their crimes.
Among those facing the death penalty are foreigners, he said, but he did not
elaborate upon the crimes of which they are convicted.
Prasetyo said: 'The implementation of the executions will be carried out after
the (Eid al-Fitr) holiday period that has just ended.
'There are more than 2 people, and there are foreigners. There are protests but
we will still carry out the executions.'
Indonesia last year executed 14 people, mostly foreign drug traffickers, and
has vowed to ramp up that number despite international condemnation.
Prasetyo previously said 16 prisoners would be executed this year at a minimum
and more than double that number next year.
At least 121 people are on death row in Indonesia, including 35 foreigners,
mostly convicted of drug-related crimes, according to the Justice Ministry.
They include Mary Jane Veloso from the Philippines, Lindsay Sandiford from
Britain and Frenchman Serge Atlaoui.
British grandmother Lindsay Sandiford from Redcar on Teesside, has been on
death row since December 2012 after attempting to smuggle cocaine into Bali
after arriving on a flight from Bangkok.
The 59-year-old admitted smuggling 4.8kg (10.6lb) of the drug but said she was
pressured by a smuggling gang.
However, Miss Sandiford sounded philosophical when she was interviewed by the
Mail on Sunday last year.
She said: I'm nearly 60 and a lot of people don't live to be this age. Being
lined up and shot isn't the ending I'd pick, but everyone has to go somehow.'
(source: Daily Mail)
***************
Indonesia Prepares for Another Round of Executions----It is a case of domestic
considerations trumping international image.
If you want to point at one incident that transformed Indonesian President Joko
"Jokowi" Widodo from an inspiring, hopeful candidate to the oft-criticized,
ineffective head of a unruly cabinet, it happened early last year, when his
administration, to the surprise of both international observers and those in
Indonesia's human rights community, who mostly supported Jokowi's election,
executed 14 people, including 12 foreign nationals, for drug crimes. It was,
amazingly, the largest single-use of the death penalty since Indonesia became a
democracy at the turn of the millennium.
"It was a surprise moment," said Ricky Gunawan, a lawyer with the non-profit
legal aid organization LBH Masyarakat who defends those charged with drug
crimes in Indonesia. "We in the Indonesian human rights community thought he
would bring positive change." The executions were widely criticized by foreign
governments and civil society groups, both internationally and within
Indonesia.
Initially, the uproar seemed to give way to a surprising calm. For much of the
past year there was barely any mention of executions from the central
government, leading many to think that Jokowi had changed his position. Then,
suddenly and seemingly out of nowhere, Jokowi doubled-down on the war on drugs
as one of the centerpieces of his administration, amazingly even calling it
Indonesia's number 1 problem in a speech a few months ago.
Now, using drugs as a justification, Indonesia aims to resume executions, with
a yet-unnamed 16 Indonesian and foreign nationals to face a firing squad,
apparently soon. This will likely lead to another international diplomatic
uproar and, once again, damage both Jokowi, and Indonesia's reputation
globally. But for Jokowi and those around him, the benefits outweigh the costs,
at least where it matters - domestically.
Domestic Priorities
Perhaps it should not have been such a surprise that Jokowi - who, before
ascending to the presidency was the governor of 2 Indonesian cities and had
absolutely no foreign policy experience - has had a domestic focus during his
presidency. This is one of the biggest shifts from his predecessor, the
image-conscious, globe-trotting Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
"From 2012-2014, there were no executions," said Gunawan. "[Yudhoyono] was a
president who really cared about his international reputation and knew it would
be damaged if they massively execute people."
Jokowi, conversely, just does not care much about his international reputation.
While last year's executions may have hurt the rose-tinted global image many
internationally still had of him, within Indonesia, Jokowi's honeymoon was long
over by January 2015. In fact, the initial round of executions were one of the
first decisive actions by the new president, and were strongly supported among
Indonesians. Whatever prestige he may have lost abroad was more than made up by
what he gained domestically.
Popular Distraction
By saying drugs are Indonesia's top problem, Jokowi is diverting attention from
the other challenges he has, thus far, failed to address. His nearly 2-year
long presidency has been rife with challenges, many of which are out of his
control. Last year's devastating fires, the neutering of the country's
corruption institution, and the slow progress on improving the country's
infrastructure have all tainted his image as someone who gets things done, and
left many Indonesians disillusioned.
In the face of this, drugs are an easy target - a threatening, foreign menace
that is destroying the fabric of Indonesian society and can be tackled by
force. The figures he states are quite astounding - 4.5 million addicts, 40-50
young people dying each day from drug use. Stats that, according to Andreas
Harsono, Indonesia Researcher with Human Rights Watch (HRW), are faulty. "The
figures quoted by Jokowi and parroted by national officials and media outlets
are based on studies with questionable methods and vague measures," said
Harsono. They seem to be created more to support an existing narrative, rather
than present information about a problem.
Moreover, the use of the death penalty is still supported by most Indonesians.
This creates a rare instance where Jokowi can show decisiveness.
"The death penalty [has] more than 80 % support," said Harsono, adding that the
role of Islamic groups, who support its use, makes it harder for the opposition
to gain momentum. This is worrisome to HRW as the focus on the death penalty
and the war on drugs is taking attention away from Indonesia's festering human
rights challenges.
"The Jokowi administration ... has not solved most widely-cited human rights
problems in Indonesia, for example. religious freedom, discrimination against
women in the name of the Sharia, and Papua's longstanding rights abuses," said
Harsono. Here, rhetoric has failed to match reality. "For example, Jokowi asked
all political prisoners to be released, but so far only 6 prisoners were
released. There are nearly 70 others are still jailed."
The other question is - how much of this policy can be attributed to Jokowi
himself? His cabinet has been noted for its contradictory policies and lack of
cohesion, something most visible in the way in which certain members, such as
Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Susi Pudjiastuti, seem to act on
their own, independent of Jokowi.
"A narrative that people have is that it's really interests within the
judiciary and police who want to carry out the executions," said Tom Pepinsky
an Indonesia expert at Cornell University's Southeast Asia Program. "Jokowi
does not have the political capital to stop it, or, perhaps, doesn't think it's
such a big deal."
According to Gunawan, the idea of executions seems to come up whenever a
political leader is facing a potential scandal or political pressure.
"Executions are used as a tool to avoid certain issues," said Gunawan, citing
an example of how the Jakarta High Prosecutor's office had the Attorney General
issue news about the next round of executions - days after his office was
searched the Corruption Eradication Commission.
Limited Impact
Perhaps Jokowi is right to ignore any international furor. While the rhetoric
from Australia, Brazil, and other nations was fierce last year, and did hurt
Jokowi's image globally, there was little other substantive impact. Every
country quickly returned to having normal relations with Jakarta, and none took
any actions beyond symbolic statements, such as temporarily recalling their
ambassadors. Chances are, no matter what country's citizens end up on the list,
the situation will be the same this time.
"For better or worse, executing criminals for drug crimes, is [not very] likely
to shape bilateral relations with any of Indonesia's neighbors," said Pepinsky.
In fact, any international outrage might be counterproductive, making it only
harder for Jokowi, if he wanted to, to stand up to those within his
administration, or in parliament, who support this policy. But it will impact
his standing among Indonesians.
"There's a sense that Jokowi showing decisiveness and independence is great for
his domestic position," said Pepinsky. "It would be very easy for a competitor
to criticize him for giving into foreign pressures."
Thus, the best hope for a shift in policy comes domestically, from the voices
of the minority of Indonesians opposed to the death penalty. They've had some
success - it was local civil society, last year, who were key saving 1 woman,
Filipino citizen Mary Jane Veloso, from being executed, and they are gearing up
to fight again.
Also notably, popular former President BJ Habibie has come out against the
death penalty and the executions. Still, it will be tough for the opposition to
win. This round of executions is expected to be followed by another round, as
the administration expands the war on drugs and regularizes capital punishment.
It is a big change from the Indonesia of the 2000s, when executions were rare,
and progress on human rights and justice was measured in strides.
Who would have thought when Jokowi was elected that we???d look back on the
2000s with such nostalgia, so soon?
(source: Nithin Coca, The Diplomat)
PHILIPPINES:
Negros solon backs death penalty
Rep. Melecio Yap (Neg. Occ., 1 st District) yesterday said he is supporting the
move to restore the death penalty.
Yap said he supports the restoration of death penalty for drug-related cases
and heinous crimes.
Yap, former mayor of Escalante City, is a member of the Nationalist People's
Coalition.
Incoming Speaker of the House, Rep. Pantaleon Alvarez (Davao del Norte), and
Rep. Frednil Castro (Capiz, 2 nd District) earlier filed House Bill No.1
re-imposing the death penalty on certain heinous crimes by lethal injection.
Senator Manny Pacquiao has filed a counterpart bill in the Senate, which he
said was in support of President Rodrigo Duterte's campaign against drugs.
House Bill No. 01 seeks the death penalty for human trafficking, illegal
recruitment, plunder, treason, parricide, infanticide, rape, qualified piracy
and bribery, kidnapping and illegal detention, robbery with violence against or
intimidation of persons, car theft, destructive arson, terrorism and
drug-related cases, among others.
"There is evidently a need to reinvigorate the war against criminality by
reviving a proven deterrent coupled by its consistent, persistent and
determined implementation, and this need is as compelling and critical as any,"
HB No. 01 says.
Meanwhile, Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said Malaca???ang favors
mandatory drug testing for government employees to regain the trust of the
public.
"It is a very powerful symbolic act that would show that we in government are
proper and are worthy of trust," he said.
(soruce: The Visayan Daily Star)
******************
PH death penalty bad for Veloso
Indonesian penitentiary death row prisoner Mary Jane Veloso and 87 other
similarly situated Filipino overseas workers will be deprived of a chance of
absolution as soon as the capital punishment is restored in the country.
Pro-life Rep. Lito Atienza issued this warning as he stressed that the
Philippine government's efforts to save the lives of OFW languishing in death
prisons overseas will effectively be counteracted by the death penalty bill
being pushed by the Duterte government.
"One of the many ramifications (of the return of the death penalty) is that the
Philippine government would be deprived of the moral high ground when it comes
to our official appeals for clemency - for foreign governments to spare the
lives of our citizens who are facing execution," said Atienza who represents
Buhay party-list which is pushing for a pro-life legislative agenda.
Backed by the huge El Shaddai Catholic Charismatic group, Buhay has been
leading party-list polls in nearly 2 decades now, partly because of its
hardline pro-life stance.
"Should Congress reinstate the cruel and inhuman punishment, it would be
extremely problematic for us to plead with other governments for compassion, if
we ourselves are killing own convicts here - if we ourselves do not respect the
value of human life," Atienza said.
(source: tempo.com.ph)
******************
Restoring death penalty may affect OFWs on death row
The Philippine government's efforts to save overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) on
death row abroad may be hurt with the reimposition of death penalty in the
country , a lawmaker has said.
Buhay Representative Lito Atienza reportedly said that reviving capital
punishment in the Philippines could affect the country's appeals for clemency
for OFWs who are facing execution abroad.
"Should Congress reinstate the cruel and inhuman punishment, it would be
extremely problematic for us to plead with other governments for compassion, if
we ourselves are killing own convicts here - if we ourselves do not respect the
value of human life," Atienza was quoted as saying by Rappler.
In 2015, OFW Mary Jane Veloso was about to be executed in Indonesia for drug
trafficking, but was granted an 11th hour reprieve due to appeals from the
government and civil society groups, the report said.
Atienza reportedly said that based on data from the Department of Foreign
Affairs, there are currently at least 88 Filipinos facing the death penalty
abroad - mostly in Malaysia and China - for various crimes.
Malaysia is one of the top 10 destinations of OFWs, based on data from the
Philippine Overseas Employment Administration. Other top OFW destinations
include Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Singapore, Qatar, Hong Kong,
Kuwait, Taiwan, Bahrain and Canada, said the news portal.
Of these 10, only Canada and Hong Kong have abolished the death penalty.
"Right now, without the death penalty for a long time already, the Philippine
government has great moral authority to invoke humanitarian grounds and implore
foreign governments for them to show mercy to Filipino citizens who are about
to be put to death," Atienza reportedly said.
After winning the May 9 elections, President Rodrigo Duterte vowed to
reintroduce capital punishment in the country by hanging.
Duterte has even met his allies in Congress on Saturday, July 9, and asked them
to revive the death penalty, reported Rappler.
(source: The Filipino Times)
MALAYSIA:
Govt urged to speed track abolishment of death penalty: Batu Kawan MP
A Penang parliamentarian has urged the federal government not to drag its feet
in abolishing the death penalty.
Batu Kawan MP P. Kasthuri said amendments to the law on such matters should be
tabled in the coming October Parliament sitting in a display of commitment to
uphold the right to life.
She said the burden lies with Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Nancy
Shukri, the de facto law minister, to bring the matter up to the Cabinet and
called upon the federal government not to shift the goal posts anymore on the
issue.
Kasthuri said the first shift happened in a March 2014 written reply to Puchong
MP Gobind Singh where the issue of abolishing the death penalty by the
government was non-existent.
She said the reply said this was because the State Pardons Board headed by the
Yang di-Pertuan Agong had full authority to abolish the death penalty for
offenses committed in the Federal Territories and the other states.
Kasthuri said the second shift occurs when the government cites that public
opinion was in favour of the death penalty but pointed out a Feb 2016 Gerakan
poll which showed more than half of the 1,523 respondents calling for an end to
the death penalty.
"The third shift of goal posts is not granting discretionary powers to the
judges to hand down different forms of punishment apart from the death
penalty," she added in a statement today.
(source: The Sun Daily)
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