Jan. 24
PHILIPPINES:
Curbs on death penalty interpellation scored
AKBAYAN party-list Rep. Tom Villarin yesterday accused the majority bloc at the
House of Representatives of prohibiting some neophyte members from being
included in the line-up of interpellators on the death penalty bill, which is
expected to be sponsored on the floor next week.
Villarin, a member of the opposition, said the move was a bid to expedite the
revival of capital punishment.
House majority leader Rodolfo Farinas, however, laughed off Villarin's claim,
saying there is no such thing as misinforming neophytes.
"I did not know that Rep. Villarin is the spokesperson of the committee on
rules," said Farinas, who chairs the rules panel which is in charge of
calendaring the measures that will deliberated upon on the floor.
Albay Rep. Edcel Lagman said the House leadership should just allow lawmakers
to vote based on the dictates of their conscience.
Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez has been informed that a "party vote" will be
followed since the bill is a priority measure of the administration.
The justice panel approved the bill, which is principally authored by Speaker
Pantaleon Alvarez, before Congress adjourned session last month for the
Christmas break.
House leaders aborted their plan to have the measure approved on final reading
before the break following vehement opposition from some lawmakers and the
Catholic Church.
House Bill No. 1, filed by Alvarez, seeks to punish offenders convicted of drug
felonies, murder, rape, robbery, carjacking, kidnapping, bribery, plunder,
parricide, infanticide, destructive arson, piracy and treason.
It also seeks to impose capital punishment on the following: importation of
dangerous drugs and paraphernalia; sale, trading, distribution and
transportation of dangerous drugs; maintenance of a drug den, dive, or resort;
manufacture of dangerous drugs; possession of dangerous drugs; cultivation or
culture of plants classified as dangerous drugs; unlawful prescription;
criminal liability of a public officer or employee for misappropriation,
misapplication, or failure to account for the confiscated, seized and/or
surrendered dangerous; criminal liability for planting evidence concerning
illegal drugs.
There are 22 crimes that will be meted with the capital punishment under the
measure but lawmakers have decided to lower it when the bill is amended in the
plenary.
(source: malaya.com.ph)
SUDAN:
Sudan: Judge postpones verdict in death row case
A Christian advocacy charity has appealed for Christians to pray for a positive
outcome in the case against a religious leader, aid worker and a Sudanese
activist.
The judgement in the case against Rev Hassan Abduraheem, Christian aid worker
Petr Jasek and Dafuri activist Abdulmonem Abdumawla was meant to be given this
week but has been postponed until 29 January.
The group was first detained in December 2015 and were charged with crimes
against the state. The sentences for some of the charges against them include
the death penalty or life imprisonment.
The case against the group centres around the provision of funds for the
medical treatment on a man who was injured in a student protest.
A 4th defendant, Rev Kuwa Shamal, was released earlier this month.
A source from Christian Solidarity Worldwide told Premier's News Hour that the
men were facing another week of uncertainty over their fate.
"They are having to spend another week in prison - another week of uncertainty
of knowing whether the ordeal is over for them so it's really important for us
to continue praying for them.
"It's been a very long time that they have been in prison."
The CSW source appealed to Christians to continue praying for the men.
The source said: "We can be praying for the men's spiritual condition and their
families who have been on this journey with them. Rev Hassan's family did not
even know where he was for the 1st 5 months of his incarceration.
"We can be praying for the lawyers who represent the men who have been doing a
very good job under very difficult circumstances."
Sudan is ranked 5th on Open Doors World Watch List 2017 for Christian
persecution.
(source: premier.org.uk)
GAZA:
2 New Death Sentences in Gaza
On Tuesday, 24 January 2017, 2 new death sentences by hanging were issued in
the Gaza Strip. The 1st one was issued by Deir al-Balah Court of First Instance
against (Gh. E.) from the central Gaza Strip after being convicted of
premeditated murder of his brother (30). The 2nd one was issued on the same day
by the Gaza Court of First Instance against (Kh. Sh.) from Gaza City after
being convicted of premeditated murder of (N. A.) with the participation of
another person.
The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) is concerned over the excessive
application of this punishment in the Gaza Strip in light of absence of fair
trial guarantees and lack of fragile interrogation techniques. PCHR calls upon
the judiciary in Gaza not to issue any death sentence in light of the division
and the resulted absence of rule of law and techniques needed to come out with
a conviction based on certainty.
The number of issued death sentences amounted to 4 since the beginning of 2017,
and the 1st month in which has not ended yet. Meanwhile, no death sentences
were issued in the West Bank. The total number of death sentences issued in the
Palestinian Authority (PA) controlled areas has risen to 178 sentences since
1994, 20 of which have been issued in the West Bank and 159 in the Gaza Strip.
Among those issued in the Gaza Strip, 100 sentences have been issued since
2007.
Since the establishment of the PA, 35 death sentences were applied; 33 of which
were in the Gaza Strip and two in the West Bank. Among the sentences applied in
the Gaza Strip, 22 were applied since 2007 without the ratification of the
Palestinian President in violation of the law, and 3 of which were implemented
on 31 May 2016. Those 3 were the 1st death sentences to be implemented without
the Palestinian presidential ratification following the formation of the
National Unity Government in June 2014. PCHR emphasized that those death
sentences were extra-judicial execution and constitute a flagrant violation of
the Palestinian Basic Law since they required the ratification of the
Palestinian President for implementation.
PCHR follows up with deep concern the excessive application of this serious and
irreversible punishment. PCHR is also gravely concerned over the continued
application of death penalty in the PA controlled areas, and calls upon the
Palestinian President to sign the 1989 Second Optional Protocol to the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition
of the death penalty and issue a presidential decree to halt it until the
Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) convenes and abolishes it.
PCHR also calls upon the PLC, if convened, to review all legislations related
to the death penalty, especially the Penal Law No. 74 (1936) which remains in
effect in the Gaza Strip, and the Jordanian Penal Code No. 16 (1960) that is in
effect in the West Bank, and enacting a unified penal code that is in line with
the spirit of international human rights instruments, especially those
pertaining to the abolition of the death penalty.
Moreover, PCHR points out that the call for abolition of the death penalty does
not reflect tolerance for those convicted of serious crimes, but rather a call
for utilizing deterrent penalties that maintain our humanity.
(source: reliefweb.int)
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