Sept. 18
SOUTH AFRICA:
Online petition calling for death penalty surges to over 580k in 2 weeks
SIGNATURES on an online petition calling for the reinstatement of the death
penalty now number nearly 600 000, despite Justice and Correctional Services
Minister Ronald Lamola describing the campaign as flawed.
The petition on Change.Org was started by Agent of Change and is addressed to
the government of South Africa and President Cyril Ramaphosa.
It was started 3 weeks ago following the murders of University of Cape Town
student Uyinene Mrwetyana; female karate and boxing champion Leighandre “Baby
Lee” Jegels; Mitchell’s Plain pupil Janika Mallo; Pinetown Girls’ High School
pupil Ayakha Jiyani; and her Lyndhurst Primary siblings Siphesihle, Khwezi and
Kuhlekonke Mpungose.
Lamola said last week the Constitution stated that everyone has the right to
life following the Constitutional Court’s landmark judgment in the 1995 case of
convicted killers Themba Makwanyane and Mvuso Mchunu.
However, 2 weeks after the petition was started there were already 400 000
signatures and by last Saturday 580 000 people had registered their support,
with the goal of getting 1 million signatures.
A link to the petition has also been doing the rounds on local WhatsApp groups.
While a constitutional law expert and Emeritus Professor at UKZN said he was
personally opposed to the reinstatement of the death penalty, people in favour
of its reinstatement had every right to be heard.
“We are a democracy; they are entitled to organise, petition and lobby Members
of Parliament to support them and help them persuade the ANC, which is strongly
against the death penalty.
“Every year under apartheid executions increased, but the number of homicides
went up,” said Professor George Devenish, who was chairman of the local chapter
for the abolition of the death penalty.
Last Tuesday the IFP re-tabled its motion to debate in Parliament reinstating
the death penalty.
IFP spokesperson Mkhuleko Hlengwa said yesterday they expected the debate to be
held as and when the schedule allowed as outlined by the National Assembly’s
programming committee.
“We hope the signatures (on the petition) increase so that they can be a stamp
of approval as a voice of the nation, because this is not just a political
party thing but a societal thing,” he said.
Oshnee Singh from Pietermaritzburg shared a link to the petition, which she had
already signed, in a local crime discussion group.
“Many of us are bearing the brunt of serious crimes with too relaxed punitive
measures and these serious offences are increasing at an alarming rate. There
is so much fear among citizens and that means no peace and harmony prevails any
more,” she said.
(source: iol.co.za)
INDIA:
Bengal lynching bill under governor scrutiny----The Congress and the Left bring
the ‘grave irregularities’ to governor Jagdeep Dhankhar’s notice
The Mamata Banerjee government’s plan to pass a bill to prevent lynching in
Bengal has come under the scanner of Raj Bhavan with the Congress and the Left
bringing to governor Jagdeep Dhankhar’s notice the “grave irregularities” and
“legislative improprieties” in the procedure.
The West Bengal (Prevention of Lynching) Bill, 2019, which has the provision of
the death penalty, was passed in the Assembly on August 30. It is now awaiting
the governor’s seal of approval.
On Tuesday, the leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, Congress MLA Abdul
Mannan, and Left Legislature Party leader Sujan Chakraborty met the governor
and sought his intervention.
“It was indicated by them (the Opposition representatives) that the bill placed
in the House on 30.8.2019 was different than the draft copy of the bill that
was circulated amongst the members of the Assembly on 26 August, 2019, and the
one to which the governor had recommended introduction,” a Raj Bhavan media
release said.
Senior bureaucrats said they could not recall an earlier instance of Raj Bhavan
issuing a media release following a representation from the Opposition over a
bill.
The fact that the bill will face the scrutiny of Raj Bhavan was clear in the
language of the release.
“The governor, after hearing them, indicated that he would look into the
available records and if required, would go through the proceedings of the
Assembly, even thereafter, if a situation is occasioned, he would seek inputs
from the Hon’ble Speaker and the advocate general,” said the release.
Raj Bhavan sources said Dhankhar, a senior Supreme Court advocate, had
expressed surprise when he was informed about the manner in which the bill was
passed.
“The government inserted the provision of the death penalty in the final bill,
but the bill that had been circulated among the members had life imprisonment
as the highest penalty. These changes were made without bringing in any
amendment,” Chakraborty said.
Mannan said that as the two bills were different and had created confusion, it
would be challenged in court. “We have drawn the attention of the governor as
he is the constitutional head of the state,” he said.
“The governor assured us that he would look into the matter from a
constitutional point of view,” Chakraborty said. Mannan echoed him.
Later in the day, Dhankhar met chief vigilance commissioner Sharad Kumar and
Coal India chairman Anil Kumar Jha.
(source: telegraphindia.com)
*******************
Supreme Court Stays Death Penalty Of Rape-Murder Accused Till 16 Oct
Supreme Court stayed the Death Penalty of a man convicted for raping a minor
girl of 10 years of age and killing her and her brother in Coimbatore 9 years
ago, till 16 October.
In a case Manoharan V State by Inspector of Police today Supreme Court hearing
the Review petition seeking modification of its earlier order wherein it had
confirmed the capital punishment in August by a 2:1 majority.
Senior Counsel Siddharth Luthra appearing for the petitioner sort an
adjournment as the trial court records are not available today with him and he
wants to inspect the file before arguing into the matter.
Following which the bench of Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman, Justice Sanjiv
Khanna and Justice Surya Kant defers the hearing till 16 October with clear
instructions to the counsel that the matter would not be adjourned further.
Manhohar who was convicted and scheduled to be hanged on 20 September got few
more days to survive with the passing of the order.
In the background of the case, Manohar and Mohana krishnan abducted a girl aged
10 years old and her brother aged 7 years old from outside a Hindu Temple when
the children’s were preparing to go to school. Both allegedly committed a rape
on the girl. Thereafter, considering that the girl had been brutally raped (her
anus having ruptured), the 2 accused bought what is called cow dung powder
which is nothing but a poisonous substance which is added to cow dung to keep
insects away. Both children ingested only a small portion of the cow dung
powder mixed with the milk and did not die. Mohanakrishnan and the Manohar
thereafter to do away threw the children’s in canal.
The High Court of Madras, in the impugned judgment dated 24.3.2014, set aside
the Manohar’s conviction under Section 120-B and 364-A of the Penal Code, but
confirmed the sentences under Sections 376, 302, Section 302 read with Section
34, and Section 201. After considering aggravating and mitigating
circumstances, ultimately the death sentence imposed by the trial court was
confirmed by the High Court.
Supreme Court had also upheld that the case does not fall under the category of
rarest of rare case i.e there is no alternative but to impose death sentence.
(source: indialegallive.com)
SINGAPORE:
Can love lead to desperation then, to murder?
From a planned wedding 2 weeks away with no money to spend for it, 26-year-old
Malaysian Ahmad Muin Yaacob assaulted his supervisor at Tanah Merah Ferry
Terminal using a pair of grass cutters, took her gold jewellery and fled to
Malaysia.
This is how the prosecution presented the narration of events on Tuesday (Sept
17) at the opening of the trial.
Yaacob allegedly stabbed his supervisor, 54-year-old widow Maimumah Awang, on
Nov 24, 2016 at a storeroom in the terminal, before stealing her jewellery,
dumping her body in a drain and flew back to Malaysia, where he got married as
planned.
Prosecution’s version of the story
Ahmad Muin worked as a cleaner at the terminal for CSP Maintenance from October
2016 with a monthly salary of S$1,100, under the supervision of Madam Maimumah.
Based on the prosecution’s narrative, Mdm Maimumah maintained a cordial
relationship with the four cleaners under her care and often lent them money
and bought food for them.
She lent Ahmad Muin money as well and allowed him to sleep overnight in the
storeroom at the terminal as she took pity on him after learning that he has
nowhere to sleep in Singapore.
But, “the accused repaid her kindness in blood”, said the prosecutor.
In the weeks before the incident, CSP operations executive Roslan Tamain told
Ahmad Muin that he would terminate his employment and work permit to cut costs.
Begging for work and money for the wedding
Ahmad Muin was scheduled to wed in Kelantan on Dec 9, 2016, and was expecting
to return to Malaysia on Nov 28, 2016, for the wedding’s preparations.
Because of this very important event in Ahmad’s life, he begged and pleaded
with Mr Roslan to let him continue working until he found another job as he
needed money for his wedding.
His request was granted and soon began borrowing money from his co-workers and
from Mdm Maimumah.
The assault
According to Deputy Public Prosecutor Kumaresan Gohulabalan, Ahmad Muin
attacked Mdm Maimumah while they were alone in the storeroom at the terminal.
He thrust the blade of a pair of grass cutters into the woman’s chest, as the
woman slumped to the ground and gasping for air, she pleaded with the cleaner
not to kill her.
But despite her pleas, he stood above her and hit her head with the grass
cutters, pushing her back down with his leg when she tried to get up and struck
her repeatedly on the head with the weapon.
Ahmad Muin then took the two gold necklaces and two gold bracelets his
supervisor was wearing and pulled her body to the side of the drain outside the
storeroom.
He pushed her into the drain after removing the drain covers and replaced the
covers as he did not want anyone to find Mdm Maimumah.
He then left the scene with the woman’s jewellery and Samsung Note 4 phone.
The wedding and the arrest
Ahmad Muin fled to Johor using a taxi and a bus. Once in Johor, he sold one
bracelet for RM1,000 (S$330) and pawned the other jewelry for RM7,500.
He then set aside RM6,000 for dowry and gambled some. He got married as planned
on Dec 9, 2016, but the Royal Malaysian Police caught up with him several days
later. He was taken back to Singapore and charged with murder on Dec 19, 2016.
The confession
The accused later admitted that he killed Mdm Maimumah, saying he attacked her
with the grass cutters, stabbing her chest with the blades and hitting her on
her head with “all (his) might.”
An autopsy report found bleeding on multiple areas of her skull, with the cause
of death certified as bleeding due to a stab wound to the neck, with head
injuries.
On Tuesday, Mr Roslan took the stand as the prosecution’s first witness and
told the court that he had known Mdm Maimumah for 14 years.
The trial continues. The prosecution intends to secure evidence from 56
witnesses.
If found guilty of murder beyond the reasonable doubt, Ahmad Muin will get the
death penalty.
(source: theindependent.sg)
*******************
Circuit Road murder trial: Accused tried to have sex with nurse's corpse after
strangling her
After strangling a 28-year-old nurse in a jealous rage, a middle-aged man took
photos of her nude body and tried to have sex with the corpse.
Boh Soon Ho, a 51-year-old Malaysian, told himself that "since (the woman) has
died and I have never seen her naked before, I should undress her", the High
Court heard on Wednesday (Sept 18), the first day of his murder trial.
The cafeteria worker has been charged with strangling Chinese national Zhang
Huaxiang with a towel between 12.15pm and about 5.50pm on March 21, 2016, in
his rented Circuit Road bedroom. If convicted, he faces life imprisonment or
the death penalty.
"This is a case of a murder driven by jealousy, rage and unrequited desire,"
Deputy Public Prosecutor Wong Kok Weng said in his opening statement.
The DPP told the court that Boh considered Ms Zhang to be his girlfriend as
they went shopping and had meals together, even though they had never been
physically intimate. Boh also bought her gifts.
The 2 got to know each other some time in 2011 or 2012, when Ms Zhang was
working part time at the staff cafeteria at Marina Bay Sands resort while
studying nursing. After graduating, she started working at the National
University Hospital.
Days before the killing, on March 18, Boh saw Ms Zhang getting into a taxi with
a man after leaving her flat. He felt jealous and believed that she was
cheating on him.
He then arranged for her to go over to his place for a steamboat lunch on March
21.
When he saw her combing her hair in his room, he tried to have sex with her but
she rejected his advances, telling him "crazy, go away!" in Mandarin.
10 minutes later, he again tried to force himself on her, putting an arm lock
around her neck and dragging her into his room, but she put up a fierce
struggle.
When he confronted her about the man who was with her, she told him that she
had gone out with the man about 4 to 5 times.
She also told him that she was still communicating with her former boyfriend in
China and that it had been normal for them to be intimate.
On hearing this, Boh became furious.
He took a bath towel, looped it around her neck and pulled for about 2 minutes
until there was no sign of life.
He noticed that Ms Zhang's face had darkened as he carried her body to his bed.
Boh took off her clothes and still wanted to have sex with her as he felt he
could do what he wished, now that she could no longer resist him. However, he
was unable to perform sexually.
He then put her panties back on, covered the body with a blanket and proceeded
to wash their clothes in the washing machine.
Boh then packed his clothes in preparation to leave Singapore, keeping Ms
Zhang's phone and cash.
He sent a text message to his supervisor, saying that he was going back to
Malaysia for a month, and phoned his landlord to say he would be vacating the
bedroom within the next few days.
Boh then went to Geylang to buy a suitcase and returned to the flat.
He initially thought of putting the body in his own suitcase and dumping it in
Sembawang but the body was too stiff. He considered dismembering it but did not
do so.
Boh then spent the night sleeping alongside the body.
The next morning, on March 22, he put clothes on the body, covered it with a
blanket and told the victim to rest in peace.
He then went out to meet a friend to sell off some items and also went to
collect his salary.
At about 10.50 am, Boh returned to repack his clothes and the towel in his
suitcase.
He then kissed the body on the forehead and left the lights and air-conditioner
switched on.
He took a taxi to Woodlands Checkpoint and after clearing customs, took another
taxi to his younger sister's home in Melaka where he immediately confessed. She
then found a rented room for him to stay.
That evening, his landlord in Singapore, Mr Chai Yong Siong, saw a figure lying
on Boh's bed and assumed that his tenant was sleeping.
One hour later, after returning from dinner, Mr Chai called out "hello, hello"
and when there was no response, he pulled the blanket away. He called the
police after finding the body.
The following morning, Mr Chai received a call from Boh, who told him that he
strangled Ms Zhang and was in Kuala Lumpur.
Mr Chai contacted the police and was briefed on what to expect should Boh call
again.
The landlord also sent text messages to Boh's Malaysian number - in the
presence of a police officer. At about 2.40pm, Boh called Mr Chai and they
spoke for about 10 minutes. The conversation was recorded by the police.
The landlord continued texting Boh over the next 2 weeks, while keeping the
police informed about the exchanges.
On April 4, 2016, Boh was arrested by Malaysian police while he was having
dinner at a restaurant. He was brought back to Singapore the next day.
A report from the Institute of Mental Health said Boh is not intellectually
disabled and does not suffer from any mental disorder.
In statements to the police, he admitted strangling Ms Zhang because he was
furious with her and wanted to kill her.
Boh is defended by Mr Eugene Thuraisingam.
The trial continues.
(source: straitstimes.com)
INDONESIA:
6 including teen girl could hang for drug possession after police find packets
of meth in raid
6 suspects, including an 18-year-old girl, could face capital punishment if
found guilty after a raid by the Narcotics Crime Investigation Department
(NCID) found them in possession of 61 grammes of methamphetamine, or syabu.
Following a public tip-off and intelligence from the Padawan district police
headquarters’ (IPD) Narcotics Crime Investigation Division, the NCID raided a
house along 10th Mile, Kuching-Serian Road here yesterday, according to NCID
head Supt Hasnir Abdul Hamid.
He added that the other 5 suspects detained in the raid were 3 men and 2 women
aged between 20 to 44.
“In the raid, 3 men and 3 women were detained in a room in the house on
suspicion of being involved in drug abuse activities.
“The search results yielded a small bag which contained a large translucent
plastic packet containing crystals, suspected to be syabu, and 1 big plastic
packet with 28 smaller blue plastic packets containing crystals suspected to be
syabu with a total weight of 61 grammes,” Hasnir said in a statement today.
He added that all the suspects were detained for further investigation under
Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, which carries the death penalty if
found guilty.
“All the suspects tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine in their
urine tests and they were also detained and investigated under Section 15(1)(a)
of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952,” he added.
(source: The Borneo Post)
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