September 17
INDONESIA:
Death penalty demanded for West Jakarta drug dealer
Prosecutors in West Jakarta District Court have demanded the death penalty for
drug-dealing suspect Samsul Anwar, 32.
"The demand was the death penalty," West Jakarta District Court intelligence
division head Edy Subhan confirmed on Monday, as reported by tempo.co.
He said the demand was read out in the court last Wednesday, when prosecutors
accused Samsul of selling 13 kilograms of liquid meth at the MG International
Club in Tanjung Duren, West Jakarta.
Samsul's case began when the National Narcotics Agency (BNN) and police raided
the club on Dec. 17 last year where they arrested 5 suspects namely Wastam, 43,
Ferdiansyah, 23, Dedi Wahyudi, 40, Mislah, 45, and Fadly, 40, as well as Samsul
- the suspected coordinator of the group.
The club's owner Agung Ashari, alias Rudi, is still on the run.
Authorities also seized several unlabeled, empty 330ml water bottles, suspected
of being drug containers and found 3 rooms on the 4th floor believed to be used
for drug production. Each bottle was sold for around Rp 400,000 (US$27).
The suspects were charged under Article 114(2) and Article 112(2) of Law No.
35/2009 Law on narcotics, which carries the maximum penalty of death.
(source: The Jakarta Post)
SAUDI ARABIA:
Saudi Court Sentences 7 Men For Shooting Officer 30 Times In Police Car
The Specialized Criminal Court on Sunday issued a preliminary sentence against
7 Saudis following the killing of a police officer.
One of the Saudis was found guilty of shooting the officer in his car 30 times,
while the rest did not report him and misled investigators.
The shooting was in response to Daesh instructions to target military
personnel, pledge allegiance to its leader and adopt its extremist ideology.
The court ruled that the shooter should face the death penalty and then be
crucified. The other 6 Saudis were given prison sentences.
(source: albawaba.com)
MALAYSIA:
Nurul Izzah to appeal to AG to pardon medical marijuana distributor on death
row
Permatang Pauh MP Nurul Izzah Anwar will be writing an appeal to Attorney
General Tommy Thomas seeking a pardon for Muhammad Lukman, who was recently
sentenced to death for possessing, processing and distributing medical
marijuana (cannabis oil).
"Yes, we are following up. Personally speaking, I am writing an appeal to the
AG - first and foremost to secure a pardon based on the merits of his case and
predicament.
"And secondly, to eventually decriminalise the use of cannabis oil for medical
reasons," she told The Star Online on Monday (Sept 17).
Nurul Izzah labelled Lukman's death sentence, which was meted down to him
earlier this month, as a miscarriage of justice.
Lukman, a 29-year-old father of one, was arrested in Dec 2015 for the
possession of 3.1 litres of cannabis oil, 279 grams of compressed cannabis,
1.4kg of substance containing tetrahydrocan nabinol (THC).
He was nabbed by the police along with his 5-month pregnant wife, who was freed
later, during a raid at his home. He was handed a death sentence by the Shah
Alam High Court on Aug 30.
Meanwhile, a petition calling for the release of Lukman is now making rounds in
social media with 41,137 signatures as of Monday.
The petition was started after a column by the Star news editor Martin
Vengadesan on Sept 9 highlighted Lukman's case.
"For those who were never exposed to the cannabis world, we treat it as a taboo
topic.
"While at the same time, cannabis is becoming increasingly accepted in many
countries as a plant with various benefits, particularly the treatment of
various chronic diseases," wrote the authors of the petition.
"It's time for us to review the definition of what distinguishes an individual,
a distributor, an addict, or a genuine patient that needs cannabis for
treatment."
On Sept 9, his lawyer Farhan Maaruf told The Star that Lukman only wanted to
assist patients who are suffering from ailments that can be treated by THC, an
active ingredient in cannabis.
Lukman had no intention whatsoever to distribute or "push" cannabis on the
streets, his lawyer Farhan said.
Lukman's case is not the only one of its kind as Amiruddin @ Nadarajan
Abdullah, who is known as Dr Ganja, is facing 36 charges and the death sentence
for similar offences. His advocates claim he has helped treat more than 800
people.
Under Section 39B of the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952, individuals caught
possessing 200 grams or more of cannabis, will be charged under drug
trafficking, which carries the death penalty.
However, in many developed countries, the trend is to decriminalise and even
legalise marijuana, particularly for medical purposes.
Apart from the Netherlands, on October 17, 2018, Canada will legalise
recreational marijuana in full.
In Argentina, the government has been providing medical marijuana since March
2017 while it has
