Rick Halperin
Fri, 2 Jan 2009 10:09:12 -0600
Jan. 2 PAKISTAN: Chishti demands death penalty for ex-generals President Ex- Servicemen Society and chairman Tameer-e-Pakistan Party, Gen (R) Faiz Ali Chishti has demanded trial of all those retired army generals including Gen (R) Pervez Musharraf, who staged coup against the elected government on October12, 1999. In an interview with The Nation and Nawa-i-Waqt on Wednesday, Gen Chishti said that the then army generals which include: Gen (R) Pervez Musharraf, Lt Gen (R), Saeedul Zafar, Lt Gen (R) Aziz Ahmad Khan, Lt Gen (R) Mahmood and Lt Gen (R) Usmani, refused to accept the appointment orders of Lt Gen Ziauddin Butt as army chief and dismissal of Gen Pervez Musharraf by then Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, and thus committed rebellion against the elected set up. He said Gen Musharraf, who was no more army chief after appointment of Gen Ziauddin incited his subordinates to remove Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in defiance of the Constitution. Gen Chishti demanded judicial trial of these generals, saying that the punishment prescribed for the act of committing rebellion was death. Pervez Musharraf should also be held accountable for declaring emergency on November 3, 2007, as he could not issue such order being a paid servant of Pakistan, he observed, and added that no assembly has granted him indemnity for his unconstitutional acts. Replying to a question about bringing improvement in the institution of army and extermination of terrorism, the retired general said that Pakistan army needed re-organisation. He suggested setting up of national service comprising retired army men and civilians to give back up support to the army in war times. He also stressed the need for imparting compulsory army training to female and male students. The law of 3-year tenure for the army chief should be implemented in letter and spirit, he further said. He said government should take necessary measures to end all causes of terrorism, whereas traditional watch and ward system should be introduced to overcome the problem. Giving solution to multiple crises facing the country, he said that introduction of Islamic system of justice, agriculture reforms and uniform education system would go a long way in reforming the society as a whole. He stressed upon the PPP, which stood for supremacy of Constitution, to ensure that office of President of Pakistan and four provincial governors maintain impartiality. (source: TMCNet) RUSSIA: New law in Russia ends jury trials for 'crimes against state'----President Dmitry Medvedev signs the controversial measure with little publicity. A pending Putin-backed law widens the definition of treason. Government critics fear the stage is set for a crackdown. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev paused in the last, quiet hours of a dying year to sign into law a controversial bill that eliminates jury trials for "crimes against the state," a move that lawyers and human rights groups fear will be the start of a dangerous exertion of Kremlin control over government critics. The law does away with jury trials for a variety of offenses, leaving people accused of treason, revolt, sabotage, espionage or terrorism at the mercy of three judges rather than a panel of peers. Critics say the law is dangerous because judges in Russia are vulnerable to manipulation and intimidation by the government. A parallel piece of legislation, pushed by Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and still awaiting discussion in parliament, seeks to expand the legal definition of treason to such a degree that observers fear that anybody who criticizes the government could be rounded up by police -- and, because of the law signed Wednesday, tried without a jury. Human rights groups and lawyers have warned that the changes to Russia's criminal code, largely undiscussed in the state media, would allow the government to crack down on any whispers of dissent. The changes also seek a stronger hand for the FSB, the modern incarnation of the Soviet KGB, by giving the state wider latitude in cases that fall under intelligence agency rather than police jurisdiction. Some critics point to the days of dictator Josef Stalin as a comparable legal structure. "It's a preparation for terror, although not the grand terror of the 1930s," said Andrei Illarionov, a fellow at Washington's Cato Institute and a former economic advisor to Putin. "They are much smarter now. They are preparing some kind of selective terror against those who are courageous enough to speak up." The purpose, many observers agree, is not only to give the government greater tools in cracking down, but also to send out tremors of fear. "Not that they necessarily will go ahead and do it, but they are threatening us very, very seriously that they can do it and are ready to do it," said Lev Ponomaryov, leader of the For Human Rights movement. "They want to have the legitimate possibility to call all opposition people enemies of the state." Medvedev's last-minute signing had all the trademarks of a pre-holiday news dump engineered to generate the least possible media coverage. New Year's Eve is the biggest holiday of the year in Russia, and even those watching the news were distracted by the failing negotiations over shipments of Russian gas to Ukraine. The law was announced by a single sentence on Interfax. Human rights and civil society groups have banded together to speak out against the move toward a broader definition of treason, which will be debated in a parliament dominated by Putin's United Russia party. The government has framed the jury law as an anti-terrorism measure, but legal experts say its implications are broader and more ominous -- especially if the treason changes go through. A chilling effect had begun to creep into the legal system even before the bill was signed into law, critics said. Svetlana Gannushkina, a human rights lawyer and chairwoman of Russia's Civic Assistance committee, gave the example of a man from the Dagestan region who is represented by her organization. A jury found him not guilty of sabotage more than a year ago, and Russia's Supreme Court backed the verdict, rejecting an appeal by prosecutors. The man was cleared -- until a few weeks ago. "And now what's happening? When this campaign to change the law began, the prosecutor's office immediately filed a new appeal," Gannushkina said. "And this time, the Supreme Court cancels the decision of the trial and the verdict of the jury, and the whole process starts all over again." "They call it 'managing the signals,' " she said. "You don't even need to pass a decision anymore, you just need to send the signals." In the last week, there had been a faint hope among human rights organizations that Medvedev might refuse to sign the bill. The Russian president is a lawyer who was once seen as more moderate than Putin. He campaigned on promises to uphold the rule of law in the country. "I'm convinced that Medvedev himself understands quite well that if he signs the law on jury trials, he crosses out his own legal career," Ponomaryov said in an interview hours before the bill became law. "Finally, without any questions or suspicions, he becomes an outright shadow of Mr. Putin." (source: Los Angeles Times) KENYA: Kamiti death-row inmates moved Several death row inmates at Kamiti Prison have been transferred to other prisons to break cartels that operate there. The prisoners were moved on Wednesday night following an earlier incident in which at least 10 prison warders and 3 condemned inmates were injured in a violent confrontation. Some of the warders at the prison could also be moved after being linked to the cartels. They are accused of supplying prohibited goods to the criminals. "Condemned prisoners are never visited and its automatic they get banned items from warders themselves," said an officer. Fighting Back Seven lorries were used to ferry the inmates to Nyeri and Kisumu, prison authorities there confirmed. Sources said the authorities want to separate the criminals as part of their strategy to break their network. Commissioner of Prisons Isaiah Osugo said the transfers were necessary. "Cartels fight back and that is why we are trying to separate them," he said. The Wednesday confrontation was occasioned by a move by prisons authorities to search for banned items held by inmates. The confrontation went on for almost 2 hours with some of the officers who were guarding outside firing in the air. After the attack, the officers cordoned off the facility's perimeter walls and fired live bullets in the air to clear adjacent roads, as curious civilians surged to witness the chaos. The prisons authorities destroyed more than 1,500 mobile phones and other banned goods that had been seized in past operations. The operation was prompted by the Christmas Eve incident in which 2 inmates died after consuming a concoction they had brewed using smuggled spirit, turpentine and paint thinner. The death row prisoners died after allegedly drinking cocktails sneaked into the cells. Sources told The Standard that, on Christmas Eve, warders allowed prisoners to receive foodstuff from friends and relatives, which they mixed with chemicals smuggled from prison industries to brew the deadly contraband. The prison's head of Public Relations Dickson Mwakazi said prisoners are never allowed to receive foodstuff from outsiders. (source: The Standard) SAUDI ARABIA: Last-minute Pardon for Saudi Death-row InmateHabib Shaikh The New Year really rang in new life for a person sentenced to death. A Saudi man who was sentenced to death for murder was pardoned at the last minute by his victims mother. The man, Hisham, was forgiven just before his execution at a crowded execution square in Taif. The victim's mother came forward at the last minute and announced putting her hand on Hisham's head that she had forgiven him. The pardon was achieved through the efforts by the Reconciliation Committee. The Reconciliation Committee is a nation-wide organisation with branches across the kingdom. The committee, which has a small office in Taif, convinced the mother to forgive the killer. It has successfully secured pardons for a number of death-row prisoners and helped settle inter-family and tribal disputes through persistent efforts. Meanwhile, the General Court of Makkah sentenced a 24-year-old Saudi man to execution on Tuesday for killing his father and brother 3 years ago. The Arabic daily Al Watan reported on Wednesday that the man was unemployed and was having continuous conflicts with his family, which ended up with him killing his father. According to the report, the man killed his father after an argument about going to Friday prayer, which the father believed would help his son improve his behaviour and get a job. The argument ended with the youth stabbing his father with a kitchen knife. He also fatally wounded his brother who rushed in to help the father. The man was originally sentenced to 3 years in prison and flogging on account of his psychological condition. This sentence was appealed, resulting in an increase to five years in prison and flogging. But after observations of the man's behaviour in prison, his case was reviewed by the Makkah General Court, which then sentenced him to death. (source: Khaleej Times)