Dec. 7
INDONESIA:
Death row inmate caught trafficking drugs inside prison, prosecutor asks he get
death penalty, again
Indonesian authorities ranging from President Joko Widodo to National Narcotics
Agency (BNN) Head Budi Waseso, have justified the country's use of the death
penalty on drug offenders (and the shooting of drug suspects at the slightest
provocation) by arguing that the country is in the midst of a full-blown drug
emergency. The statistics they use to make that claim are flawed, but there is
a very clear law enforcement emergency taking place - inside of Indonesia's
prisons.
One of the reasons why the Indonesian people also strongly support the death
penalty for drug dealers is because of numerous stories about criminals who
manage to run narcotics operations even while in jail.
The latest such incident involves a prisoner in Medan's Tanjung Gusta prison
who was caught ordering 25 kg of crystal methamphetamines to be delivered to
his penitentiary for distribution.
What makes the case unique is that the 60-year-old prisoner, Togiman, was in
prison after being sentenced to execution for smuggling large quantities of
crystal meth and ecstasy. After BNN officers found a shipment of crystal meth
Togiman had ordered delivered to Tanjunggusta in May, he was once again charged
and underwent trial for trafficking. At the sentencing hearing on Tuesday the
state prosecutor asked that Togiman be sentenced to death, again.
"(We ask for) this heavy punishment against the defendant Togiman because he
had previously received the death sentence," state prosecutor Dewi Tarihoran
said as quoted by Tribun.
In addition to Togiman, the prosecution asked that the 4 other involved in the
drug smuggling operation be given life sentences.
On top of the ridiculousness of sentencing a man to death twice (what'll they
do, execute his ghost?), Togiman's case highlights the serious problems that
exist within Indonesia's extremely understaffed, underfunded and notoriously
corrupt prisons. Togiman was actually able to set up the drug order using a
mobile phone from inside the prison and his operation was only caught by BNN
officers who intercepted his delivery before it reached Tanjung Gusta .
In June, BNN announced that they had discovered a drug criminal living in a
"luxury cell" at East Jakarta's Cipinang Prison, complete with AC, wifi and
even an aquarium. The warden, who claimed to have no knowledge of the
prisoner's deluxe accommodations, was fired.
But that's just the tip of the iceberg. If the Indonesian government is at all
serious about actually tackling the nation's drug problem, then it must also be
serious about reforming the penal system to prevent such outrageous acts from
taking place.
But instead, what we're seeing is both the president and the BNN chief
espousing rhetoric advocating the shooting of suspected drug criminals at the
slightest provocation, which has already led to a sharp increase in the number
of police shootings this year.
(source: coconuts.co)
EGYPT:
African Union calls on Egypt to 'immediately' suspend death sentences
The African Union has called on the Egyptian government to repeal the death
sentence in 20 new cases.
The African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights, a body within the AU, has
urged the Egyptian government to "immediately suspend" the death sentences.
This measure came after the Egyptian Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), the party
of ousted former President Mohamed Morsi, sent a complaint to the commission on
behalf of the prisoners set to be executed.
The FJP called on the commission to intervene and order an immediate suspension
of the death sentences.
"The Egyptian authorities have entirely ignored the commission's moratorium on
the death penalty by failing to observe the defendants' right to a fair trial
as per the guarantees included in the African Charter and other international
treaties," the complaint reads.
The complaint also claimed that evidence was gained via confessions through
torture and denial of the right of access to lawyers. In one case, evidence in
the complaint shows, one of those sentenced to death was in custody at the time
of a bomb attack he was alleged to have carried out.
The prisoners have all had their death sentences confirmed and are without
further rights of appeal. 16 face imminent execution, the lawyers representing
the case have said.
The death sentences were imposed in trials following the military coup in 2013
which saw the removal and detention of Egypt's 1st democratically elected
president.
The Egyptian government has been criticised for its apparent lack of regard for
human rights. Human Rights Watch, in its 2017 annual report, said that "Members
of the security forces, particularly the Interior Ministry's National Security
Agency, continued to routinely torture detainees and forcibly disappeared
hundreds of people with little or no accountability for violations of the law."
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi was notified of the measures in a
letter sent to him on 29 November by the African Commission.
The commission's letter to Sisi sets out the body's intention to fully
investigate the allegations made in the complaint and asks the Egyptian
government to provide its report on the implementation of the suspension within
15 days of the letter.
The FJP's complaint was sent to the commission by the London-based ITN
solicitors. Tayyab Ali, a partner at ITN, said he was pleased with the
commission's decision to investigate the matters raised by the FJP's complaint.
"All Egyptians are entitled to the legal protections guaranteed in the African
Charter," Ali said in a statement.
"This principle is all the more important where the right of life is at stake."
Morsi remains in detention, along with hundreds of others who protested against
the coup. Last year, an Egyptian appeals court overturned a death sentence
handed to Morsi.
In 2014, an Egyptian court sentenced 529 individuals to death following a mass
trial that lasted less than 2 days and was condemned for widespread
irregularities.
The FJP at the time had previously sent a request to the commission to
intervene in the death sentences. This led to the Egyptian authorities
suspending those sentences.
(source: Middle East Eye)
_______________________________________________
A service courtesy of Washburn University School of Law www.washburnlaw.edu
DeathPenalty mailing list
DeathPenalty@lists.washlaw.edu
http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/listinfo/deathpenalty
Unsubscribe: http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/options/deathpenalty
