March 30
BRUNEI:
Outrage----Mike Pompeo and Trump Administration ‘Concerned’ About Brunei’s Law
to Stone LGBT People to Death
On April 3, Brunei will legalize the stoning to death of LGBT people. A new law
in the southeast Asian country imposes death by stoning or whipping for sodomy,
adultery or rape, and amputation of a hand or foot for theft.
Global outrage has greeted news of the introduction of the new law under the
Syariah Penal Code (SPC). On Friday, the British government and European Union
called on Brunei to abandon the law, while George Clooney called for a boycott
of hotels owned by the Sultan of Brunei in a column for Deadline.
After nearly 24 hours of declining to clarify its position, the State
Department finally sent The Daily Beast a statement saying the U.S. was
“concerned” about the new law, minutes after we published a story noting
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the department's silence.
However, when asked by The Daily Beast, Pompeo and the Department of State
declined to directly condemn, or state an objection to, the stoning to death of
LGBT people.
The full statement reads: “The United States is concerned with Brunei’s
decision to implement Phases 2 and 3 of the Sharia Penal Code. Some of the
punishments in the law appear inconsistent with international human rights
obligations, including with respect to torture or other cruel, inhuman or
degrading treatment or punishment.
“We have encouraged Brunei to ratify and implement the United Nations
Convention Against Torture, which it signed in 2015, and to sign, ratify, and
implement the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.”
The Daily Beast asked the State Department what had Pompeo or State Department
officials said to Brunei officials or the Sultan of Brunei about the new law.
Had any objections to it been lodged, and what had been the nature of State
Department representations over the new law been?
Specifically, The Daily Beast asked, did the U.S. Government object to the
stoning to death of LGBT people as stated under the new law?
On Friday afternoon, a Department of State spokesperson sent another statement.
“We regularly communicate with the Government of Brunei regarding human rights
and encourage it to uphold its international commitments on human rights.
“Governments have an obligation to ensure that all people, including LGBTI
people, can freely enjoy the universal human rights and fundamental freedoms to
which they are entitled. We strongly oppose human rights violations and abuses
against LGBTI persons, including violence, the criminalization of LGBTI status
or conduct, and serious forms of discrimination.”
The Daily Beast again asked if Pompeo or the Department of State objected to
the stoning to death of LGBT people under the new law. A spokesperson would not
address this question directly, and instead referred us to the statement above.
A request for comment by The Daily Beast to Vice President Mike Pence, given
his influence when it comes to U.S. foreign policy, went unresponded to.
(source: The Daily Beast)
***************
Australia condemns Brunei gay sex death penalty amid calls for boycott
Australia has joined critics of Brunei's new law against gay sex and adultery,
as American actor George Clooney calls for a boycott of all Brunei-owned
hotels.
Australian Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne said the Morrison government
has raised its concerns with Brunei officials.
"We are absolute opponents of the death penalty in all circumstances. So any
suggestion that laws would facilitate that application of the death penalty is
a matter of concern to Australia."
Opposition leader Bill Shorten also urged the country to abandon the laws,
arguing they would breach the UN Declaration of Human Rights.
In Australia, Labor leader Bill Shorten and Penny Wong issued a statement
condemning the move by Brunei.
"Labor is deeply concerned by the Brunei government’s plans to implement new
laws that would see adultery and homosexual acts between consenting adults
punishable by death," he said in a joint statement with opposition spokesperson
for foreign affairs, Penny Wong.
"We note the new penal code would be in breach of the UN Declaration of Human
Rights. Australia has always stood strongly for the protection and promotion of
human rights.
"Doing so is vital to a peaceful world where all have the right to live with
dignity, freedom, safety, security and prosperity."
Calls for a boycott of Brunei's hotels
American actor George Clooney has called for a boycott of 9 Brunei-owned hotels
over the sultanate's imposition of the death penalty for gay sex and adultery.
"Every single time we stay at or take meetings at or dine at any of these 9
hotels we are putting money directly into the pockets of men who choose to
stone and whip to death their own citizens for being gay or accused of
adultery," Clooney wrote on website Deadline Hollywood.
"I've learned over years of dealing with murderous regimes that you can't shame
them. But you can shame the banks, the financiers and the institutions that do
business with them and choose to look the other way," he added.
The 9 hotels are located in the US, Britain, France and Italy.
In addition to film-making chops that have netted him two Oscars, Clooney is
known for his globe-trotting political activism, especially his tireless
campaigning to draw attention to the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region.
Law only applies to Muslims
Brunei will implement the harsh new penal code - which also mandates amputation
of a hand and foot for theft - starting on 3 April.
Homosexuality is already illegal in the tiny sultanate, but it will now become
a capital offence. The law only applies to Muslims.
Brunei first announced the measures in 2013, but implementation has been
delayed as officials worked out the practical details and in the teeth of
opposition by rights groups.
However, a spokesman for the Brunei religious affairs ministry Wednesday said
only that Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah was expected to make an announcement on April
3 regarding the implementation of the new Sharia laws.
"Only after the event we will know regarding the date of the implementation of
the new laws," he told AFP Wednesday. "In terms of readiness, at the moment we
are prepared to enforce the amputation of the hand for stealing only. That is
all."
HRW says plan is 'ill-considered'
Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch warned that implementation of the law
"will quickly drive the country towards human rights pariah status in the eyes
of foreign investors, tourists, and international agencies".
He added: "If this ill-considered plan goes forward, there is every reason to
believe the global boycott Brunei movement will re-start."
Robertson said Brunei will become the only country in Southeast Asia to punish
gay sex with death if it pushes through with the law.,P> Under a shift towards
hardline Islamic law, Brunei in 2015 banned excessive Christmas celebrations
for fear that Muslims could be led astray.
(source: SBS News)
BARBADOS:
Hang them high, says The Sheriff
Murderers deserve nothing less than the death penalty, says concerned citizen
Steve Hunte, also known as “ The Sheriff”.
And he turned up at The Nation yesterday with a noose to demand that the
Attorney General move with speed to make hanging those who are convicted of
killing possible again.
Hunte, a plumber by profession who contested last year’s General Election as an
Independent candidate, condemned those responsible for taking the lives of 20
people so far for the year.
“We need to get Barbados cleaned up. We cannot use deterrents any more; we have
to use detergents to clean the entire nation,” he said, echoing some of the
views that have been expressed on The Nation’s Facebook page in recent days in
response to gun violence.
(source: nationnews.com)
PAKISTAN:
Mashal’s father challenges ATC’s verdict in PHC, seeks death penalty
Mashal Khan’s father on Friday challenged the anti-terrorism court’s verdict in
his son’s lynching case in the Peshawar High Court (PHC) and pleaded to turn
the convicts’ life imprisonment into death penalty.
Iqbal Lala, Mashal Khan’s father, filed three separate appeals, two against
Arif Khan and Asad Zia Katlang who were sentenced to life imprisonment and the
third one against the acquittal of Azhar and Sabir Mayar in PHC.
He pleaded the court to turn Arif Khan and Asad Zia Katlang’s life imprisonment
into death penalty.
Earlier, an anti-terrorism court on March 21 had awarded life imprisonment to 2
convicts, including Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) councillor Arif Khan in the
Mashal Khan lynching case.
The ATC, however, acquitted 2 other accused, including Sabir and Izhar for want
of evidence. The court was scheduled to announce its verdict on March 16 but it
delayed the decision until March 21 for some unknown reason.
Mashal Khan, 23, a student of Mass Communications at Mardan’s Abdul Wali Khan
University, was beaten and shot to death by an unruly mob on April 13, 2017,
after being accused of blasphemy.
A total of 61 suspects were nominated in the first information report, out of
these, 57 were sentenced by an ATC on February 7, 2018. The four suspects that
had been on the run surrendered themselves to the court of law in June, 2018.
ATC-3 Judge Mahmoodul Hassan Khattak tried the accused and reserved verdict
earlier this week after both prosecution and defence sides finished their
arguments.
(source: arynews.tv)
MALAYSIA:
Table bills and let Parliament decide on abolition of death penalty
Malaysians against Death Penalty and Torture (Madpet) is saddened by the
alleged U-turn by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad and his cabinet who had
decided earlier to abolish the death penalty, but now will apparently only
abolish the mandatory death penalty.
On 13 March 2019 Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Mohamed
Hanipa Maidin was reported as saying in Parliament that only the mandatory
death penalty will be repealed ie the mandatory death penalty for nine offences
under the Penal Code and 2 under the Firearms (Increased Penalties) Act 1971
(Malay Mail, 13 March 2019).
It must be noted that the cabinet under Mahathir had at a meeting in October
2018 decided to repeal not just the mandatory death, but the death penalty for
33 offences under 8 acts.
“The Cabinet has decided to abolish the death penalty, and it will be tabled in
the next Parliament sitting, which will begin on October 15, said Datuk Liew
Vui Keong [Minister in charge of law in the Prime Minister’s Department] … “All
death penalty will be abolished. Full stop.” (Malay Mail, 10 October 2018)
This decision was applauded worldwide and even celebrated at the recent 7th
World Congress Against the Death Penalty in Brussels on 26 February 2019 to 1
March 2019, which also highlighted the United Nations General Assembly 7th
Resolution for the moratorium of executions pending abolition. This was adopted
on 17 December 2018, with 121 in favour (including Malaysia for the very first
time), 35 against and 32 abstentions.
It is now disappointing that some cabinet members and political parties in
Pakatan Harapan may have buckled. This may be what led to a change in position.
But ultimately, it is the prime minister who chooses his cabinet, and so blame
would really fall on the prime minister.
All the cabinet had to do was to table the bill(s) to repeal the death penalty,
and leave it to Parliament. If Parliament defeats the bill, then blame lies
with Parliament not Mahathir and his cabinet.
The mandatory death penalty has already been declared unconstitutional in about
12 jurisdictions, the last being in Kenya and in June 2018, in Barbados. There
is currently a challenge at the Federal Court, seeking a similar declaration
that the mandatory death penalty is unconstitutional, in a case represented by
Gopal Sri Ram (The Star, 6 March 2019).
Mandatory sentences are undemocratic and unconstitutional as the legislature
infringes and takes away completely the power of the judiciary, when it comes
to the imposition of an appropriate and just sentence on a convicted person.
Parliament could fix minimum and maybe maximum sentences but it should never
take away a judge’s discretion when it comes to sentencing.
As such, the abolition of the mandatory death penalty is long overdue, but it
would be really no great achievement. Abolishing the death penalty, on the
other hand, would be something we can all be proud of, as Malaysia joins the
majority of nations. Everytime someone is executed, every Malaysian is
responsible for the death.
The reason for the abolition of the death penalty is clear. It has been shown
in Malaysia that it is no deterrent to crime. It has been shown for drug
trafficking.
And we believe that the number of murders has been increasing, a fact that
cannot be shown ever since the past government stopped giving actual statistics
of crimes, including murder since about 2014.
Now, we get a crime index, which is a basket of several crimes. This hides the
fact whether the numbers of murders, rape cases, snatch thefts, robberies or
any particular crimes are actually increasing or decreasing. Malaysians deserve
real statistics of each and every crime.
The risk of miscarriage of justice is real: an innocent man could wrongly be
executed – the flaws in the administration of justice are real.
Spending time in prison is adequate punishment, and there is really no
justification for putting anyone to death in this modern world. The notion that
justice will be done only by killing killers, raping those who rape, beating up
those who had assaulted others and such kind of punishments is not the kind of
justice that Malaysia should ever advocate.
Without the total abolition of the death penalty, Malaysia is most unlikely to
bring back Sirul Azhar from Australia, and as such that may prejudice the
investigation of other perpetrators who may have been involved in ordering or
paying for the Altantuya Shaariibuu murder.
In a criminal trial, the accused person will usually elect to remain silence,
not pleading guilty. The accused would be unlikely to say, “I did it with so
and so” or “I did it because I was ordered or paid to do so by some other
person” because any such statement would also be a personal admission of guilt.
It is also less likely for those sentenced to death, even after all appeals and
petitions are exhausted, to come forward and give information about
perpetrators yet to be identified or prosecuted. What is the use, as they will
still be executed.
Remember there is always a possibility that those perpetrators, still free and
unidentified, may threaten the convicted to remain silent, if not their family
members may be harmed.
But if the sentence is not death, there is a better chance of the convicted
speaking up and of more perpetrators being brought to justice.
Malaysia, being a Muslim-majority nation, should also not insist on the death
penalty, now in secular laws (not Islamic laws) that do not comply with the
evidential and procedural requirement of Islam, to be retained.
Christians, and especially Catholics, after Pope Francis’s clear position for
the abolition of the death penalty, also do not support the continued existence
of the death penalty. Likewise, Buddhist, Hindus and Sikhs, who advocate the
sanctity of life, should be against the death penalty.
The Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam), the Malaysian Bar,
Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) and many others also want the death
penalty abolished in Malaysia.
Even in France, when the death penalty was abolished by the government, over
60% of the population were against the abolition. The prime minister and
parliamentarians must have the required political will and courage to do the
right and just thing and immediately abolish the death penalty.
The worry of loss of popular support and the impact on the next general
election, on four years’ time, is a deplorable reason not to completely abolish
the death penalty now.
Madpet urges Mahathir and his cabinet to bravely table the bill to abolish the
death penalty for all offences, and let Parliament decide on it. Let the votes
be transparent so all will know how each and every parliamentarian voted, which
will also help in people to later lobby their MPs.
Madpet also calls for a continued moratorium on all executions pending the
abolition of the death penalty.
Madpet calls on Malaysian political parties to come out and clearly state their
position on the death penalty. It is shameful to give the impression in certain
forums that they are for the abolition of the death penalty, only to see some
of their leaders come out later taking an opposite stance.
Madpet also calls for parliamentarians in the Opposition and backbenchers to
also support the abolition of the death penalty on principle and for justice,
and not simply vote against it just because it is a bill tabled by the
government.
(source: Charles Hector released this statement on behalf of Malaysians Against
Death Penalty and Torture----aliran.com)
VIETNAM:
UN rebukes Vietnam for activist arrests, executions
A UN human rights watchdog called on Vietnam on Thursday to stop imprisoning
activists and journalists for criticizing state policies and voiced concern at
a "high number of death sentences and executions" imposed for lesser crimes
after flawed trials.
The UN Human Rights Committee reviewed Vietnam's record on upholding civil and
political freedoms, marking the 1st time Hanoi has engaged with the independent
experts since 2002.
Despite presiding over sweeping reforms and an increasingly market-oriented
economy, the Communist Party of Vietnam tolerates little criticism.
Nguyen Khanh Ngoc, deputy justice minister, told the UN panel this month that
Vietnam was working hard to protect human rights in its national development
process.
"There has been a dramatic increase in crackdowns against human rights
defenders," panel member Marcia Kran told a news briefing.
"They have been harassed, attacked, they have been held in incommunicado
pre-trial detention. Some have received lengthy prison sentences for charges
under quite vague legal provisions, and they have been ill-treated in custody
as well," she said.
Some activists were exiled after serving partial prison terms, the panel said,
citing Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, a blogger and environmental activist who adopted
Mother Mushroom as a pen name.
Quynh was released last October after serving 2 years of a 10-year term, and
arrived in the United States.
The UN panel called for a moratorium on Vietnam's extensive use of the death
penalty, including for drug-related and economic crimes, which it said do not
meet the threshold of the most serious crimes under international law.
Domestic laws have provisions on national security crimes that "encompass
legitimate activities, such as exercising the right to freedom of expression",
it said.
"The number and the identities of persons sentenced to death are kept secret by
the authorities which means it is possible for dissidents to be targeted and
sentenced to death without due process," Kran said. "Others have died in
custody."
Panel member Christof Heyns cited public reports that 85 people were executed
last year in Vietnam.
(source: Reuters)
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