June 23
GAMBIA:
Gambia opposition attacks plan to expand death penalty
Opposition activists have vowed to fight plans announced by The Gambia to
expand the list of offences punishable by death to any crime deemed
sufficiently serious by parliament.
The west African nation currently allows the sanction only for people convicted
of causing someone's death through violence or the administration of toxic
substances.
The government announced earlier this month however that it would hold a
referendum on changing the constitution to permit execution whenever "the
sentence is prescribed by law".
"It means the government would be able to (impose) the death penalty for any
crime it deems fit, by just passing a bill at the national assembly,"
opposition leader Halifa Salla told AFP late on Monday.
Sallah said his People's Democratic Organisation for Independence and Socialism
would "leave no stone unturned" in organising people to vote "no" in the
referendum, for which a date is yet to be set.
All Gambians aged over 18 will be entitled to take part, with a "yes" vote of
75 % on a turnout of at least 50 % carrying the motion.
The law would be changed within a maximum of 9 months after a 'yes' vote,
according to Salla.
No official crime statistics are released by the government in mainland
Africa's smallest country, which is surrounded by Senegal except for a narrow
strip of Atlantic coast and has a population of just 1.7 million.
President Yahya Jammeh announced in August 2012 that all death row prisoners
would be executed by mid-September and a week later the first batch of 9
convicts were executed by firing squad.
The killings caused international outrage, especially in Senegal, which counted
2 citizens among those put to death.
Rights groups estimate another 30 convicts face the firing squad but no
executions have been announced since.
Jammeh, an outspoken military officer and former wrestler, has ruled Gambia
with an iron fist since seizing power in a bloodless coup in 1994.
He is often accussed of rights abuses and the suppression of free speech, and
is pilloried for paranoia as he regularly reshuffles his government.
(source: Agence France-Presse)
FRANCE/INDONESIA:
France vows efforts to save national on death row in Indonesia
French President Francois Hollande says Paris will do its utmost to save a
French national who has received a death penalty over drug offences in
Indonesia.
"France, without going into the legal debate, is doing everything to keep Serge
Atlaoui alive," Hollande told reporters following a European summit in the EU's
de facto capital of Brussels late Monday.
He added, "It will be up to the lawyers to decide what other avenues to
pursue."
Meanwhile, France's European Affairs Minister Harlem Desir also vowed to
mobilize "the whole of the French diplomatic service" in an attempt to have
Atlaoui's death sentence annulled.
Laurent Fabius, the French foreign minister, also reiterated support for the
drug offender, saying he plans to talk to Atlaoui's wife regarding the
convict's situation very soon.
Earlier, the State Administrative Court in the Indonesian capital city of
Jakarta upheld its previous verdict regarding Atlaoui's charges, saying the
court is in no position to reconsider the convict's clemency plea, which had
already been dismissed by the country's President Joko Widodo.
Atlaoui's death sentence was to be implemented 2 months ago, but it was
suspended upon pressure from officials in Paris, who have warned Jakarta of
unspecified consequences if the convict is executed.
Indonesian police detained Atlaoui in a secret drug factory outside the capital
in 2015. Jakarta said he worked as a chemist at the site.
The French national rejects the allegation, saying he had no knowledge of the
factory's illegal activities, and was just installing machinery at the site
when he was arrested.
Back in April, 2 Australians, a Brazilian, 4 Nigerians and an Indonesian were
executed in the Asian country for drug offences.
Despite international pressure, Indonesian President Joko Widodo has stressed
that Jakarta will continue to severely punish drug traffickers, saying the
country is currently grappling with a serious crisis over the increasing drug
use.
(source: PressTV)
SINGAPORE:
2 arrested for attempting to smuggle 1kg of cannabis
The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) has arrested 2 suspected drug importers at
the Tuas Checkpoint on Monday who had attempted to import into Singapore 980g
of cannabis and 37g of Ice. CNB said the drugs, which were seized, are
estimated to be worth more than $39,000.
CNB officers and the K9 unit from the Singapore Police Force conducted a
routine check on a Malaysia-registered motorcycle last night at 10.20pm.
1 black bundle suspected to contain cannabis was found concealed underneath the
seat and the 2 male Malaysians on the motorcycle, a 19-year-old and a
21-year-old, were immediately placed under arrest.
CNB officers conducted a further search on the motorcycle and recovered 2 more
bundles. The 19-year-old suspect then surrendered a packet of Ice to the
officers.
Investigations on both arrested persons are ongoing.
Under the Misuse of Drugs Act, those convicted of importing more than 500g of
cannabis may face the death penalty.
(source: asiaone.com)
TAIWAN:
EU report criticizes use of capital punishment; BONE OF CONTENTION:While saying
human rights in Taiwan are at international standards, the report raises
concerns about the 33 executions over the past 6 years
The EU says Taiwan has implemented policies that have boosted human rights to
international standards, with the exception of the death penalty, according to
the latest EU Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World released
in Luxembourg on Monday.
"The EU's engagement [in Taiwan] fits into a generally good human rights
situation and domestic policy to implement international standards, with the
exception of the death penalty," the EU says in the report.
The report outlines the consistent efforts of the EU, its extensive network of
139 delegations and EU Representative for Human Rights Stavros Lambrinidis to
promote the universality of human rights around the world, the union said in a
press release.
Throughout last year, the EU engaged in formal human rights dialogues and
consultations with 37 partner countries and regional groupings, it said.
Taiwan is one of the nations named in the report where the extensive use of the
death penalty has made it a particular focus of attention, along with Iran,
Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Belarus, Egypt, Japan, Singapore, China and
the US, as EU nations deplore the use of the punishment.
Taiwan observed a de facto moratorium on the use of the death penalty from 2005
to 2010, but in the past 6 years 33 death row inmates have been executed, each
followed by a statement from the EU calling for an immediate moratorium on use
of the death penalty.
The EU remains engaged with local authorities and civil society (providing
support for the non-governmental organization Taiwan Alliance to End the Death
Penalty through the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights) on
working effectively toward the resumption of a moratorium on the death penalty
with a view to its formal abolition, the report says.
In its regular dialogue with Taiwan - the EU-Taiwan annual consultations on
non-trade issues - the EU raised its concerns over the death penalty and its
continued application, the report says.
(source: Taipei Times)
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