Nov. 4
INDONESIA:
Death penalty sought for drug defendants
Prosecutors at the Semarang District Court in Central Java have demanded the
death penalty for 5 defendants in a major drug-smuggling case, including
Pakistani citizens Muhammad Riaz and Faiq Akhtar and US national Kamran Malik,
aka Philip Russel.
The 3 have been indicted for trafficking 97 kilograms of crystal
methamphetamine to Jepara, Central Java, through Tanjung Emas Port in the
provincial capital of Semarang.
According to prosecutors, Riaz arranged the drug shipment from Guangzhou,
China, to Indonesia and then stored it in the CV Jepara Raya International
furniture warehouse in Pekalongan village, Jepara regency.
Prosecutors claim Riaz arranged the documents to smuggle the narcotics into
Indonesia.
The defendant was charged under the 2009 Narcotics Law.
Faiq was also involved in the attempt to smuggle the drugs into Indonesia, and
had also been indicted under the same law, prosecutor Edi Budianto said.
Prosecutors, meanwhile, demanded that the court sentence another defendant
Restiyadi Sayoko, accused of having facilitated the drug trafficking, to life
imprisonment.
The plea session will be held on Nov. 8 and the court will hand down its
verdict on Nov. 14.
On Wednesday, the court also heard the death penalty being demanded for 2
Indonesians for their role in the smuggling of the 97 kg of crystal meth
through Tanjung Emas Port.
They were Citra Agung Kurniawan and Tommy Pratomo, employees of PT Jacobson
Global Logistics Indonesia who helped take care of the import documents for
Zhouma brand generators from China.
Prosecutor Diajeng Kusumaningrum also sought a 18-year sentence for another
defendant Peni Suprapti.
Peni, who is Indonesian, is the wife of Riaz. Peni was charged with helping to
store the drugs in the furniture warehouse in Jepara.
The National Narcotics Agency (BNN) busted the drug trafficking ring on Jan.
27.
The Pakistani group stashed the crystal meth inside 194 power generators after
dismantling their pistons. The crystal meth was dispatched from Guangzhou,
China, and smuggled through Tanjung Emas.
Didi Triono, meanwhile, a local resident, leased the warehouse, which was
disguised as a furniture factory. Prosecutors sought 18 years in prison for
Didi.
In the trial hearing, prosecutor Bondan Subrata said Citra was contacted by
Riaz to arrange the importation of the generators.
"Defendant Citra assisted in the arrangement of import documents for the
generators, which contained the drugs. He also set a tariff of Rp 190 million
[about US$14,630] for the service," said Bondan.
Prosecutors also demanded a fine of Rp 1 billion for Citra.
Indonesia has fallen under international scrutiny in recent years for its use
of the death penalty.
Despite repeated calls from human rights activists, President Joko "Jokowi"
Widodo has insisted that drug convicts should be executed, saying that drug
misuse claims the lives of thousands of Indonesians every year.
(source: The Jakarta Post)
SUDAN:
Further delay to trial of death row pastors
The trial of 2 Sudanese pastors who face death if convicted has been postponed
for the 2nd time in 2 weeks.
Rev Hassan Abduraheem and Rev Kuwa Shamal face at least seven charges including
waging war against the state and espionage, which carry the death penalty as
the maximum sentence.
They are on trial with 2 other mean, Petr Jasek and Abdulmonem Abdumawla.
The hearing, which was due to take place on 31 October in Khartoum, was
rescheduled, as the judge was absent. Last week, a hearing scheduled for 24
October was postponed to 31 October, because the judge was out of the country.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide, which is monitoring the case, told Premier it
was concerned the delays would mean the men would not get a fair trial.
There has already been several other delays to the case, including a 3-week
adjournment for the translation of documents.
The case against the pastors centres on money given to a young man who was
injured in a protest against the state.
CSW's Chief Executive Mervyn Thomas said: "We are concerned by the continuing
delays in the trial.
"Fair trial principles stipulate that criminal proceedings should occur within
a reasonable time. In this case, the constant postponements due to the absence
of the judge or prosecutor or failure to transport the men to court are
prolonging proceedings unnecessarily, which is unacceptable, given the length
of time these men have already spent in custody.
"We continue to call for the unconditional and immediate release of these
unjustly detained men. In the event the trial continues, we urge the government
of Sudan to ensure it proceeds in line with fair trial principles outlined in
Article 7 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights, to which Sudan is
a party."
(source: premier.org.uk)
SOUTH AFRICA:
Clive Derby-Lewis, behind Chris Hani killing, dies
Clive Derby-Lewis, a South African politician jailed for the 1993 assassination
of Communist Party leader Chris Hani, has died at the age of 80.
Mr Hani led the military wing of Nelson Mandela's African National Congress
Party and was among South Africa's most popular black politicians.
Derby-Lewis opposed ending white minority rule and was trying to start a race
war in the last days of apartheid.
Another man, Janusz Walus, shot Mr Hani but Derby-Lewis provided the gun.
He was initially sentenced to death, alongside Walus, but his sentence was
commuted when South Africa abolished the death penalty in 1995.
The murder was intended to spark riots that escalated racial tensions and
harmed reconciliation efforts.
But it backfired as Mandela appeared presidential while he called for calm, and
pressured then-President FW de Klerk to set a date for the historic democratic
election in which he was swept to power.
Derby-Lewis was a founder member of the Conservative Party in 1982.
Partly due to his terminal lung cancer, he was granted parole in June 2015
after 22 years in prison, despite fierce objections from the Hani family.
He is survived by his wife Gaye, a fellow Conservative Party politician.
(source: BBC news)
_______________________________________________
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
