Ddec. 5
MAURITANIA:
New 'Apostasy' Draft Law----Death Sentence Would Be Mandatory in Some Cases
Mauritanian deputies should reject a new draft law that would make the death
penalty mandatory for the crime of "insulting" or "mocking" God, the Quran, or
the Prophet Muhammad, Human Rights Watch said today.
On November 16, 2017, President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz's cabinet approved the
draft legislation, which would eliminate the possibility under the current law
of substituting a prison term for the death penalty if the offender promptly
repents.
'Instead of decriminalizing apostasy, as the international treaties they signed
would warrant, Mauritanian authorities are hurtling in the opposite direction,
closing off alternatives to execution," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East
and North Africa director at Human Rights Watch.
The cabinet's move came a week after an appeals court sentenced Mohamed Cheikh
Ould Mkhaitir, a blogger convicted of apostasy, to a prison term. The court
accepted his repentance as a basis for voiding the death penalty that another
court had imposed on him for posting an article denouncing the use of religion
to justify discrimination in Mauritania. The case attracted international
attention, with some leading Islamists figures and political parties in
Mauritania calling for the blogger's execution.
Mauritania's current penal code, in article 306, imposes the death penalty for
apostasy but allows for a lighter penalty if the defendant repents.
If the National Assembly passes the draft law, the death penalty will be
mandatory, without the possibility of reducing the punishment, for any Muslim
who mocks or insults God, the Quran, Muhammad, the angels, or prophets. It
would still allow people to escape the death penalty for renouncing the Islamic
faith or professing belief in it while secretly disbelieving, provided that the
offender repented under specified conditions.
The timing of the introduction of this draft law is clearly related to the
verdict handed down in the blogger's appeals hearing, Human Rights Watch said.
A lower court sentenced Mkhaitir to death for apostasy in December 2014 for his
article, in which he criticized fellow Mauritanians for citing incidents from
the life of the Prophet Muhammad to legitimize caste discrimination in
Mauritania. Mkhaitir belongs to the so-called "forgerons," which is viewed as a
lower caste. An appeals court upheld the death sentence.
But on January 31, 2017, the Supreme Court sent the case back for a new trial.
On November 8, 2017, the Court of Appeals in Nouadhibou reduced Mkhaitir's
punishment to 2 years of prison and a fine. The prosecutor general immediately
challenged the appeals court ruling before the Supreme Court.
The lowered sentence should have led to Mkhaitir's release, since he had been
in preventive detention for nearly 4 years. But in the days since the ruling,
one of the defense lawyers, Fatimata M'Baye, has been unable to locate her
client. A presidential adviser reportedly stated that Mkhaitir had not been
freed and would remain detained until the Supreme Court's review. His
whereabouts are unknown.
Mauritania's new draft law on apostasy and the failure of authorities to
immediately release and void charges against Mkhaitir for his peaceful
expression violate international law guarantees protecting free speech, such as
those enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR), to which Mauritania has been a party since 2004.
In its general comment number 34, the United Nations Human Rights Committee -
the body of independent experts that monitors governments' compliance with the
ICCPR - makes clear that "prohibitions of displays of lack of respect for a
religion or other belief system, including blasphemy laws, are incompatible
with the Covenant," unless they constitute incitement to discrimination,
hostility, or violence.
Both UN and African human rights standards on the right to life encourage
countries to move toward abolition of the death penalty and in countries that
retain it, make clear that it should be limited to the most serious crimes and
may be imposed only after a fair trial. The African Commission on Human and
Peoples' Rights has stated that: "In those States which have not yet abolished
the death penalty it is vital that it is used for only the most serious crimes
- understood to be crimes involving intentional killing."
"Instead of introducing laws to toughen punishment for apostasy, Mauritania
should be clarifying the legal status and whereabouts of Mohamed Cheikh Ould
Mkhaitir, who should never have spent a single day in prison for his writings,"
Whitson said.
(source: Human Rights Watch)
MALAYSIA:
Let judicial discretion in sentencing lead to total abolition of death penalty
The Malaysian Bar welcomes the removal of the mandatory death sentence for drug
offences and the restoration of judicial discretion in sentencing with the
passing of the Dangerous Drugs (Amendment) Bill 2017 by the Dewan Rakyat on Nov
30.
We wish to recognise the government for having considered public feedback by
amending the Bill and removing the requirement of the public prosecutor's
certification of the assistance rendered by the convicted person, for the judge
to not pass the death penalty.
However, there remain limits to what the judge can take into account in
exercising his/her discretion in sentencing. Section 39B(2A) of the Bill, inter
alia, requires that the court:
... may have regard only to the following circumstances: [emphasis added]
(a) there was no evidence of buying and selling of a dangerous drug at the time
when the person convicted was arrested;
(b) there was no involvement of agent provocateurs; or
(c) the involvement of the person convicted is restricted to transporting,
carrying, sending or delivering a dangerous drug; and,
(d) that the person convicted has assisted an enforcement agency in disrupting
drug trafficking activities within or outside Malaysia.
We are concerned that judges are being limited in their consideration of the
mitigating factors and circumstances that surround each case, before
sentencing.
Such mitigating factors can include, and are not limited to, the offender's
age, rehabilitation goals, past criminal record, the role played in the
offence, mental capacity, reparations made, fear of another person, use of
violence, the harm done to property or persons, and degree of cooperation with
the authorities. The sentencing process is, and should always remain, within
the unfettered domain of the judiciary.
We are also troubled that the determination on whether the death penalty is
imposed rests upon an assessment of the convicted person's ability or
willingness to assist in disrupting drug trafficking activities. A person's
right to life is a fundamental right, not a privilege that can be revoked if
that person is deemed not sufficiently "useful" to an enforcement agency.
The Malaysian Bar calls upon the government to further amend the Bill to enable
those already convicted and sentenced to death to apply for a review of their
sentence. Meanwhile, the government should officially declare and implement a
moratorium on all pending executions.
The Bar also remains resolute in our position that the death penalty is an
extreme, abhorrent and inhumane punishment. There are also provisions for the
imposition of the mandatory death penalty in the Penal Code and the Firearms
(Increased Penalties) Act 1971, and of the discretionary death penalty in the
Kidnapping Act 1961.
Finally, the Bar calls upon the government to act without delay to abolish the
death penalty for all crimes, and to uphold the right to life, which is
absolute, universal and inalienable.
(source: malaysiakini.com)
SIERRA LEONE:
Govt. rejects CRC recommendation to abolish death penalty
In the newly released White Paper on the Constitutional Review Committee (CRC)
Report, the government indicated that it will retain the death penalty in
Section 16 (1) of the 1991 Constitution.
The CRC report was presented to the President on 24th January 2017, with
several recommendations of which was a call for the abolition of the death
penalty, under the theme Protection of Right to Life.
The Section reads ... "No person shall be deprived of his life intentionally
except in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offence
under the laws of Sierra Leone, of which he has been convicted."
During consultations with Parliamentarians, they were in favour of abolishing
the death penalty completely. The CRC also took account of numerous position
papers including that of the HRCSL that had been received, and the responses
from nationwide consultations where there was a clear majority call for the
abolition of the death penalty.
The Human Rights Commission of Sierra Leone (HRCSL) 2014 report recommended
that the government and the CRC should implement the TRC and the Universal
periodic Review recommendations for the abolition of the death penalty.
They also urged government through the office of the Attorney general to sign
the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (ICCPR) on the abolition of the death penalty.
In May 2014, Minister of Justice, Franklyn Bai Kargbo told the United Nations
that Sierra Leone intended to abolish capital punishment in law and that the
death sentences of the country's last death row prisoners had been commuted to
life imprisonment.
In the HRCSL 2016 report, they reported that they were concerned about
statement made on radio by the Internal Affairs Minister Palo Conteh, on 21st
October that the gallows would be tested and prepared in readiness for use. A
mock execution was subsequently done at the Freetown Male Correctional Centre
on 25th October, which was viewed on television.
The death penalty in Sierra Leone indicates that murder, treason, and
aggravated robbery are death-eligible. Hanging and shooting is the method
provided by law for any execution.
The Government's response was that the CRC plenary did not have a quorum of
members when they were voting on the recommendation around abolishing the death
penalty. "Further, the recommendation is not representative of the views of the
members of the CRC who voted 23 to 18 in favour of retaining the death penalty
..."
As a result, the government says it will maintain the death penalty as a
deterrent to heinous crimes against humanity.
Despite the government stance to maintain the death penalty, the last known
execution was carried out by firing squad in October 1998, where they publicly
executed 24 soldiers for taking part in a military coup.
In 2010, there were 13 prisoners on death row. Recent presidential pardons
contributed to emptying death row, according to Amnesty International, there
were no prisoners on death row by the end of 2012.
A man was sentenced to death in 2013 (the 1st death sentence since 2011) and
was the only person under sentence of death until recently.
(source: awoko.com)
PAKISTAN:
Pak woman sentenced to death for killing estranged lover with acid
An anti-terrorism court in Pakistan has sentenced a 20-year-old woman to death
for killing her 'estranged' lover by throwing acid on him.
The anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Multan district yesterday sentenced Shamira
to death and life imprisonment for killing 23-year-old Sadaqat Ali in 2016.
"This is probably a first case in the country in which a woman was handed down
death sentence in an acid throwing case," rights activist Abdullah Malik said.
She had killed Sadaqat after inviting him to her residence. Shamria had
confessed her crime in the court. She also told that she had relations with
Sadaqat Ali.
"He despised me and was going to marry another girl...I could not bear this
humiliation and threw acid on him," a police official quoted her statement.
Shamria said she did not wanted to kill him. "I only wanted to make sure that
he could not marry someone else," she said.
In October, the Multan court sentenced Yasmeen to death on two counts while
also handing her a life imprisonment sentence after finding her guilty of
murdering her husband Muhammad Imran Ashraf by throwing acid on him.
Pakistan lifted its moratorium on the death penalty in 2015.
Since then, a total of 465 prisoners have been executed, according to a report
by Justice Project Pakistan released in July.
(source: Press Trust of India)
INDIA:
Supreme Court stays execution of Mumbai blast convict
The Supreme Court on Monday stayed the execution of death row convict Tahir
Merchant in the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case. The convict, who facilitated
training of several co-accused in Pakistan, had challenged his death penalty
claiming no role in the conspiracy.
A bench, headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra, sought a response from the CBI
within 6 weeks and called for the case records from the special TADA court in
Mumbai, which had awarded death sentence to Merchant and co-convict Firoz Abdul
Rashid Khan, besides giving life imprisonment to gangster Abu Salem. Merchant
was convicted in the second stage of trial in the case as he was absconding
earlier.
The bench listed the matter for further hearing on March 14 next year. As many
as 257 people were killed and 718 injured in the serial blasts at 12 places in
Mumbai on March 12, 1993.
The bench, which also included Justices Ashok Bhushan and M.M. Shantanagoudar,
said, "The state of Maharashtra is directed to compile the evidence in entirety
and file the compilation in convenient volumes and also serve a copy thereof to
the counsel for the appellant (Merchant)."
Merchant had challenged the September 7 order of the special TADA court which
had held that he was amongst the main conspirators.
The trial court had noted that Merchant worked with (absconding conspirator)
Tiger Memon and participated in several conspiracy meetings in Dubai.
He also made travel arrangements, financed the stay and travel of several
co-accused and facilitated their training in Pakistan, the court had said.
"The role of Tahir Merchant in the conspiracy is prominent. He is one of the
initiators of the conspiracy," it had said. Merchant's trial was separated from
the main case as he was arrested after the first set of trial had already
started.
(source: asianage.com)
*************
MP House passes bill awarding capital punishment for child rapists
The Madhya Pradesh Assembly on Monday unanimously passed a bill that envisages
handing out death penalty to rape convicts involving minor girls of 12 years
and below as well as to gang-rape convicts.
The Dand Vidhi (Madhya Pradesh Sanshodhan) Vidheyak would now be sent to the
Centre and would need the President's assent to become a law.
The Bill proposes a death penalty or a minimum term of 14-year rigorous
imprisonment or life imprisonment till death for rape of girls aged 12 years or
less. Similarly, the bill provides for capital punishment or a minimum term of
20-year rigorous imprisonment or life imprisonment till death in case of
gang-rape of girls less than 12 years.
(source: uniindia.com)
FRANCE:
Cancer Kills French Murderer Who... Contributed to Abolition of Guillotine
Patrick Henry, infamous French criminal, who spent 25 years in prison for
killing a 7-year-old child in early 1976, in a twist of fate is considered by
co-citizens as the man whose case paved the way for abolition of capital
punishment in the country.
Patrick Henry's affair is a cause celebre in France: the man was charged in 2
separate incidents, the 1st involving the kidnapping and murder of Philippe
Bertrand, a 7-year-old boy on January 31, 1976 in the small city of Troyes,
France. Henry died of lung cancer at the age of 64 on Sunday, as cited by AFP.
After being arrested for the 1st time under suspicion of having killed the
child, Henry was soon released due to a lack of evidence. The man went as far
as to appear on television to say that the boy's murderer deserved to die. A
couple days later he was arrested again, and that's when he confessed he had
abducted the boy and showed the corpse of the child hidden in a blanket under
his bed in a hotel room. It turned out that Henry demanded a million francs in
ransom for Philippe an hour after the kidnapping although the boy was already
dead.
While a number of lawyers refused to take the case, Robert Badinter, a young
and promising attorney, decided to defend Henry, and to put an end to death
penalty in France. Badinter's extraordinary court performance in 1977 made the
jury "trade" the guillotine for life imprisonment.
Being spared execution, Henry was convicted to life in prison, and released on
parole in 2001 after 25 years in jail, and then was subsequently rearrested in
2002 for carrying 10 kg of drugs. Yet, his 2nd sentence was suspended for
medical reasons in September 2017. Patrick Henry's affair was the 1st step
towards abolishing death penalty: 4 years later, in 1981, Badinter became the
Minister of Justice, and presented a bill designed to forbid capital
punishment, which was passed through the National Assembly and backed by the
then-President Francois Mitterand.
Since then Patrick Henry has been known as the man who indirectly contributed
to the end of the French guillotine.
(source: sputniknews.com)
JAMAICA:
Enforce death penalty for cop killers, urges Police Federation rep
A representative of the Police Federation used the funeral service for slain
corporal, Melvin Smith, on Sunday to call for a unified approach to crime
fighting, an amendment to the Independent Commission of Investigations
(INDECOM) Act, and enforcement of the death penalty for cop killers.
"We have lost a friend, a colleague, a gentle giant, a smiley face, a
humanitarian, a real treasure; not only to the Jamaica Constabulary Force but
the citizens of Jamaica. The blame-game syndrome, the
see-no-evil-hear-no-evil... let me tell you something today, we have to change
our stance," Corporal Arleen McBean told mourners inside Northern Caribbean
University's gymnatorium in this central Jamaica town.
Corporal Smith, who was a member of the Community Safety and Security Branch in
the Manchester Police Division, was gunned down on October 27 while chasing men
who had robbed a young man of his motorcycle. The victim of the robbery was
also injured in the shooting incident.
The Manchester police have since arrested and charged a 22-year-old man for the
murder.
On Sunday, Corporal McBean argued that grey areas in the INDECOM Act that she
described as rigid and subjective, as well as unsatisfactory wage negotiations
should be addressed quickly.
"The Jamaica Constabulary Force is 150 years old... we struggle with our
challenges day after day, year after year but we have built strength in all
that we do. Recently, we heard public utterances about INDECOM having
overreaching authority and (there is) a need for a balance. I will use today to
say that the Police Federation, from that Bill was tabled, shared the likely
implications of the INDECOM Act, and now we see that those grey areas are a
problem zone for many. If the powers that be are not brave enough to amend that
act of Parliament, with its rigidity and subjectiveness, then what will we do?
Is it that an existence of an agency of 5 years is going to demoralise us?" she
asked.
"We need an amendment of that Act forthwith. We, the Federation, lobby
assiduously for the Government of Jamaica to provide legal fees for our members
who are supposed to face INDECOM," said McBean.
McBean's call came a full week after Prime Minister Andrew Holness promised
additional measures to fight crime, including money to pay the legal expenses
of police fingered by INDECOM.
Holness made the announcement at the Jamaica Labour Party annual conference on
November 26, saying that the Government intended to include the funds in the
Supplementary Estimates (Budget), expected to have been tabled last Wednesday
in the House of Representatives, to provide legal support for the police who
face the court for the shooting of suspects.
He also said the Government would reintroduce legislation to refuse bail to
individuals charged with gun crimes.
McBean said that Smith was an active Federation delegate in the Manchester
Police Division and lamented that he died without having the satisfaction of
the salary he deserved.
"Whenever we leave the Ministry of Finance, the negotiating table, he would
call for an update. Melvin yearned for that day when he could say 'I am being
paid as how I rightfully deserve'; unfortunately that offer (of a three per
cent increase in year one and two on basic salary) we classify as a monumental
tragedy. A monumental tragedy for those ... who gave their lives and paid the
ultimate price as our brother did; a monumental tragedy for those who fall
through the floors of stations; a monumental tragedy for the police who wonder
where I will get my next bread," she said.
McBean said it was not enough to just remember Smith, but it was important to
build on the trust that he enjoyed in the communities that he served, to ensure
a better nation and a better tomorrow.
Reverend Karl Johnson of the Jamaica Baptist Union said that the church and
families can do more to fight crime.
Police Commissioner George Quallo, like Corporal McBean, noted the challenges
faced by Jamaica Constabulary Force members but urged them to continue to carry
out their duties in a professional manner.
Smith's life, he said, was not in vain.
After the service, Corporal Smith's remains were interred at Goshen Cemetery in
St Elizabeth.
(source: jamaicaobserver.com)
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