Death penalty 2012: Despite setbacks, a death penalty-free world came closer

AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL Press Release - Despite some disappointing setbacks in 2012, the global trend towards ending the death penalty continued, Amnesty International found in its annual review of death sentences and executions.

2012 saw the resumption of executions in several countries that had not used the death penalty in some time, notably India, Japan, Pakistan and Gambia, as well as an alarming escalation in executions in Iraq.

But the use of the death penalty continues to be restricted to an isolated group of countries, and progress towards its abolition was seen in all regions of the world.

Only 21 of the world's countries were recorded as having carried out executions in 2012 - the same number as in 2011, but down from 28 countries a decade earlier in 2003.

In 2012, at least 682 executions were known to have been carried out worldwide, 2 more than in 2011. At least 1,722 newly imposed death sentences in 58 countries could be confirmed, compared to 1,923 in 63 countries the year before.

But these figures do not include the thousands of executions that Amnesty International believes were carried out in China, where the numbers are kept secret.

"The regression we saw in some countries this year was disappointing, but it does not reverse the worldwide trend against using the death penalty. In many parts of the world, executions are becoming a thing of the past," said Salil Shetty, Secretary General of Amnesty International.

"Only 1 in 10 countries in the world carries out executions. Their leaders should ask themselves why they are still applying a cruel and inhumane punishment that the rest of the world is leaving behind."

The top 5 executing countries in the world were once again China, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and USA, with Yemen closely behind.

Methods of executions in 2012 included hanging, beheading, firing squad and lethal injection. In Saudi Arabia, the body of 1 man executed through beheading was displayed in what is known as "crucifixion".

People faced the death penalty for a range of crimes including non-violent drug-related and economic offences, but also for "apostasy", "blasphemy", and "adultery" - acts that should not be considered crimes at all.

The Asia-Pacific region saw some disappointing setbacks in 2012, with India, Japan and Pakistan resuming executions after long periods when these countries were execution-free.

In November, India carried out its 1st execution since 2004 when Ajmal Kasab, 1 of the gunmen involved in the 2008 Mumbai attacks, was hanged.

In Japan, 3 death row inmates were executed in March - followed by another 4 later in the year - ending a 20-month hiatus in executions there.

China once again executed more people than the rest of the world put together, but due to the secrecy surrounding the use of the death penalty in the country it was not possible to obtain accurate figures on the use of capital punishment in China.

But there were also positive developments in the region. Vietnam did not carry out any death sentence, while Singapore observed a moratorium on the death penalty and Mongolia ratified a key international treaty committing the country to abolition.

The Pacific sub-region continued to be a virtually death penalty-free area.

Although the Middle East and North Africa saw a few positive developments, use of the death penalty in the region is still a cause of great concern.

Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Yemen saw continued high levels of executions; 99 % of all executions in the region were carried out in these 4 countries.

In particular, there was an alarming rise in Iraq's use of the death penalty, where at least 129 people were put to death - almost double the 2011 figure of 68.

Iran once again came second behind China when it came to the number of executions.314 executions were officially acknowledged by the authorities, but the real number is almost certainly much higher as scores of other executions not officially acknowledged were also recorded.

The conflict in Syria made it impossible to confirm whether the death penalty was used there in 2012.

In the Americas, the USA remains the only country to carry out executions - the total number, 43, was the same as in 2011, but only 9 states executed in 2012, compared to 13 in 2011. Connecticut became the 17th abolitionist state in April, while a referendum on the abolition of the death penalty was narrowly defeated in California in November.

The English-speaking Caribbean remained execution-free; 12 death sentences were recorded in 3 of the sub-region's 12 countries.

In sub-Saharan Africa, there was further progress towards abolition. Benin took legislative steps to remove relevant provisions from its laws, and Ghana plans to abolish the death penalty in its new Constitution. There are no more prisoners on death row in Sierra Leone.

However, executions and death sentences imposed in the region increased substantially from 2011 to 2012, due to higher figures reported from Sudan and Gambia.

August saw the execution of nine people in Gambia - the country's 1st in almost 3 decades. Following an international outcry, President Yahya -Jammeh announced a "conditional" moratorium on executions which would be "automatically lifted" if crime rates increased. In Sudan, there were at least 19 executions and 199 death sentences.

Belarus continued to be the only country in Europe and Central Asia to carry out executions, and did so under strict secrecy, with at least 3 men put to death in 2012.

Latvia was the 97th country worldwide to become abolitionist for all crimes, after removing the last capital crimes from its legislation during 2012.

One argument frequently deployed by proponents of the death penalty is that it acts as a deterrent against crime. However, a major 2012 study in the USA concluded that the deterrence argument should not be put forward to justify the use of the death penalty.

"Governments still executing have run out of arguments to justify themselves. There is no evidence whatsoever to indicate that the death penalty works as a special deterrent against crime," said Shetty.

"The real reason for the death penalty's use can often be found elsewhere. In 2012, we were once again very concerned to see countries executing for what appeared to be political purposes "either as a populist measure, or as an outright tool of repression."

Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception, regardless of the nature or circumstances of the crime; guilt, innocence or other characteristics of the individual; or the method used by the state to carry out the execution. The death penalty violates the right to life and is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.

Source: Amnesty International, April 9, 2013

Mongolia takes 'vital step forward' in abolishing the death penalty

The Mongolian parliament's approval of a bill that aims to scrap the death penalty is a vital step towards full abolition of the death penalty in Mongolia, Amnesty International said today.

The bill, which ratifies the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), was approved today by a large majority of MPs.

"The Mongolian parliament's vote today is another vital step forward, and Mongolia should follow up by immediately implementing laws that abolish the death penalty altogether." said Sam Zarifi, Amnesty International Asia-Pacific Director.

"In moving away from the death penalty, Mongolia is setting the standard for other countries in the Asia-Pacific region to follow."

Amnesty International has campaigned extensively for the abolition of the death penalty in Mongolia.

The death penalty remains part of the law in Mongolia until the Mongolian parliament removes provisions in national legislation that still retain the death penalty.

The Mongolian Criminal Code currently provides for the application of the death penalty for offences including terrorism, genocide, rape, sabotage, premeditated murder and assassination of a state or public figure. Under these offences, 59 crimes are listed as capital crimes.

The country's Law on State Secrets and the Law on the List of State Secrets includes the use of the death penalty, which has made it difficult to find public information on its use in Mongolia.

Amnesty International was able to confirm 12 executions between 2005 and 2009.

On 14 January 2010, Mongolian President Tsakhiagiin Elbegdorj's announcement of a moratorium on executions as a first step toward abolition of the death penalty was welcomed internationally.

More than 2/3 of all countries in the world have abolished the death penalty in law or in practice.

More people are executed in the Asia-Pacific region than in the rest of the world combined. Fourteen countries in the region still retain the death penalty and have carried out executions in the past 10 years, with China far and away the largest executioner in the world.

Out of 41 countries in the Asia-Pacific, 17 have abolished the death penalty for all crimes, nine are abolitionist in practice and one – Fiji – uses the death penalty only for exceptional military crimes.

Source: Yubanet.com, January 7, 2012

Pope supports death penalty opponents

Pope Benedict XVI expressed his support this week for efforts by the Rome-based Community of Sant’Egidio to abolish the death penalty worldwide.

“I express my hope that your deliberations will encourage the political and legislative initiatives being promoted in a growing number of countries to eliminate the death penalty,” the pontiff said in English during his weekly audience on November 30.

He added that he hoped the group would “continue the substantive progress made in conforming penal law both to the human dignity of prisoners and the effective maintenance of public order.”

Sant’Egidio this week hosted an event in Rome that brought together justice ministers and government officials from countries that have abolished the death penalty, together with witnesses, former death row inmates and relatives of crime victims.

The group has campaigned for decades against capital punishment, calling on governments and international institutions to abolish or suspend all executions.

The United Nations General Assembly voted in favor of a moratorium on the death penalty in 2007.

“Asia is the continent where the death penalty is most present,” said Stefano Argentino of Sant’Egidio, but he added that the latest ‘good news’ for the campaign came from Mongolia.

After Mongolia’s President Tsakhia Elbegdorj commuted all capital sentences to 30-year jail terms in January 2010, the government is now set to adopt a UN protocol binding it to abolish the death penalty.

The Philippines, Cambodia, Timor L’Este, Nepal and Bhutan, along with the Central Asian ex-Soviet republics, are the only countries in Asia who do not have the death penalty.

China is reported to carry out the most capital punishments of any country in the world, while Iran has the highest number of executions to population ratio.

Other Asian countries, including Afghanistan, South Korea, India, Indonesia, Laos, the Maldives, Myanmar, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Thailand, have suspended capital punishment while still handing down death sentence verdicts.

Source: CathNews of India, September 2, 2011

China Executes Man For Running Over Mongol Herder

Chinese Police officers rehearsing
execution procedure

China has executed a truck driver for killing an ethnic Mongol herder in a case that sparked Inner Mongolia's largest demonstrations in 20 years.

The official Xinhua News Agency said in a brief report that Li Lindong was executed Aug. 18. The report, dated Aug. 19, was posted to a regional news website and appeared to not be widely circulated.

The herder, Mergen, who like many Mongols uses just one name, was killed May 10 while he and others were blocking the road through their village to protest noise and pollution produced by coal trucks transiting the grasslands. Police said Li ran over Mergen and then dragged his body for 160 yards (145 meters) before he died.

His death and that of another Mongol in a clash with Chinese coal miners sparked protests across the sprawling northern pastureland by herders and students demanding justice and greater protection for Mongol culture and the nomadic herding lifestyle.

Li was sentenced in June after a 6-hour trial at the Intermediate People's Court in the region's Xilingol League. Fellow driver Lu Xiangdong, who had been sitting in the cab of Li's truck when he drove over the herder, was also convicted of homicide and sentenced to life in prison, state media said earlier.

2 other people, Wu Xiaowei and Li Minggang, were convicted of obstructing justice and given 3-year sentences for having blocked police who arrived at the scene, allowing Li Lindong and Lu to escape.

Mass migration to the Inner Mongolia region by members of China's majority Han ethnic group and a booming mining industry have placed traditional ways of life under severe pressure.

China is the world's largest enforcer of the death penalty and is believed to execute more people each year than the rest of the world combined, although the actual figure is a state secret.

Source: Associated Press, August 25, 2011

Chinese sentenced to die for Mongol herder’s death

Chinese police officers
practicing executions

A Chinese truck driver was sentenced to death Wednesday for killing an ethnic Mongol herder by dragging him under his truck in a case that triggered Inner Mongolia’s largest demonstrations in 20 years.

Li Lindong’s sentence was read out at the end of his 6-hour trial at the Intermediate People’s Court in the region’s Xilingol League, the official Xinhua News Agency said.

Fellow driver Lu Xiangdong, who had been sitting in the cab of Li’s truck when he drove over the herder, was also convicted of homicide and sentenced to life in prison, Xinhua said.

2 others, Wu Xiaowei and Li Minggang, were convicted of obstructing justice and given three-year sentences for having blocked police who arrived at the scene, allowing Li Lindong and Lu to escape.

The speed of the trial and severity of the sentences underscore authorities’ sensitivity over the case and their desire to assuage Mongol demands for justice. Outcomes in such trials are usually a foregone conclusion, and proceedings are often shown on television as a public relations tool. Xinhua said 160 people attended the trial including relatives of the victim and the accused.

The herder, Mergen, who like many Mongols uses just one name, was killed on May 10 while he and others were blocking the road through their village to protest noise and pollution produced by coal trucks transiting the grasslands. Police said Li ran over Mergen and then dragged his body for 160 yards (145 meters) before he died.

His death and that of another Mongol in a clash with Chinese coal miners sparked protests across the sprawling northern pastureland by herders and students demanding justice and greater protection for Mongol culture and the nomadic herding lifestyle.

Mass migration to the region by members of China’s majority Han ethnic group and a booming mining industry have placed traditional ways of life under severe pressure.

Protesters were reportedly detained by security forces, but there has been no official word on arrests.

China is the world’s largest enforcer of the death penalty and is believed to execute more people each year than the rest of the world combined, although the actual figure is a state secret.

Source: Associated Press, June 9, 2011

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UN General Assembly Approves New Resolution For Universal Moratorium on Death Penalty

December 22, 2010: The United Nations General Assembly yesterday approved a new resolution in favour of a universal moratorium on the death penalty. It is the third time after the historic resolution approved in December 2007 and then again in December 2008.

108 countries voted in favour, with 41 against and 36 abstentions (another 7 countries were absent at the time of the vote). It recorded a decisive step forward compared to 2007 when in a plenary assembly the votes in favour were 104, with 54 against and 29 abstentions (with 5 absent at the time of the vote). Another step forward was taken also in respect to the second vote on the pro moratorium Resolution in December 2008 when there were 105 in favour, 47 against and 34 abstentions (6 were absent at the time of the vote).

The most significant political data regarding the favourable is that of 6 countries that in 2008 voted against (Kiribati, the Maldives and Mongolia) or abstained (Bhutan, Guatemala and Togo) or the abstentions of 4 countries (Comoros, Nigeria, the Solomon Islands and Thailand) that in 2008 voted against. The number of cosponsors of the Resolution also increased, 90 in total, three doing so for the first time: Cambodia, Russia and Madagascar.

The only new part of the text of the Resolution concerns the request – in part contained in the 2007 text – directing the member states to ‘make information available relevant to the use of the death penalty to allow an informed and transparent national debate.'

“The new vote at the UN in favour of the moratorium records the positive evolution happening for more than ten years around the world towards the end of the State-Cain and the ending of the fake and archaic principle of an eye for an eye,” Hands Off Cain secretary Sergio D’Elia said.

Sources: Hands Off Cain, December 22, 2010

World protest urges end to death penalty

Governments and campaigners on Sunday urged a worldwide end to the death penalty, singling out the United States, Iran and China and denouncing executions of children and other vulnerable groups.

Japan, which counted 107 prisoners on death row as of last month, saw one of the first demonstrations to mark Sunday's action called by the Paris-based World Coalition Against the Death Penalty.

French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner urged "all countries where the death penalty is still in force to abolish it and meanwhile set up a moratorium on executions and death sentences.''

In a statement marking the eighth World Day Against the Death Penalty, he cited the case of Sakineh Ashtiani, a woman sentenced to death by stoning in Iran, whose case has provoked international outrage in recent months.

About 70 people, including Iranians, marched in the Ginza shopping district in Tokyo waving banners urging abolition -- a small turnout in a country where a survey in February showed 85 percent of people backed the death penalty.

Among the major industrialised democracies, only Japan and the United States carry out the death penalty, according to the international human rights watchdog Amnesty International.

Amnesty ranks China as the country that commits the most executions, with the number believed to be in the thousands in 2009 although its leaders refuse to give figures. Iran ranks next with 388 executions recorded last year.

The World Coalition said this year's protest day was dedicated to the United States, where in 2009 some of the states that retain the penalty executed 52 people overall and sentenced 106 to death.

"It is hoped that this world day will strengthen the trend towards abolition in the USA and also the trend towards universal abolition,'' the coalition said on its website, listing protests planned for Sunday in Asia, Europe and the Americas.

"There is still a long road to travel to abolition, for countries continue to apply this punishment, sometimes on a massive scale,'' Kouchner said.

"Too often, minors and those with mental disabilities are executed. These executions are sometimes carried out in public or in barbaric conditions fit to appal the conscience.''

Switzerland's Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey echoed the call, urging "the suspension of executions in cases where international law restricts the death penalty, as for the most vulnerable groups.''

Amnesty says Iran and Saudi Arabia execute people who were under 18 at the time of the crimes.

Amnesty's Spanish branch held a protest in Madrid, where a statement was read out denouncing the death penalty as "premeditated murder in cold blood at the hands of the state and in the name of justice.''

Britain added its voice to the protest in a statement by Jeremy Browne, a junior foreign minister.

"The death penalty fundamentally undermines human dignity. There is no conclusive evidence to suggest that it holds any value as a deterrent,'' he said.

He hailed gestures including a Kenyan appeal court's ruling this year that the mandatory death penalty for murder was unconstitutional and a recent moratorium on executions in Mongolia.

"It is also an encouraging start that China has expressed its intention to reduce the numbers of crimes eligible for the death penalty from 68 to 55,'' Browne added.

Source: Bangkok Post, October 10, 2010

Mongolia moratorium on executions

Mongolia's president has imposed a moratorium on the death penalty, although changing the law to implement a permanent ban on executions will still have to pass Mongolia's opposition-dominated parliament.

Rights groups welcomed the remarks by Elbegdorj Tsakhia on Thursday, hailing the move as a step toward outlawing executions.

Citing two recent cases Elbegdorj said "the state would have killed innocent citizens" if the appeals courts had not overturned death sentences and dropped them altogether.

"The majority of the world's countries have chosen to abolish the death penalty. We should follow this path," he said in a speech.

"From tomorrow, I'll pardon those on death row," he added. "I suggest commuting the death penalty to a 30-year severe jail sentence."

Before Thursday's announcement, Mongolia had been considering changing its criminal code to limit the death penalty to cases of assassination and premeditated murder.

Currently, the eight crimes that carry the death penalty include treason, espionage and certain cases of rape.

'Risky move'

While the power to commute death sentences rests with the president, the country's opposition-held parliament will have to approve a more permanent change.

Nyamdorj Tsend, the Mongolian justice and internal affairs minister who is also an opposition legislator, called the president's speech a risky political move.

"The president's moratorium on the death penalty is a very complicated matter," he told Eagle TV.

Mongolia's legal system follows the former Soviet legal system, and many lawyers and legislators favour harsh punishment for criminals.

Execution in Mongolia is carried out by gunshot to the back of the head. The death penalty does not apply to women or to men under the age of 18 or over 60.

But information on the punishment is a state secret, and it is not clear how many people the country has executed or when the most recent execution took place.

According to Amnesty International office in Mongolia, at least five people were executed in 2008, and nine people were thought to be on death row as of last July.

An Amnesty statement released on Thursday said families of those executed in Mongolia are not told before the execution, and bodies are not returned to the family.

Commenting on Thursday's announcement Roseann Rife, the deputy programme director for Amnesty's Asia-Pacific office, told The Associated Press that changing the law is "clearly a harder step".

"It involves a lot more people, and the opposition party has control of the legislature."

Rife said Elbegdorj has commuted at least three death sentences since taking office in May, but added that if he is not re-elected after his four-year term, Mongolia's stance on executions could change "just like that".

Source: aljazeera.net, January 14, 2010