A South Carolina death row inmate has chosen to be executed by a firing squad, marking what could be the first execution by gunfire in the United States in 15 years.
Brad Sigmon, 67, is scheduled to be put to death on 7 March as part of South Carolina&rsquo;s recent push to resume executions after a 13-year pause. The state now requires death row inmates to choose between the electric chair, lethal injection, or firing squad. If they refuse to choose, electrocution becomes the default method.
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<h2>Who is Brad Sigmon?</h2>
Sigmon was convicted in 2001 for the brutal murders of his ex-girlfriend&rsquo;s parents. He admitted his guilt in court. His legal team has argued that his actions were linked to severe mental illness, childhood abuse, and brain injuries that were never properly diagnosed or treated. They recently filed a petition to halt his execution, arguing that his trial attorneys failed to present crucial evidence about his mental state.
&ldquo;This was a horrible crime that resulted from a mix of mental illness and brain injuries that worsened his manic and irrational episodes,&rdquo; said his lawyer, Gerald &ldquo;Bo&rdquo; King. &ldquo;Brad is deeply remorseful, a devout Christian who spends much of his time in prayer and penitence.&rdquo;
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King criticised the execution methods available to Sigmon, arguing that his client was not making an informed decision.
&ldquo;He has a right to this choice, but it&rsquo;s not an informed choice. My frustration is we are in a world where he has to choose between being electrocuted, poisoned or shot, and we can&rsquo;t even get the most basic facts you would want to make that decision,&rdquo; King said.&nbsp;
Sigmon&rsquo;s attorneys raised concerns about South Carolina&rsquo;s lethal injection process, pointing out that the state has refused to provide details about the quality and reliability of its drugs. The last three executions by lethal injection in the state reportedly took over 20 minutes, with one inmate appearing to suffer a condition similar to drowning and suffocation.
&ldquo;You have three executions that have seemingly gone awry,&rdquo; King said, adding that lethal injections could be &ldquo;excruciatingly painful.&rdquo;
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<h2>South Carolina&rsquo;s execution methods</h2>
South Carolina halted executions in 2011 due to a shortage of lethal injection drugs after pharmaceutical companies stopped supplying them for use in capital punishment. However, in 2023, lawmakers passed a bill to keep drug suppliers&rsquo; identities secret, allowing the state to restock and resume executions.
Five states currently allow firing squads. The last execution by firing squad in the US took place in Utah in 2010.
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Sigmon would be the oldest person ever executed in South Carolina. His lawyer, King, condemned the decision to proceed with the execution, saying, &ldquo;Executing Brad would serve no purpose except to send a single, chilling message: no matter how profoundly a person repents, South Carolina refuses to recognise redemption.&rdquo;
(With inputs from agencies)

World, Trending: Brad Sigmon, 67, is scheduled to be put to death on 7 March as part of South Carolina’s recent push to resume executions after a 13-year pause.

A South Carolina death row inmate has chosen to be executed by a firing squad, marking what could be the first execution by gunfire in the United States in 15 years. Brad Sigmon, 67, is scheduled to be put to death on 7 March as part of South Carolina’s recent push to resume executions after a 13-year pause. The state now requires death row inmates to choose between the electric chair, lethal injection, or firing squad. If they refuse to choose, electrocution becomes the default method. Also read: Who are Lazarus hackers? All about the mystery gang behind the largest crypto heist ever Who is Brad Sigmon? Sigmon was convicted in 2001 for the brutal murders of his ex-girlfriend’s parents. He admitted his guilt in court. His legal team has argued that his actions were linked to severe mental illness, childhood abuse, and brain injuries that were never properly diagnosed or treated. They recently filed a petition to halt his execution, arguing that his trial attorneys failed to present crucial evidence about his mental state. “This was a horrible crime that resulted from a mix of mental illness and brain injuries that worsened his manic and irrational episodes,” said his lawyer, Gerald “Bo” King. “Brad is deeply remorseful, a devout Christian who spends much of his time in prayer and penitence.” Also read: 'Un-American, unpatriotic': Backlash as Trump fires Black Air Force general, five more military ousters 'soon' King criticised the execution methods available to Sigmon, arguing that his client was not making an informed decision. “He has a right to this choice, but it’s not an informed choice. My frustration is we are in a world where he has to choose between being electrocuted, poisoned or shot, and we can’t even get the most basic facts you would want to make that decision,” King said. Sigmon’s attorneys raised concerns about South Carolina’s lethal injection process, pointing out that the state has refused to provide details about the quality and reliability of its drugs. The last three executions by lethal injection in the state reportedly took over 20 minutes, with one inmate appearing to suffer a condition similar to drowning and suffocation. “You have three executions that have seemingly gone awry,” King said, adding that lethal injections could be “excruciatingly painful.” Also read: India connect of Team Trump: Tulsi Gabbard, Kash Patel, several Indian-Americans hold key posts in Donald Trump's administration South Carolina’s execution methods South Carolina halted executions in 2011 due to a shortage of lethal injection drugs after pharmaceutical companies stopped supplying them for use in capital punishment. However, in 2023, lawmakers passed a bill to keep drug suppliers’ identities secret, allowing the state to restock and resume executions. Five states currently allow firing squads. The last execution by firing squad in the US took place in Utah in 2010. Also read: You're reassigned: Trump moves ICE chief over slower deportations than predecessor Biden Sigmon would be the oldest person ever executed in South Carolina. His lawyer, King, condemned the decision to proceed with the execution, saying, “Executing Brad would serve no purpose except to send a single, chilling message: no matter how profoundly a person repents, South Carolina refuses to recognise redemption.” (With inputs from agencies)

Man chooses death by firing squad in first US execution of its kind in 15 years

China executed a notorious female serial killer by death penalty on Monday (Dec 18) who was accused of killing seven people in different cities.

The woman, named Lao Rongzhi, was executed in Nanchang, East China’s Jiangxi Province, reported the state-run communist party’s mouthpiece Global Times.

The woman engaged in a series of crimes, including robbery, extortion, and the brutal murder of seven individuals, between 1996 and 1999.

According to reports, while Lao would pick targets at entertainment venues, her boyfriend Fa Ziying used to kill them.

The woman spent 20 years on the run, evading authorities using aliases. Finally, she was arrested in the Fujian province in 2019 and charged with the crimes of intentional homicide, robbery and kidnapping in August 2020.

<h2>Lao’s appeal rejected by High People's Court</h2>

Last year, Lao was given the death penalty by the Intermediate People's Court of Nanchang, Jiangxi, a decision she contested in the Jiangxi Provincial High People's Court.

In August this year, the hearing of the case took place and the high court upheld the death sentence.

Lao had all her political rights stripped and properties confiscated as a result of the verdict.

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The court found that Lao and her ex-boyfriend intentionally and illegally took the lives of others; used violence or threats to gain illegal possession of others' property; and kidnapped others to extort money or property.

<h2>Lao’s arguments</h2>

During the trial, Lao claimed that she was a victim of her boyfriend, who allegedly used to torture her. She claimed that she even thought of committing suicide after being continuously beaten by him.

Later, she also tendered an apology to the families of her victims.

<h2>Death penalty&nbsp;in China</h2>

An Amnesty International report earlier this year revealed that China, along with Iran and Saudi Arabia, accounted for the vast majority of known judicial executions last year.

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While the human rights group did not reveal a precise number for China, it said “thousands of executions” were carried out in 2022 by the Chinese government, which maintains a zero-tolerance approach towards any kind of political dissent.

(With inputs from agencies)

China executed a notorious female serial killer by death penalty on Monday (Dec 18) who was accused of killing seven people in different cities. The woman, named Lao Rongzhi, was executed in Nanchang, East China’s Jiangxi Province, reported the state-run communist party’s mouthpiece Global Times.

China executed a notorious female serial killer by death penalty on Monday (Dec 18) who was accused of killing seven people in different cities. The woman, named Lao Rongzhi, was executed in Nanchang, East China’s Jiangxi Province, reported the state-run communist party’s mouthpiece Global Times. The woman engaged in a series of crimes, including robbery, extortion, and the brutal murder of seven individuals, between 1996 and 1999. According to reports, while Lao would pick targets at entertainment venues, her boyfriend Fa Ziying used to kill them. The woman spent 20 years on the run, evading authorities using aliases. Finally, she was arrested in the Fujian province in 2019 and charged with the crimes of intentional homicide, robbery and kidnapping in August 2020. Lao’s appeal rejected by High People's Court Last year, Lao was given the death penalty by the Intermediate People's Court of Nanchang, Jiangxi, a decision she contested in the Jiangxi Provincial High People's Court. In August this year, the hearing of the case took place and the high court upheld the death sentence. Lao had all her political rights stripped and properties confiscated as a result of the verdict. Also read: China`s economic woes deepen as private sector struggles with challenges surrounding unemployment The court found that Lao and her ex-boyfriend intentionally and illegally took the lives of others; used violence or threats to gain illegal possession of others' property; and kidnapped others to extort money or property. Lao’s arguments During the trial, Lao claimed that she was a victim of her boyfriend, who allegedly used to torture her. She claimed that she even thought of committing suicide after being continuously beaten by him. Later, she also tendered an apology to the families of her victims. Death penalty in China An Amnesty International report earlier this year revealed that China, along with Iran and Saudi Arabia, accounted for the vast majority of known judicial executions last year. Watch: China gets its forces space combat-ready × While the human rights group did not reveal a precise number for China, it said “thousands of executions” were carried out in 2022 by the Chinese government, which maintains a zero-tolerance approach towards any kind of political dissent. (With inputs from agencies)

China executes notorious female serial killer for brutally killing seven people

Singapore has carried out its third hanging in just over a week, executing a 39-year-old man who had been charged with trafficking&nbsp;heroin. This comes just days after the first execution in nearly 20 years of a woman convict.

The execution has ignited debates over the country's strict anti-drug laws and its stance on capital punishment.

Mohamed Shalleh Adul Latiff, had been sentenced to death for possessing approximately 55g of heroin with the intent to traffick it in 2019, reported the Guardian.

The execution, which took place on a Thursday (August 3), was confirmed by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) through an official statement.

<h2>Background and trial</h2>

Before his arrest in 2016, Mohamed Shalleh worked as a delivery driver. During his trial, he claimed that he believed he was transporting contraband cigarettes to repay a debt to a friend.

Despite his defence, he was sentenced to death, becoming the 16th person to be executed since Singapore resumed executions in March 2022 following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Also watch |&nbsp;Indian woman jumps from cruise ship, dies in Singapore strait

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<h2>Recent executions</h2>

This particular execution follows a grim pattern, being the fifth hanging of the year. It comes shortly after the execution of Saridewi Binte Djamani, a 45-year-old Singaporean woman who was put to death for trafficking around 30g of heroin. Her execution, which occurred less than a week prior, marked the first time Singapore had executed a woman in nearly two decades. Just two days before Saridewi's execution, a 57-year-old man named Mohd Aziz bin Hussain was hanged for trafficking approximately 50g of heroin.

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<h2>International response and Singapore's stance</h2>

The United Nations has strongly criticised these recent executions, urging Singapore to impose a moratorium on the death penalty.

However, Singapore remains steadfast in its position, asserting that capital punishment serves as a powerful deterrent against drug trafficking.

Despite mounting international pressure, the country continues to uphold some of the world's strictest anti-drug laws. For instance, the possession of over 500 grams of cannabis or more than 15g of heroin can lead to a sentence of death.

The recent spate of executions in Singapore, particularly for drug-related offences, has reignited the global discourse on the death penalty and its efficacy in deterring crime.&nbsp;

&nbsp;

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Singapore has carried out its third hanging in just over a week, executing a 39-year-old man who had been charged with trafficking heroin. This comes just days after the first execution in nearly 20 years of a woman convict.

Singapore has carried out its third hanging in just over a week, executing a 39-year-old man who had been charged with trafficking heroin. This comes just days after the first execution in nearly 20 years of a woman convict. The execution has ignited debates over the country's strict anti-drug laws and its stance on capital punishment. Mohamed Shalleh Adul Latiff, had been sentenced to death for possessing approximately 55g of heroin with the intent to traffick it in 2019, reported the Guardian. The execution, which took place on a Thursday (August 3), was confirmed by the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) through an official statement. Background and trial Before his arrest in 2016, Mohamed Shalleh worked as a delivery driver. During his trial, he claimed that he believed he was transporting contraband cigarettes to repay a debt to a friend. Despite his defence, he was sentenced to death, becoming the 16th person to be executed since Singapore resumed executions in March 2022 following a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Also watch | Indian woman jumps from cruise ship, dies in Singapore strait Recent executions This particular execution follows a grim pattern, being the fifth hanging of the year. It comes shortly after the execution of Saridewi Binte Djamani, a 45-year-old Singaporean woman who was put to death for trafficking around 30g of heroin. Her execution, which occurred less than a week prior, marked the first time Singapore had executed a woman in nearly two decades. Just two days before Saridewi's execution, a 57-year-old man named Mohd Aziz bin Hussain was hanged for trafficking approximately 50g of heroin. Also read | ISRO successfully launches seven Singaporean satellites onboard PSLV workhorse International response and Singapore's stance The United Nations has strongly criticised these recent executions, urging Singapore to impose a moratorium on the death penalty. However, Singapore remains steadfast in its position, asserting that capital punishment serves as a powerful deterrent against drug trafficking. Despite mounting international pressure, the country continues to uphold some of the world's strictest anti-drug laws. For instance, the possession of over 500 grams of cannabis or more than 15g of heroin can lead to a sentence of death. The recent spate of executions in Singapore, particularly for drug-related offences, has reignited the global discourse on the death penalty and its efficacy in deterring crime. WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

Third drug trafficking convict executed in Singapore in less than a week

For the first time in 20 years, Singapore is about to execute a woman who was convicted of drug trafficking, a local human rights organisation has claimed, urging the government to halt executions.

The 45-year-old woman, identified as Saridewi Djaman, is among the two convicts who will be sent to the gallows.

While the other convict—a 56-year-old man found guilty of trafficking 50 grams of heroin— is scheduled to be hanged on Wednesday (July 26).

Saridewi, who was convicted of trafficking around 30 grams of heroin—will be sent to the gallows this Friday (July 28). She was sentenced to death in 2018.

If carried out, she would be the first woman to be executed in Singapore since 2004 when 36-year-old hairdresser Yen May Woen was hanged for the same crime, said activist Kokila Annamalai— a member of the local rights organisation Transformative Justice Collective (TJC)— AFP news agency reported on Tuesday (July 25).

The human rights organisation said that the two prisoners are Singaporeans and their families have received notices setting the dates of their executions.

Prison officials are yet to confirmed TJC's claim of the two upcoming executions.

<h2>Why is Singapore declining as business hub?</h2>

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<h2>Human rights watchdog urges govt to halt executions </h2>

On Tuesday, rights watchdog Amnesty International urged Singapore to halt the impending executions.

“It is unconscionable that authorities in Singapore continue to cruelly pursue more executions in the name of drug control,” Amnesty's death penalty expert Chiara Sangiorgio said in a statement.

“There is no evidence that the death penalty has a unique deterrent effect or that it has any impact on the use and availability of drugs.

“As countries around the world do away with the death penalty and embrace drug policy reform, Singapore's authorities are doing neither,” Sangiorgio added.

<h2>Singapore tough on crimes</h2>

Singapore has some of the world's stringent anti-narcotic laws, with major convictions turning into the death penalty.

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At least 13 people have been hanged so far since the government resumed executions following a two-year hiatus in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, reports AFP news agency.

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Capital punishment is also given for other certain crimes such as murder and some forms of kidnapping.

The activists have for many years been demanding the state to soften its stand on narcotics laws, but the government believes that this mode of punishment is an effective deterrent against crime.

(With inputs from agencies)

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For the first time in 20 years, Singapore is about to execute a woman who was convicted of drug trafficking, a local human rights organisation has claimed, urging the government to halt executions.

For the first time in 20 years, Singapore is about to execute a woman who was convicted of drug trafficking, a local human rights organisation has claimed, urging the government to halt executions. The 45-year-old woman, identified as Saridewi Djaman, is among the two convicts who will be sent to the gallows. While the other convict—a 56-year-old man found guilty of trafficking 50 grams of heroin— is scheduled to be hanged on Wednesday (July 26). Saridewi, who was convicted of trafficking around 30 grams of heroin—will be sent to the gallows this Friday (July 28). She was sentenced to death in 2018. If carried out, she would be the first woman to be executed in Singapore since 2004 when 36-year-old hairdresser Yen May Woen was hanged for the same crime, said activist Kokila Annamalai— a member of the local rights organisation Transformative Justice Collective (TJC)— AFP news agency reported on Tuesday (July 25). The human rights organisation said that the two prisoners are Singaporeans and their families have received notices setting the dates of their executions. Prison officials are yet to confirmed TJC's claim of the two upcoming executions. Why is Singapore declining as business hub? Human rights watchdog urges govt to halt executions On Tuesday, rights watchdog Amnesty International urged Singapore to halt the impending executions. “It is unconscionable that authorities in Singapore continue to cruelly pursue more executions in the name of drug control,” Amnesty's death penalty expert Chiara Sangiorgio said in a statement. “There is no evidence that the death penalty has a unique deterrent effect or that it has any impact on the use and availability of drugs. “As countries around the world do away with the death penalty and embrace drug policy reform, Singapore's authorities are doing neither,” Sangiorgio added. Singapore tough on crimes Singapore has some of the world's stringent anti-narcotic laws, with major convictions turning into the death penalty. Also read | Israeli troops kill 3 Palestinians in West Bank's Nablus: Palestinian ministry At least 13 people have been hanged so far since the government resumed executions following a two-year hiatus in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, reports AFP news agency. Also read | Elon Musk explains why Twitter had to rebrand itself to 'X' and dump the blue bird Capital punishment is also given for other certain crimes such as murder and some forms of kidnapping. The activists have for many years been demanding the state to soften its stand on narcotics laws, but the government believes that this mode of punishment is an effective deterrent against crime. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE

For first time in 20 years, Singapore to hang woman convicted of drug trafficking

Alabama executed a man on Friday (July 21) in a move that&nbsp;officially marks the&nbsp;resumption of&nbsp;capital punishment in the US state.&nbsp;James Barber, aged 64,&nbsp;was convicted of brutally murdering 75-year-old Dorothy Epps during a robbery at her home in Harvest in 2001.

The execution, the state's first since February,&nbsp;took&nbsp;place at the William Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore via lethal injection, reported Reuters.&nbsp;

In response to a series of botched executions last year, Governor Kay Ivey halted capital punishment in November and initiated a review of the lethal injection process in Alabama.

The suspension aimed to address concerns surrounding the execution procedures. After implementing improvements, such as adding medical professionals, acquiring new equipment, and conducting rehearsals for executions, Governor Ivey lifted the suspension and allowed executions to resume.

The state also extended the time permitted for an execution to be completed before the expiration of the death warrant.

<h2>Barber's appeal denied</h2>

James Barber made a last-minute appeal to the United States Court of Appeals, contending that his execution should be halted due to the substantial risk of serious harm and "torture" posed by current protocols. However, the court denied his appeal on Wednesday (July 19), clearing the path for his execution.

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<h2>Controversy surrounding capital punishment</h2>

Capital punishment in the United States has been mired in legal and ethical debates, primarily due to the occurrence of botched executions and challenges in obtaining the necessary drugs for lethal injections.

In recent years, the number of executions in the country has significantly decreased compared to a record high of 98 executions in 1999. Capital punishment was reinstated in the United States in 1976.

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<h2>Execution statistics</h2>

According to data from the Death Penalty Information Centre, 78 death row inmates have been executed in the United States over the past five years. This decline in the number of executions reflects the ongoing debates surrounding the use of the death penalty as a form of punishment.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Alabama executed a man on Friday (July 21) in a move that officially marks the resumption of capital punishment in the US state. James Barber, aged 64, was convicted of brutally murdering 75-year-old Dorothy Epps during a robbery at her home in Harvest in 2001.

Alabama executed a man on Friday (July 21) in a move that officially marks the resumption of capital punishment in the US state. James Barber, aged 64, was convicted of brutally murdering 75-year-old Dorothy Epps during a robbery at her home in Harvest in 2001. The execution, the state's first since February, took place at the William Holman Correctional Facility in Atmore via lethal injection, reported Reuters. In response to a series of botched executions last year, Governor Kay Ivey halted capital punishment in November and initiated a review of the lethal injection process in Alabama. The suspension aimed to address concerns surrounding the execution procedures. After implementing improvements, such as adding medical professionals, acquiring new equipment, and conducting rehearsals for executions, Governor Ivey lifted the suspension and allowed executions to resume. The state also extended the time permitted for an execution to be completed before the expiration of the death warrant. Barber's appeal denied James Barber made a last-minute appeal to the United States Court of Appeals, contending that his execution should be halted due to the substantial risk of serious harm and "torture" posed by current protocols. However, the court denied his appeal on Wednesday (July 19), clearing the path for his execution. Also watch | What causes asymptomatic COVID-19 infection? Controversy surrounding capital punishment Capital punishment in the United States has been mired in legal and ethical debates, primarily due to the occurrence of botched executions and challenges in obtaining the necessary drugs for lethal injections. In recent years, the number of executions in the country has significantly decreased compared to a record high of 98 executions in 1999. Capital punishment was reinstated in the United States in 1976. Also read | US: Las Vegas police serve search warrant in long-unsolved shooting of rapper Tupac Shakur Execution statistics According to data from the Death Penalty Information Centre, 78 death row inmates have been executed in the United States over the past five years. This decline in the number of executions reflects the ongoing debates surrounding the use of the death penalty as a form of punishment. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

Alabama resumes capital punishment: Man executed for murdering a woman

According to the Amnesty global report on death penalty in 2022, the use of death penalty across the world is at its highest in five years. There has been a 53% rise in death sentences since 2021 while in 2022, 90% of these executions took place in Iran, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

Amnesty International: Use of death sentences across the world at its highest in 5 years

Lawmakers in the US state of Florida have approved a legislation that permits death penalty for those convicted of sexually abusing minors. The bill, backed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis was passed by a 34-5 vote in the Senate.&nbsp;Notably, the dissenting votes came from three Democrat and two Republican leaders respectively.&nbsp;

The bill, once turned into law will allow juries to hand out death sentences by votes of at least 8-4, after previously requiring a unanimous decision. If fewer than eight jury members recommend the death penalty, the convict would receive life sentence(s).&nbsp;

The bill was passed last week in the Florida House of Representatives 95-14 and now only requires&nbsp;DeSantis' signature. It would apply to those convicted of abusing a child under the age of 12.&nbsp;

“My view is, you have some of these people that will be serial rapists of six, seven-year-old kids.&nbsp;I think the death penalty is the only appropriate punishment when you have situations like that," said DeSantis after passing of the legislation.&nbsp;

It was a bipartisan bill, co-sponsored by&nbsp;State Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book (D-Davie) and State Sen. Jonathan Martin (R-Fort Myers). They argued that paedophiles were more&nbsp;likely to repeat their crimes and thus deserved the death penalty.&nbsp;

“Once a predator has a child ensnared, they will harm that child over and over and over again.&nbsp;And then move on to another innocent child," said&nbsp;Book.&nbsp;

"There is no statute of limitations on this crime (for victims).&nbsp;There is no end. It's always with you."

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<h2>Lawmakers hope to change US Supreme Court's decision</h2>

The lawmakers are hoping that the passing of the bill will ultimately lead to the US Supreme Court reversing its 2008 decision the barred capital punishment for those who raped children. The bill even mentions that the 2008 US Supreme Court decision, in a case known as Kennedy v. Louisiana, was "wrongly decided."

"We have a completely different (US) Supreme Court makeup.&nbsp;We have a completely different Florida Supreme Court makeup than when Kennedy v. Louisiana was issued. I know everybody in this room hopes that nobody is put to death for this crime. Because if someone is put to death for this crime, it means that a poor innocent child was raped," said Martin.&nbsp;

<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/florida-extends-dont-say-gay-ban-on-sexuality-gender-identity-teachings-to-all-grades-584362">ALSO READ |&nbsp;Florida extends 'Don't Say Gay' ban on sexuality &amp; gender identity teachings to all grades</a>

With the apex court consisting of six conservative and three liberal judges, the Republicans are hopeful that the decision will be overturned sometime soon.

(With inputs from agencies)

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Lawmakers in the US state of Florida have approved a legislation that permits death penalty for those convicted of sexually abusing minors. The bill, backed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis was passed by a 34-5 vote in the Senate.

Lawmakers in the US state of Florida have approved a legislation that permits death penalty for those convicted of sexually abusing minors. The bill, backed by Republican Governor Ron DeSantis was passed by a 34-5 vote in the Senate. Notably, the dissenting votes came from three Democrat and two Republican leaders respectively. The bill, once turned into law will allow juries to hand out death sentences by votes of at least 8-4, after previously requiring a unanimous decision. If fewer than eight jury members recommend the death penalty, the convict would receive life sentence(s). The bill was passed last week in the Florida House of Representatives 95-14 and now only requires DeSantis' signature. It would apply to those convicted of abusing a child under the age of 12. “My view is, you have some of these people that will be serial rapists of six, seven-year-old kids. I think the death penalty is the only appropriate punishment when you have situations like that," said DeSantis after passing of the legislation. It was a bipartisan bill, co-sponsored by State Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book (D-Davie) and State Sen. Jonathan Martin (R-Fort Myers). They argued that paedophiles were more likely to repeat their crimes and thus deserved the death penalty. “Once a predator has a child ensnared, they will harm that child over and over and over again. And then move on to another innocent child," said Book. "There is no statute of limitations on this crime (for victims). There is no end. It's always with you." WATCH | Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signs six-week abortion ban into law × Lawmakers hope to change US Supreme Court's decision The lawmakers are hoping that the passing of the bill will ultimately lead to the US Supreme Court reversing its 2008 decision the barred capital punishment for those who raped children. The bill even mentions that the 2008 US Supreme Court decision, in a case known as Kennedy v. Louisiana, was "wrongly decided." "We have a completely different (US) Supreme Court makeup. We have a completely different Florida Supreme Court makeup than when Kennedy v. Louisiana was issued. I know everybody in this room hopes that nobody is put to death for this crime. Because if someone is put to death for this crime, it means that a poor innocent child was raped," said Martin. ALSO READ | Florida extends 'Don't Say Gay' ban on sexuality & gender identity teachings to all grades With the apex court consisting of six conservative and three liberal judges, the Republicans are hopeful that the decision will be overturned sometime soon. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE:

USA: Florida approves bill allowing capital punishment for child rapists

India may soon review if 'hanging by death' is the correct mode of execution for the death row convicts. The development comes after the Supreme Court of India, while taking up a six-year-old Public Interest Litigation (PIL), expressed the need to examine whether 'hanging by death' is a proportionate and less painful method for executing death row convicts. It sought "better data" from the Union government on issues related to the mode of execution.&nbsp;

At the end of 2022, a total of 53 countries have retained capital punishment, including India, United States, South Africa, all countries in West Asia and some countries in South-East Asia as well as western Africa.

In March 2020, <a href="https://www.wionews.com/videos/nirbhaya-case-convicts-hanged-at-delhis-tihar-jail-287470">India executed four individuals</a> convicted for brutal sexual assault of a 22-year-old paramedical student in New Delhi in 2012, that came to be known as 'Nirbhaya case' or '16 December case', after the date of&nbsp;the crime. The four convicts in Nirbhaya case&nbsp;were the last persons to be executed in India.

<h2>India capital punishment method rejig: What did the Supreme Court say?</h2>

On March 21, a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said, "We will look at two perspectives: first, is there any alternative method, far more consistent with human dignity, to render 'hanging by the neck' unconstitutional; and second, even if there is no alternative method, does 'hanging by the neck' method satisfy the test of proportionality so as to render it valid, an issue that was not addressed in the Deena judgement at all."

The court also ruled out shooting by firing squad as an alternative to hanging till death method of capital punishment.

ALSO WATCH |&nbsp;Gravitas: US botched 35% of execution attempts this year

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It also ruled out electric chair or lethal injection as alternative methods for execution, saying reports indicate convicts experiencing severe pain and there are many instances of goof up.&nbsp;

<h2>India's death penalty methods: The law and relevant court judgment</h2>

In 1983, India's Supreme Court, in a case called 'Deena Vs Union of India, validated Section 354 (5) of Criminal Procedure Code, which lays out the method for executing a convict's death penalty. The relevant part reads: "When any person is sentenced to death, the sentence shall direct that he be hanged by the neck till he is dead." 
 
Incidentally, the 1983 judgement was headed by then Chief Justice of India Y.V. Chandrachud, father of present CJI&nbsp;D.Y. Chandrachud who pointed out the supposed inconsistencies of 1983 judgement with respect to human dignity of a death row convict.

<h2>India's death penalty method: What next?</h2>

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government will place before the Supreme Court the government's view on the matter by the end of May.&nbsp;

The Public Interest Litigation filed in 2017 seeks to abolish the present practice of execution and replace it with less painful methods such as "intravenous lethal injection, shooting, electrocution or gas chamber". 
&nbsp;

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India may soon review if 'hanging by death' is the correct mode of execution for the death row convicts. The development comes after the Supreme Court of India, while taking up a six-year-old Public Interest Litigation (PIL), expressed the need to examine whether 'hanging by death' is a proportionate and less painful method for executing death row convicts.

India may soon review if 'hanging by death' is the correct mode of execution for the death row convicts. The development comes after the Supreme Court of India, while taking up a six-year-old Public Interest Litigation (PIL), expressed the need to examine whether 'hanging by death' is a proportionate and less painful method for executing death row convicts. It sought "better data" from the Union government on issues related to the mode of execution. At the end of 2022, a total of 53 countries have retained capital punishment, including India, United States, South Africa, all countries in West Asia and some countries in South-East Asia as well as western Africa. In March 2020, India executed four individuals convicted for brutal sexual assault of a 22-year-old paramedical student in New Delhi in 2012, that came to be known as 'Nirbhaya case' or '16 December case', after the date of the crime. The four convicts in Nirbhaya case were the last persons to be executed in India. India capital punishment method rejig: What did the Supreme Court say? On March 21, a Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud said, "We will look at two perspectives: first, is there any alternative method, far more consistent with human dignity, to render 'hanging by the neck' unconstitutional; and second, even if there is no alternative method, does 'hanging by the neck' method satisfy the test of proportionality so as to render it valid, an issue that was not addressed in the Deena judgement at all." The court also ruled out shooting by firing squad as an alternative to hanging till death method of capital punishment. ALSO WATCH | Gravitas: US botched 35% of execution attempts this year × It also ruled out electric chair or lethal injection as alternative methods for execution, saying reports indicate convicts experiencing severe pain and there are many instances of goof up. India's death penalty methods: The law and relevant court judgment In 1983, India's Supreme Court, in a case called 'Deena Vs Union of India, validated Section 354 (5) of Criminal Procedure Code, which lays out the method for executing a convict's death penalty. The relevant part reads: "When any person is sentenced to death, the sentence shall direct that he be hanged by the neck till he is dead." Incidentally, the 1983 judgement was headed by then Chief Justice of India Y.V. Chandrachud, father of present CJI D.Y. Chandrachud who pointed out the supposed inconsistencies of 1983 judgement with respect to human dignity of a death row convict. India's death penalty method: What next? Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government will place before the Supreme Court the government's view on the matter by the end of May. The Public Interest Litigation filed in 2017 seeks to abolish the present practice of execution and replace it with less painful methods such as "intravenous lethal injection, shooting, electrocution or gas chamber". WATCH WION LIVE HERE You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here.

India's top court rules out lethal injection as alternative to hanging method of capital punishment

A new study has revealed that the number of executions in the United States has gone down in the past decade and in 2022, more than a third of one was actually mishandled. The data has left a lot of capital punishment researchers stunned as they went on to call 2022 “the year of botched executions”.&nbsp;

The researchers stated that out of the 20 execution attempts in 2022, seven were “visibly problematic” with two getting completely abandoned. The study, which was hailed by experts as one of the most comprehensive annual examinations of the death penalty, also pointed out that the number of executions has been rapidly declining since the 1990s and it is almost half of that in the 2000s.&nbsp;

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/pm-modi-holds-phone-conversation-with-putin-reviews-energy-trade-and-defence-ties-543698">PM Modi holds phone conversation with Putin, reviews energy, defence ties</a>

The data is also impacted by the fact that 37 states in the US have already abolished the practice.&nbsp;

“As support for the death penalty has declined, we’ve been seeing more and more extreme conduct by the states that want to carry it out,” said Robert Dunham, the executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center according to a report on the New York Times. “And it’s been manifest in recklessness.”&nbsp;

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A closer look at the distribution of the executions shows that Texas and Oklahoma carried out five each, Arizona had three cases while Alabama had two. Oklahoma actually dominated headlines after 25 people were handed capital punishment within a span of just 29 months.&nbsp;

While politicians and the authorities have blamed the late appeals filed by the defence and the time limit given on the death warrant as reasons for the botched executions, the report added that the difficulty to find the lethal injection drugs has contributed massively towards the failed attempts.&nbsp;

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A new study has revealed that the number of executions in the United States has gone down in the past decade and in 2022, more than a third of one was actually mishandled.

A new study has revealed that the number of executions in the United States has gone down in the past decade and in 2022, more than a third of one was actually mishandled. The data has left a lot of capital punishment researchers stunned as they went on to call 2022 “the year of botched executions”. The researchers stated that out of the 20 execution attempts in 2022, seven were “visibly problematic” with two getting completely abandoned. The study, which was hailed by experts as one of the most comprehensive annual examinations of the death penalty, also pointed out that the number of executions has been rapidly declining since the 1990s and it is almost half of that in the 2000s. Also read | PM Modi holds phone conversation with Putin, reviews energy, defence ties The data is also impacted by the fact that 37 states in the US have already abolished the practice. “As support for the death penalty has declined, we’ve been seeing more and more extreme conduct by the states that want to carry it out,” said Robert Dunham, the executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center according to a report on the New York Times. “And it’s been manifest in recklessness.” Also read | 16 dead, 17 missing following landslide at campsite near Kuala Lumpur A closer look at the distribution of the executions shows that Texas and Oklahoma carried out five each, Arizona had three cases while Alabama had two. Oklahoma actually dominated headlines after 25 people were handed capital punishment within a span of just 29 months. While politicians and the authorities have blamed the late appeals filed by the defence and the time limit given on the death warrant as reasons for the botched executions, the report added that the difficulty to find the lethal injection drugs has contributed massively towards the failed attempts.

How 2022 turned into a 'year of botched executions' for the United States

A 50-year-old man from Alabama state in US who was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend decades ago was executed despite opposition from the victim’s family to spare him.

According to reports, Joe Nathan James Jr. received a lethal injection at a south Alabama prison. He was pronounced dead at 9. 27 pm on Thursday after the execution was delayed by nearly three hours.

The official proceedings began with the incarceration after the US Supreme Court denied his request for a stay.

The 50-year-old convict was sentenced to death in 1994 for shooting dead Faith Hall, 26, in Birmingham.

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey on Wednesday said that the execution would proceed as per the plans even though Hall’s daughters said that they were fine with having James serve life in prison instead of capital punishment.

“Today is a tragic day for our family. We are having to relive the hurt that this caused us many years ago,” Hall’s family said in a statement&nbsp;published by the local TV station WIAT.

“We hoped the state wouldn’t take a life simply because a life was taken, and we have forgiven Mr Joe Nathan James Jr … We pray that God allows us to find healing after today and that one day our criminal justice system will listen to the cries of families like ours even if it goes against what the state wishes. Our voices matter and so does the life of Mr Joe Nathan James Jr.”

According to the prosecutors James had become obsessed with Hall after she rejected him. He continued to stalk and harass her for months before killing her.

The killing took place on August 15, 1994, when James forced his way in Hall’s friend’s apartment, pulled a gun from his waistband and shot she three times, according to court documents.

James was then convicted of capital murder in 1996 by Jefferson county, which voted to recommend the death penalty, which a judge imposed.

The ruling was later overturned when a state appeals court ruled that the judge had wrongly admitted some police reports into evidence. James was retried and again sentenced to death in 1999, when jurors trashed defence claims that he was under emotional duress at the time of the killing.

(With inputs from agencies)

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A 50-year-old man from Alabama state in US who was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend decades ago was executed despite opposition from the victim’s family to spare him.

A 50-year-old man from Alabama state in US who was convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend decades ago was executed despite opposition from the victim’s family to spare him. According to reports, Joe Nathan James Jr. received a lethal injection at a south Alabama prison. He was pronounced dead at 9. 27 pm on Thursday after the execution was delayed by nearly three hours. The official proceedings began with the incarceration after the US Supreme Court denied his request for a stay. The 50-year-old convict was sentenced to death in 1994 for shooting dead Faith Hall, 26, in Birmingham. Alabama Governor Kay Ivey on Wednesday said that the execution would proceed as per the plans even though Hall’s daughters said that they were fine with having James serve life in prison instead of capital punishment. “Today is a tragic day for our family. We are having to relive the hurt that this caused us many years ago,” Hall’s family said in a statement published by the local TV station WIAT. “We hoped the state wouldn’t take a life simply because a life was taken, and we have forgiven Mr Joe Nathan James Jr … We pray that God allows us to find healing after today and that one day our criminal justice system will listen to the cries of families like ours even if it goes against what the state wishes. Our voices matter and so does the life of Mr Joe Nathan James Jr.” According to the prosecutors James had become obsessed with Hall after she rejected him. He continued to stalk and harass her for months before killing her. The killing took place on August 15, 1994, when James forced his way in Hall’s friend’s apartment, pulled a gun from his waistband and shot she three times, according to court documents. James was then convicted of capital murder in 1996 by Jefferson county, which voted to recommend the death penalty, which a judge imposed. The ruling was later overturned when a state appeals court ruled that the judge had wrongly admitted some police reports into evidence. James was retried and again sentenced to death in 1999, when jurors trashed defence claims that he was under emotional duress at the time of the killing. (With inputs from agencies) WATCH WION LIVE HERE

US man executed for killing ex-girlfriend despite appeals for stay from victim’s family

Myanmar’s junta has followed through on its plan to execute four political prisoners, including a former lawmaker from the ousted civilian government, which it accused of carrying out “brutal and terror acts.”

Myanmar's first capital punishment in decades

A 68-year-old man from Singapore charged for drug trafficking was hanged after the city-state resumed executions after a hiatus of two years during the pandemic.

Singapore, which has one of the most draconian rules against drug trafficking, conducted its last execution&nbsp;in November 2019.

Abdul Kahar bin Othman was hanged on Wednesday. The court had convicted him on two charges of trafficking 66.77 grams of diamorphine in 2013. He was sentenced to death in 2015.

According to reports, the execution occurred despite pleas from rights activists, including the UN Human Rights office, to commute Kahar's sentence to life imprisonment.

A group of anti-death penalty activists even held a candlelight vigil outside the prison compound in solidarity.

Kirsten Han, a member of the Transformative Justice Collective, a local activist group that campaigns for the abolishment of the death penalty in Singapore, was at the vigil.

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Abdul Kahar will be hanged at 6am — less than 4 hours away. I can’t begin to imagine how he must feel; his brother Mutalib said that during family visits today Kahar was talking about how he wants to live, and how he doesn’t understand why the state is so determined to kill him. <a href="https://t.co/nnzqzR5ozu">pic.twitter.com/nnzqzR5ozu</a>
— Kirsten Han 韩俐颖 (@kixes) <a href="https://twitter.com/kixes/status/1508878703756947458?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 29, 2022</a></blockquote>
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“The Singapore government regularly claims that the death penalty is an effective deterrent to drug trafficking. They talk about the harms that drugs can inflict upon people with addictions, and insist that the use of capital punishment will help protect people and save lives. But there is no clear evidence that the death penalty is more effective than any other punishment in deterring drug offences,” Han told The Guardian.

Abdul Kahar’s story showed the situation was far more complicated than the “bad” drug trafficker and “victim” drug user narrative, she added.

According to Han, Kahar came from a poor family and had struggled with drug addiction since he was a teenager.

He spent more time behind bars than as a free man. Kahar was released from prison in 2005 after a decade of preventive detention.

Han has expressed concerns that executions might be accelerated in the city-state after a two-year halt.

(With inputs from agencies)

A 68-year-old man from Singapore charged for drug trafficking was hanged after the city-state resumed executions after a hiatus of two years during the pandemic.

A 68-year-old man from Singapore charged for drug trafficking was hanged after the city-state resumed executions after a hiatus of two years during the pandemic. Singapore, which has one of the most draconian rules against drug trafficking, conducted its last execution in November 2019. Abdul Kahar bin Othman was hanged on Wednesday. The court had convicted him on two charges of trafficking 66.77 grams of diamorphine in 2013. He was sentenced to death in 2015. According to reports, the execution occurred despite pleas from rights activists, including the UN Human Rights office, to commute Kahar's sentence to life imprisonment. A group of anti-death penalty activists even held a candlelight vigil outside the prison compound in solidarity. Kirsten Han, a member of the Transformative Justice Collective, a local activist group that campaigns for the abolishment of the death penalty in Singapore, was at the vigil. Abdul Kahar will be hanged at 6am — less than 4 hours away. I can’t begin to imagine how he must feel; his brother Mutalib said that during family visits today Kahar was talking about how he wants to live, and how he doesn’t understand why the state is so determined to kill him. pic.twitter.com/nnzqzR5ozu — Kirsten Han 韩俐颖 (@kixes) March 29, 2022 × “The Singapore government regularly claims that the death penalty is an effective deterrent to drug trafficking. They talk about the harms that drugs can inflict upon people with addictions, and insist that the use of capital punishment will help protect people and save lives. But there is no clear evidence that the death penalty is more effective than any other punishment in deterring drug offences,” Han told The Guardian. Abdul Kahar’s story showed the situation was far more complicated than the “bad” drug trafficker and “victim” drug user narrative, she added. According to Han, Kahar came from a poor family and had struggled with drug addiction since he was a teenager. He spent more time behind bars than as a free man. Kahar was released from prison in 2005 after a decade of preventive detention. Han has expressed concerns that executions might be accelerated in the city-state after a two-year halt. (With inputs from agencies)

Singaporean man hanged for drug trafficking, activists raise alarm over more executions after 2-year halt

Oklahoma on Thursday condemned a man to death by lethal injection after he was convicted of committing a double murder. The execution marked the first death penalty execution in the United States this year.&nbsp;

The Oklahoma attorney general John O'Connor's office said in a statement that Donald Grant was executed at 10:16 (1616 GMT) without incident.

An injection containing three lethal substances was given to Grant at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/renowned-marine-hunter-orcas-now-target-planets-largest-animal-blue-whale-find-out-how-448374" hreflang="en">Renowned marine hunter orcas now target planet’s largest animal blue whale. Find out how</a>

The deadly cocktail is believed to cause excruciating pain for the condemned, a violation of the US Constitution. An inmate suffered a convulsion and vomited after receiving the first injection toward the end of October last year.

The 46-year-old's last words were barely intelligible.

Grant had robbed a hotel in 2001 when he was 25 to steal bail money for his girlfriend who was imprisoned.

He opened fire on two hotel employees during the robbery. One of Grant's victims died instantly, and the other’s death was caused by a knife attack by Grant, court documents state.

The man's death sentence was announced in 2005.

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Over the course of his imprisonment, he appealed repeatedly, citing, in particular, intellectual deficiencies to have his sentence overturned. In an online petition, his defenders alleged that he suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome and brain damage due to violent abuse from his alcoholic father during his childhood.

On Wednesday, the US Supreme Court rejected his last appeal regarding the manner in which he was to be executed by the southern US state of Oklahoma.

The number of executions carried out annually in the United States has been declining in recent years.

Watch:&nbsp;Japan defends capital punishment, hangs three death-row inmates

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Currently, 23 states have abolished capital punishment, and three others -- California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania -- have imposed a moratorium on its use.

Following a series of botched executions in Oklahoma, in 2015 the state imposed a moratorium on capital punishment, but it was lifted in 2021. This execution&nbsp;was the third in the state since it resumed lethal injections in October 2021.

(With inputs from agencies)

Oklahoma on Thursday condemned a man to death by lethal injection after he was convicted of committing a double murder. The execution marked the first death penalty execution in the United States this year.

Oklahoma on Thursday condemned a man to death by lethal injection after he was convicted of committing a double murder. The execution marked the first death penalty execution in the United States this year. The Oklahoma attorney general John O'Connor's office said in a statement that Donald Grant was executed at 10:16 (1616 GMT) without incident. An injection containing three lethal substances was given to Grant at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester. Also read | Renowned marine hunter orcas now target planet’s largest animal blue whale. Find out how The deadly cocktail is believed to cause excruciating pain for the condemned, a violation of the US Constitution. An inmate suffered a convulsion and vomited after receiving the first injection toward the end of October last year. The 46-year-old's last words were barely intelligible. Grant had robbed a hotel in 2001 when he was 25 to steal bail money for his girlfriend who was imprisoned. He opened fire on two hotel employees during the robbery. One of Grant's victims died instantly, and the other’s death was caused by a knife attack by Grant, court documents state. The man's death sentence was announced in 2005. Also read | Watch | Iranian state television hacked, ‘death to Khamenei’ chant flashed for several seconds Over the course of his imprisonment, he appealed repeatedly, citing, in particular, intellectual deficiencies to have his sentence overturned. In an online petition, his defenders alleged that he suffered from fetal alcohol syndrome and brain damage due to violent abuse from his alcoholic father during his childhood. On Wednesday, the US Supreme Court rejected his last appeal regarding the manner in which he was to be executed by the southern US state of Oklahoma. The number of executions carried out annually in the United States has been declining in recent years. Watch: Japan defends capital punishment, hangs three death-row inmates Currently, 23 states have abolished capital punishment, and three others -- California, Oregon, and Pennsylvania -- have imposed a moratorium on its use. Following a series of botched executions in Oklahoma, in 2015 the state imposed a moratorium on capital punishment, but it was lifted in 2021. This execution was the third in the state since it resumed lethal injections in October 2021. (With inputs from agencies)

The first death penalty execution in the United States this year: a 2001 murderer

Japanese authorities executed three prisoners on Tuesday, the first executions in two years. The government justified the executions by saying "atrocious crimes" require the continuation of capital punishment.

Despite international criticism, including from human rights groups, Japan remains one of the few developed countries that still practice capital punishment.

There are currently more than 100 death row inmates in Japan, most of them accused of mass murder. In most cases, executions by hanging are carried out many years after sentencing.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/sierra-leone-lawmakers-vote-to-abolish-death-penalty-400273">Sierra Leone lawmakers vote to abolish death penalty</a>

Yasutaka Fujishiro, 65, was one of the three executed on Tuesday. He had killed his 80-year-old aunt, two cousins and four others in 2004 with a hammer and knife.

Two others were Tomoaki Takanezawa, 54, who killed two clerks at an arcade game parlour in 2003, and his accomplice Mitsunori Onogawa, 44.

It was the first execution under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who took office in October.

"Whether to keep the death sentence or not is an important issue that concerns the foundation of Japan's criminal justice system," deputy chief cabinet secretary Seiji Kihara said.

"Given that atrocious crimes keep occurring one after another, it is necessary to execute those whose guilt is extremely grave so it is inappropriate to abolish capital punishment."

Tadashi Ara, president of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, said members "strongly protest" Tuesday's executions.

He called on the government to "abolish capital punishment and stop all executions until it is abolished".

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/death-via-zoom-several-in-indonesia-given-capital-punishment-via-virtual-hearings-379546">Death via Zoom: Several in Indonesia given capital punishment via virtual hearings</a>

According to Amnesty International, at least 483 people were executed worldwide last year in 18 countries.

This represents a drop of about a quarter from the previous year, which fits with a downward trend since 2015.

However, this figure does not include the "thousands" of executions believed to have taken place in China, North Korea, and Vietnam, which keep such data secret.

In the G7 group of developed countries, only Japan and the United States still use the death penalty.

In 2019, Japan executed three death row inmates and 15 in 2018 -- including 13 members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult responsible for the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway.

It is not uncommon for authorities to notify inmates just hours before execution.

The government is being sued by two prisoners for the system, which they claim is illegal and causes psychological distress.

Additionally, the pair is seeking $22 million for the distress caused by not knowing when their execution will take place.

Watch |&nbsp;Japan defends capital punishment to combat 'Atrocious Crimes' as it executes 3 death row inmates

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In December 2020, Japan's top court overturned a ruling prohibiting the retrial of a man regarded as the world's longest-serving death row prisoner, giving the 85-year-old new hope.

After being convicted in 1968 of robbing and killing his boss, the man's wife, and their two teenage children, Iwao Hakamada has been living under the threat of death for more than half a century.

He and his supporters contend that he confessed only after an allegedly brutal police interrogation, which included beatings, and that evidence was planted in the case.

(With inputs from agencies)

Japanese authorities executed three prisoners on Tuesday, the first executions in two years. The government justified the executions by saying "atrocious crimes" require the continuation of capital punishment.

Japanese authorities executed three prisoners on Tuesday, the first executions in two years. The government justified the executions by saying "atrocious crimes" require the continuation of capital punishment. Despite international criticism, including from human rights groups, Japan remains one of the few developed countries that still practice capital punishment. There are currently more than 100 death row inmates in Japan, most of them accused of mass murder. In most cases, executions by hanging are carried out many years after sentencing. Also read | Sierra Leone lawmakers vote to abolish death penalty Yasutaka Fujishiro, 65, was one of the three executed on Tuesday. He had killed his 80-year-old aunt, two cousins and four others in 2004 with a hammer and knife. Two others were Tomoaki Takanezawa, 54, who killed two clerks at an arcade game parlour in 2003, and his accomplice Mitsunori Onogawa, 44. It was the first execution under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who took office in October. "Whether to keep the death sentence or not is an important issue that concerns the foundation of Japan's criminal justice system," deputy chief cabinet secretary Seiji Kihara said. "Given that atrocious crimes keep occurring one after another, it is necessary to execute those whose guilt is extremely grave so it is inappropriate to abolish capital punishment." Tadashi Ara, president of the Japan Federation of Bar Associations, said members "strongly protest" Tuesday's executions. He called on the government to "abolish capital punishment and stop all executions until it is abolished". Also read | Death via Zoom: Several in Indonesia given capital punishment via virtual hearings According to Amnesty International, at least 483 people were executed worldwide last year in 18 countries. This represents a drop of about a quarter from the previous year, which fits with a downward trend since 2015. However, this figure does not include the "thousands" of executions believed to have taken place in China, North Korea, and Vietnam, which keep such data secret. In the G7 group of developed countries, only Japan and the United States still use the death penalty. In 2019, Japan executed three death row inmates and 15 in 2018 -- including 13 members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult responsible for the 1995 sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway. It is not uncommon for authorities to notify inmates just hours before execution. The government is being sued by two prisoners for the system, which they claim is illegal and causes psychological distress. Additionally, the pair is seeking $22 million for the distress caused by not knowing when their execution will take place. Watch | Japan defends capital punishment to combat 'Atrocious Crimes' as it executes 3 death row inmates In December 2020, Japan's top court overturned a ruling prohibiting the retrial of a man regarded as the world's longest-serving death row prisoner, giving the 85-year-old new hope. After being convicted in 1968 of robbing and killing his boss, the man's wife, and their two teenage children, Iwao Hakamada has been living under the threat of death for more than half a century. He and his supporters contend that he confessed only after an allegedly brutal police interrogation, which included beatings, and that evidence was planted in the case. (With inputs from agencies)

Japan hangs 3, defends 'capital punishment', calls it necessary for 'atrocious crimes'

Japan has defended their use of capital punishment to combat 'Atrocious Crimes' as it executes three death row inmates convicted of mass murder.

Japan defends capital punishment to combat 'Atrocious Crimes' as it executes 3 death row inmates

Lawmakers in Sierra Leone voted unanimously Friday to abolish the death penalty, a momentous step that made the West African country the 23rd on the continent to prohibit capital punishment.

The decision was one more step in a long-sought goal of civil society organizations and legal practitioners who see the death penalty as a vestige of Africa’s oppressive colonial history.

“This is a horrible punishment, and we need to get rid of it,” said Oluwatosin Popoola, a legal adviser at the rights group Amnesty International, a leading critic of capital punishment.

A vast majority of the 193 member states of the United Nations have either abolished the death penalty or do not practice it.

“It’s a dream come true in terms of criminal justice, to actually remove such a heinous penalty,” said Simitie Lavaly, a member of Sierra Leone’s Human Rights Commission and a lawyer who has represented people on death row.

The vote in Sierra Leone came against the backdrop of a steady march in Africa to discard brutal laws imposed by past colonial masters. In April, Malawi ruled the death penalty unconstitutional. In May 2020, Chad did the same.

Nearly half of Africa’s 54 independent countries have abolished the punishment, more than double the number from less than two decades ago.

While death sentences and executions have declined globally in recent years, they do not necessarily reflect the growing number of countries that have banned capital punishment. At least some of the declines are attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, which slowed or delayed judicial proceedings in many countries. And in some, like the United States, federal executions were ramped up in 2020.

As in previous years, China led the 2020 list of countries that execute the most people, killing thousands, according to Amnesty International, which compiles capital punishment statistics. The exact figures for China are not known, as its data remains a state secret.

Next in 2020 came Iran, which executed at least 246 people, and then Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and in sixth place the United States, with 17 executions. Most of the American executions were of federal prisoners in the last six months of President Donald Trump’s term, a turnaround after years of an informal moratorium.

The legislators in Sierra Leone on Friday replaced the death sentence with a maximum life sentence for certain crimes, including murder and treason. That means judges will have the power to consider mitigating factors, such as whether the defendant has a mental illness. They would have had no such flexibility if the lawmakers had voted instead to replace the death penalty with a mandatory life sentence.

The last time the death penalty was carried out in Sierra Leone was 1998, when at the apex of a devastating civil war, 24 soldiers were executed by firing squad for having participated in a coup the year before.

Still, convicts have languished for years on death row, where their rights are minimal and where they know that a new government could carry out the punishment without warning.

In 2016, the minister of internal affairs at the time publicly ordered the gallows cleaned at the central prison in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, after two men were sentenced to hang. The men had been found guilty of murdering a popular DJ. While public opinion favored the hangings, they were never carried out.

Dozens of death sentences in Sierra Leone have been handed down every year. As of the end of last year, at least 94 people remained on death row.

One Sierra Leonean woman was sentenced to death in 2010 for the murder of her abusive boyfriend. He had been attacking her with a pipe, and she picked up a knife in self-defense. She was just 17 and should not have been subject to adult legal proceedings.

Another was convicted of having murdered her baby stepdaughter by feeding her battery fluid — when really she had given the sick child water. She was on death row for six years.

Both women were eventually released, with the help of AdvocAid, a nonprofit group that helps girls and women entangled in Sierra Leone’s legal system. But for years, the prospect of execution hung over them.

Sabrina Mahtani, the co-founder and former executive director of AdvocAid, said Sierra Leone’s decision to do away with capital punishment was remarkable especially because it is still recovering from the 1991-2002 civil war that was characterized by intolerance, atrocities and extreme violence. She said Sierra Leone had provided a model that more powerful countries like the United States should emulate.

“Here’s a small country in West Africa that had a brutal civil war 20 years ago, and they’ve managed to abolish the death penalty,” Mahtani said. “They would actually be an example for you, U.S., rather than it always being the other way around.”

President Julius Maada Bio’s government has worked on several reforms to the criminal justice system, including the repeal of a law frequently used to repress the media. In May, at a review of Sierra Leone’s human rights record at the United Nations, the government announced it would abolish capital punishment as well.

“It’s a really big deal in all aspects, in Sierra Leone and internationally,” Popoola said.

Sierra Leone is the first of the English-speaking West African countries to abolish the punishment.

A decade ago, a commission in Ghana recommended abolition, but in recent years efforts have stalled.

In Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, at least 2,700 people are on death row — the highest number by far on the African continent.

Gambia had been on track to abolish the death penalty last year, when a new constitution was drafted. But it was rejected by Parliament. Still, Gambia’s president has made some significant moves away from capital punishment, Popoola said.

These are all countries that, like Sierra Leone, obtained independence from the Britain in the late 1950s and 1960s — around the same time as that colonial power was carrying out its own last executions.

“The death penalty is a colonial imposition, and these laws were inherited from the U.K.,” Mahtani said.

Lawmakers in Sierra Leone voted unanimously Friday to abolish the death penalty, a momentous step that made the West African country the 23rd on the continent to prohibit capital punishment.

Lawmakers in Sierra Leone voted unanimously Friday to abolish the death penalty, a momentous step that made the West African country the 23rd on the continent to prohibit capital punishment. The decision was one more step in a long-sought goal of civil society organizations and legal practitioners who see the death penalty as a vestige of Africa’s oppressive colonial history. “This is a horrible punishment, and we need to get rid of it,” said Oluwatosin Popoola, a legal adviser at the rights group Amnesty International, a leading critic of capital punishment. A vast majority of the 193 member states of the United Nations have either abolished the death penalty or do not practice it. “It’s a dream come true in terms of criminal justice, to actually remove such a heinous penalty,” said Simitie Lavaly, a member of Sierra Leone’s Human Rights Commission and a lawyer who has represented people on death row. The vote in Sierra Leone came against the backdrop of a steady march in Africa to discard brutal laws imposed by past colonial masters. In April, Malawi ruled the death penalty unconstitutional. In May 2020, Chad did the same. Nearly half of Africa’s 54 independent countries have abolished the punishment, more than double the number from less than two decades ago. While death sentences and executions have declined globally in recent years, they do not necessarily reflect the growing number of countries that have banned capital punishment. At least some of the declines are attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, which slowed or delayed judicial proceedings in many countries. And in some, like the United States, federal executions were ramped up in 2020. As in previous years, China led the 2020 list of countries that execute the most people, killing thousands, according to Amnesty International, which compiles capital punishment statistics. The exact figures for China are not known, as its data remains a state secret. Next in 2020 came Iran, which executed at least 246 people, and then Egypt, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and in sixth place the United States, with 17 executions. Most of the American executions were of federal prisoners in the last six months of President Donald Trump’s term, a turnaround after years of an informal moratorium. The legislators in Sierra Leone on Friday replaced the death sentence with a maximum life sentence for certain crimes, including murder and treason. That means judges will have the power to consider mitigating factors, such as whether the defendant has a mental illness. They would have had no such flexibility if the lawmakers had voted instead to replace the death penalty with a mandatory life sentence. The last time the death penalty was carried out in Sierra Leone was 1998, when at the apex of a devastating civil war, 24 soldiers were executed by firing squad for having participated in a coup the year before. Still, convicts have languished for years on death row, where their rights are minimal and where they know that a new government could carry out the punishment without warning. In 2016, the minister of internal affairs at the time publicly ordered the gallows cleaned at the central prison in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, after two men were sentenced to hang. The men had been found guilty of murdering a popular DJ. While public opinion favored the hangings, they were never carried out. Dozens of death sentences in Sierra Leone have been handed down every year. As of the end of last year, at least 94 people remained on death row. One Sierra Leonean woman was sentenced to death in 2010 for the murder of her abusive boyfriend. He had been attacking her with a pipe, and she picked up a knife in self-defense. She was just 17 and should not have been subject to adult legal proceedings. Another was convicted of having murdered her baby stepdaughter by feeding her battery fluid — when really she had given the sick child water. She was on death row for six years. Both women were eventually released, with the help of AdvocAid, a nonprofit group that helps girls and women entangled in Sierra Leone’s legal system. But for years, the prospect of execution hung over them. Sabrina Mahtani, the co-founder and former executive director of AdvocAid, said Sierra Leone’s decision to do away with capital punishment was remarkable especially because it is still recovering from the 1991-2002 civil war that was characterized by intolerance, atrocities and extreme violence. She said Sierra Leone had provided a model that more powerful countries like the United States should emulate. “Here’s a small country in West Africa that had a brutal civil war 20 years ago, and they’ve managed to abolish the death penalty,” Mahtani said. “They would actually be an example for you, U.S., rather than it always being the other way around.” President Julius Maada Bio’s government has worked on several reforms to the criminal justice system, including the repeal of a law frequently used to repress the media. In May, at a review of Sierra Leone’s human rights record at the United Nations, the government announced it would abolish capital punishment as well. “It’s a really big deal in all aspects, in Sierra Leone and internationally,” Popoola said. Sierra Leone is the first of the English-speaking West African countries to abolish the punishment. A decade ago, a commission in Ghana recommended abolition, but in recent years efforts have stalled. In Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, at least 2,700 people are on death row — the highest number by far on the African continent. Gambia had been on track to abolish the death penalty last year, when a new constitution was drafted. But it was rejected by Parliament. Still, Gambia’s president has made some significant moves away from capital punishment, Popoola said. These are all countries that, like Sierra Leone, obtained independence from the Britain in the late 1950s and 1960s — around the same time as that colonial power was carrying out its own last executions. “The death penalty is a colonial imposition, and these laws were inherited from the U.K.,” Mahtani said.

One by one, African countries dismantle colonial-era death penalty laws

Several prisoners in Indonesia have been sentenced to death over Zoom and other video apps during the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/topics/coronavirus">coronavirus pandemic</a>.&nbsp;

The country resorted to virtual court hearings amid COVID-19 restrictions that closed most in-person trials, including murder and drug trafficking cases, in which the death penalty can be given.&nbsp;

Nearly 100 inmates since early last year have been condemned to death in Indonesia, according to Amnesty International.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="http://wionews.com/india-news/indian-navy-pitches-in-to-find-missing-indonesian-submarine-379237">Indian Navy pitches in to find missing Indonesian submarine</a>

Indonesia has some of the world's strictest laws on drugs in which both Indonesian and foreign traffickers have been executed, reports news agency AFP.&nbsp;

Three Iranians and a Pakistani were amongst the 13 people who through video hearing were told that they would be shot to death for smuggling 400 kilograms (880 pounds) of methamphetamine into Indonesia.&nbsp;

A Jakarta court on Wednesday gave a death sentence to six Islamist militants via a video app for their involvement in a prison riot in 2018 that killed five personnel of Indonesia's counter-terror squad.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="http://wionews.com/world/indonesian-president-orders-all-out-effort-to-find-submarine-as-oxygen-runs-low-379368">Indonesian president orders all-out effort to find submarine as oxygen runs low</a>

Indonesia went ahead with the virtual hearings despite the number of death sentences reduced last year globally due to the pandemic, Amnesty, in its annual capital punishment report, said this week.&nbsp;

Critics argue that virtual hearings do not give the accused a fair chance to defend themselves due to poor internet connections, a problem that even Indonesia faces.&nbsp;

"Virtual platforms... can expose the defendant to significant violations of their fair trial rights and impinge on the quality of the defence," NGO Harm Reduction International in a recent report on the death penalty for drug crimes said.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Several prisoners in Indonesia have been sentenced to death over Zoom and other video apps during the coronavirus pandemic. The country resorted to virtual court hearings amid COVID-19 restrictions that closed most in-person trials, including murder and drug trafficking cases, in which the death penalty can be given.

Several prisoners in Indonesia have been sentenced to death over Zoom and other video apps during the coronavirus pandemic. The country resorted to virtual court hearings amid COVID-19 restrictions that closed most in-person trials, including murder and drug trafficking cases, in which the death penalty can be given. Nearly 100 inmates since early last year have been condemned to death in Indonesia, according to Amnesty International. Also read | Indian Navy pitches in to find missing Indonesian submarine Indonesia has some of the world's strictest laws on drugs in which both Indonesian and foreign traffickers have been executed, reports news agency AFP. Three Iranians and a Pakistani were amongst the 13 people who through video hearing were told that they would be shot to death for smuggling 400 kilograms (880 pounds) of methamphetamine into Indonesia. A Jakarta court on Wednesday gave a death sentence to six Islamist militants via a video app for their involvement in a prison riot in 2018 that killed five personnel of Indonesia's counter-terror squad. Also read | Indonesian president orders all-out effort to find submarine as oxygen runs low Indonesia went ahead with the virtual hearings despite the number of death sentences reduced last year globally due to the pandemic, Amnesty, in its annual capital punishment report, said this week. Critics argue that virtual hearings do not give the accused a fair chance to defend themselves due to poor internet connections, a problem that even Indonesia faces. "Virtual platforms... can expose the defendant to significant violations of their fair trial rights and impinge on the quality of the defence," NGO Harm Reduction International in a recent report on the death penalty for drug crimes said.

Death via Zoom: Several in Indonesia given capital punishment via virtual hearings

An Iranian woman waiting to be executed suffered a fatal heart attack as she watched 16 men die before her - but her body was hanged anyway at Rajai Shahr Prison.

Zahra Ismaili was convicted of the murder of her husband Alireza Zamani in Iran and sentenced to be hanged at Rajai Shahr Prison.

According to The Times, the mother-of-two had been convicted of killing her husband, who was a senior official in the Ministry of Intelligence.

Her lawyer, Omid Moradi, claimed her husband had allegedly been abusive to both her and their daughter and that she had acted in self-defence.

According to the Iran Human Rights Monitor (HRM), Ismaili’s death certificate gave her cause of death as “cardiac arrest”.

Her lawyer Omid Moradi reportedly wrote: “It states cardiac arrest as the cause of death because yesterday 16 men were hanged before her eyes. Zahra’s heart stopped and she died before she was taken to the gallows."

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
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<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Omid Moradi, the lawyer of a woman recently executed in <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Iran?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Iran</a> says she suffered a fatal stroke after witnessing 16 men being hanged &amp; authorities hanged her dead body. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ZahraEsmaili?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ZahraEsmaili</a> mother of 2 was found guilty of killing her husband who was a high ranking intel official. <a href="https://t.co/9tnNObXGyF">pic.twitter.com/9tnNObXGyF</a>
— IRAN HRM (@IranHrm) <a href="https://twitter.com/IranHrm/status/1362846749291872258?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">February 19, 2021</a></blockquote>
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According to Amnesty International&nbsp;2019 report, the Islamic Republic is second only to China in its use of capital punishment.

But even by Iran's standards, a mass execution of 17 people in one day is uncommon.

(With inputs from agencies)

An Iranian woman waiting to be executed suffered a fatal heart attack as she watched 16 men die before her - but her body was hanged anyway at Rajai Shahr Prison.

An Iranian woman waiting to be executed suffered a fatal heart attack as she watched 16 men die before her - but her body was hanged anyway at Rajai Shahr Prison. Zahra Ismaili was convicted of the murder of her husband Alireza Zamani in Iran and sentenced to be hanged at Rajai Shahr Prison. According to The Times, the mother-of-two had been convicted of killing her husband, who was a senior official in the Ministry of Intelligence. Her lawyer, Omid Moradi, claimed her husband had allegedly been abusive to both her and their daughter and that she had acted in self-defence. According to the Iran Human Rights Monitor (HRM), Ismaili’s death certificate gave her cause of death as “cardiac arrest”. Her lawyer Omid Moradi reportedly wrote: “It states cardiac arrest as the cause of death because yesterday 16 men were hanged before her eyes. Zahra’s heart stopped and she died before she was taken to the gallows." Omid Moradi, the lawyer of a woman recently executed in #Iran says she suffered a fatal stroke after witnessing 16 men being hanged & authorities hanged her dead body. #ZahraEsmaili mother of 2 was found guilty of killing her husband who was a high ranking intel official. pic.twitter.com/9tnNObXGyF — IRAN HRM (@IranHrm) February 19, 2021 × According to Amnesty International 2019 report, the Islamic Republic is second only to China in its use of capital punishment. But even by Iran's standards, a mass execution of 17 people in one day is uncommon. (With inputs from agencies)

Iranian woman waiting to be executed dies of a heart attack after watching 16 inmates hanged

Iraq on Monday executed 21 people who were convicted on terrorism charges at the notorious Nasiriyah prison, medical and police sources said.

The people who were executed were convicted under a 2005 Counter-Terrorism Law, but details were not provided on the specific crimes they committed.&nbsp;

Also read | <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/gunmen-kill-at-least-11-in-attack-on-iraqi-army-post-in-baghdad-341803">Gunmen kill at least 11 in attack on Iraqi army post in Baghdad</a>&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;

The execution was carried out in Nasiriyah prison in Dhi Qar province, the only one in the country that conducts capital punishment.

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The prison was earlier used to hang ex-officials of the Saddam Hussein regime.&nbsp;

However, Saddam himself was executed at this prison in December 2006 after the US and its allies toppled his government in 2003.&nbsp;

Following the victory over terror group Islamic State in late 2017, Iraq has handed death sentence to hundreds of its own citizens for their allegiance to the jihadist group.

However, only a handful of people among these were executed as the death sentence must be approved by the country's president.&nbsp;

Police sources confirmed to news agency AFP that President Barham Saleh had approved Monday's executions.

Iraq ranks fifth among nations that carry out death punishment, according to Amnesty International, which said the country conducted 100 executions in 2019.&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

Iraq on Monday executed 21 people who were convicted on terrorism charges at the notorious Nasiriyah prison, medical and police sources said. The people who were executed were convicted under a 2005 Counter-Terrorism Law, but details were not provided on the specific crimes they committed.

Iraq on Monday executed 21 people who were convicted on terrorism charges at the notorious Nasiriyah prison, medical and police sources said. The people who were executed were convicted under a 2005 Counter-Terrorism Law, but details were not provided on the specific crimes they committed. Also read | Gunmen kill at least 11 in attack on Iraqi army post in Baghdad The execution was carried out in Nasiriyah prison in Dhi Qar province, the only one in the country that conducts capital punishment. Also read | Hundreds demand US ouster from Iraq in Baghdad The prison was earlier used to hang ex-officials of the Saddam Hussein regime. However, Saddam himself was executed at this prison in December 2006 after the US and its allies toppled his government in 2003. Following the victory over terror group Islamic State in late 2017, Iraq has handed death sentence to hundreds of its own citizens for their allegiance to the jihadist group. However, only a handful of people among these were executed as the death sentence must be approved by the country's president. Police sources confirmed to news agency AFP that President Barham Saleh had approved Monday's executions. Iraq ranks fifth among nations that carry out death punishment, according to Amnesty International, which said the country conducted 100 executions in 2019.

Iraq carries out 21 death sentences in one day: Report

A U.S. federal judge issued an injunction on Monday delaying what would have been the first federal execution in 17 years, scheduled for later in the day, thwarting at least for now the Trump administration's goal of reviving capital punishment at the federal level.

Judge Tanya Chutkan of the U.S. district court in Washington ordered the U.S. Department of Justice to delay four executions scheduled for July and August to allow continuation of the condemned men's legal challenges against a new lethal injection protocol announced in 2019.&nbsp;

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="/world/first-federal-execution-in-us-since-2003-set-to-take-place-today-july-13-312989" hreflang="en">First federal execution in US since 2003 set to take place today, July 13</a>

"The scientific evidence before the court overwhelmingly indicates that the 2019 Protocol is very likely to cause Plaintiffs extreme pain and needless suffering during their executions," Chutkan wrote in her order.&nbsp;

She said the inmates were likely to succeed in their claim that the new one-drug protocol using pentobarbital, a powerful barbiturate, breached a constitutional ban on "cruel and unusual" punishments.&nbsp;

Chutkan sided with a medical expert cited by the inmates who said that a high-dose injection of pentobarbital was caustic enough to rapidly fill a condemned man's lungs with bloody fluid, causing him to feel as if he were drowning for some time before losing consciousness.

To make their deaths less painful, the inmates have proposed that the Justice Department add morphine or a similar painkiller to the lethal injection protocol, or arrange for them to be executed by firing squad, a method last used a decade ago by Utah's government.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="/world/us-to-resume-federal-executions-on-july-13-after-a-17-year-stay-306154" hreflang="en">US to resume federal executions on July 13, after a 17-year stay</a>

The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Chutkan's order, writing in its application that it was a "meritless injunction" that would "scramble" its plans to "administer a dignified and humane lethal injection."

The Justice Department also challenged the injunction in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, saying in a court filing its extensive planning for the July and August dates, including training drills for the 40-member execution team and the booking of transportation and hotel rooms, "cannot easily be undone."&nbsp;

A previous injunction issued by Chutkan on different grounds last year, postponing the original execution dates set in December, was overturned on appeal.

Chutkan's new order came down less than seven hours before Daniel Lewis Lee was due to be put to death at 4 p.m. using a lethal injection at the Justice Department's execution chamber in Terre Haute, Indiana.&nbsp;

Lee was sentenced to death for his role in the 1996 murders of three members of an Arkansas family, including an 8-year-old child. Relatives of his victims have opposed his execution.

"The government has been trying to plow forward with these executions despite many unanswered questions about the legality of its new execution protocol," Shawn Nolan, one of the public defenders representing the inmates, said in a statement.

Efforts to resume capital punishment at the federal level were underway within a few months of President Donald Trump's inauguration in 2017, ending a de facto moratorium that began under his predecessor, Barack Obama, due to problems getting execution drugs and while long-running legal challenges to lethal injections played out in federal courts.&nbsp;

A European Union ban on selling drugs for use in executions or torture has led to pharmaceutical companies refusing to sell such drugs to U.S. prison systems.&nbsp;

The Justice Department spent much of 2018 and 2019 building a secret supply chain of private companies to make and test its drug of choice, pentobarbital, which replaces a three-drug protocol used in previous executions. Some of the companies involved said they were not aware they were testing execution drugs, a Reuters investigation found last week.

One laboratory has since announced it will refuse to test pentobarbital intended for executions.

The Justice Department had scheduled two more executions for later in the week and a fourth in August, of Wesley Purkey, Dustin Honken and Keith Nelson, all convicted of murdering children.&nbsp;

The coronavirus pandemic has prompted separate lawsuits from relatives of Lee's victims and Purkey's spiritual adviser to delay the executions until the pandemic has passed so they can safely attend. At least one employee involved in the executions has tested positive for COVID-19, the Justice Department said.

A U.S. federal judge issued an injunction on Monday delaying what would have been the first federal execution in 17 years, scheduled for later in the day, thwarting at least for now the Trump administration's goal of reviving capital punishment at the federal level.

A U.S. federal judge issued an injunction on Monday delaying what would have been the first federal execution in 17 years, scheduled for later in the day, thwarting at least for now the Trump administration's goal of reviving capital punishment at the federal level. Judge Tanya Chutkan of the U.S. district court in Washington ordered the U.S. Department of Justice to delay four executions scheduled for July and August to allow continuation of the condemned men's legal challenges against a new lethal injection protocol announced in 2019. Also read: First federal execution in US since 2003 set to take place today, July 13 "The scientific evidence before the court overwhelmingly indicates that the 2019 Protocol is very likely to cause Plaintiffs extreme pain and needless suffering during their executions," Chutkan wrote in her order. She said the inmates were likely to succeed in their claim that the new one-drug protocol using pentobarbital, a powerful barbiturate, breached a constitutional ban on "cruel and unusual" punishments. Chutkan sided with a medical expert cited by the inmates who said that a high-dose injection of pentobarbital was caustic enough to rapidly fill a condemned man's lungs with bloody fluid, causing him to feel as if he were drowning for some time before losing consciousness. To make their deaths less painful, the inmates have proposed that the Justice Department add morphine or a similar painkiller to the lethal injection protocol, or arrange for them to be executed by firing squad, a method last used a decade ago by Utah's government. Also read: US to resume federal executions on July 13, after a 17-year stay The Trump administration asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Chutkan's order, writing in its application that it was a "meritless injunction" that would "scramble" its plans to "administer a dignified and humane lethal injection." The Justice Department also challenged the injunction in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, saying in a court filing its extensive planning for the July and August dates, including training drills for the 40-member execution team and the booking of transportation and hotel rooms, "cannot easily be undone." A previous injunction issued by Chutkan on different grounds last year, postponing the original execution dates set in December, was overturned on appeal. Chutkan's new order came down less than seven hours before Daniel Lewis Lee was due to be put to death at 4 p.m. using a lethal injection at the Justice Department's execution chamber in Terre Haute, Indiana. Lee was sentenced to death for his role in the 1996 murders of three members of an Arkansas family, including an 8-year-old child. Relatives of his victims have opposed his execution. "The government has been trying to plow forward with these executions despite many unanswered questions about the legality of its new execution protocol," Shawn Nolan, one of the public defenders representing the inmates, said in a statement. Efforts to resume capital punishment at the federal level were underway within a few months of President Donald Trump's inauguration in 2017, ending a de facto moratorium that began under his predecessor, Barack Obama, due to problems getting execution drugs and while long-running legal challenges to lethal injections played out in federal courts. A European Union ban on selling drugs for use in executions or torture has led to pharmaceutical companies refusing to sell such drugs to U.S. prison systems. The Justice Department spent much of 2018 and 2019 building a secret supply chain of private companies to make and test its drug of choice, pentobarbital, which replaces a three-drug protocol used in previous executions. Some of the companies involved said they were not aware they were testing execution drugs, a Reuters investigation found last week. One laboratory has since announced it will refuse to test pentobarbital intended for executions. The Justice Department had scheduled two more executions for later in the week and a fourth in August, of Wesley Purkey, Dustin Honken and Keith Nelson, all convicted of murdering children. The coronavirus pandemic has prompted separate lawsuits from relatives of Lee's victims and Purkey's spiritual adviser to delay the executions until the pandemic has passed so they can safely attend. At least one employee involved in the executions has tested positive for COVID-19, the Justice Department said.

US judge delays first federal executions in 17 years

The first federal execution in the United States in nearly 20 years is set to take place on Monday, July 13.

At 4 pm local time, Daniel Lewis Lee will be injected with a lethal substance in Indiana, at a federal prison.

Lee from Yukon, Oklahoma was convicted in Arkansas for the murders of William Mueller, a gun dealer, along with his wife Nancy and their eight-year-old daughter Sarah Powell in 1996.

First execution since 2003

This is the first execution since 2003. A federal appeals court on Sunday lifted an injunction put forward by the family saying they would be risking too much by travelling during a pandemic. The family had also decided to follow it up with the US Supreme Court.

The US is witnessing a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, with over 135,000 deaths in the country, and Florida inducting record-number of infections.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="wionews.com/world/us-to-resume-federal-executions-on-july-13-after-a-17-year-stay-306154">US to resume federal executions on July 13, after a 17-year stay</a>

Critics and civil rights groups claim that this is a political move, as the American public is currently busy dealing with a pandemic. Many believe this will trigger conversations around federal executions and reform in criminal justice in the US, building up to the presidential elections set to happen later in the year.

William Barr, the attorney general, last week had said that it was their “duty” to carry out the execution, in order to bring “closure to the victims” and to honour the courts.

'Not in our name' 
 
Relatives of those killed told the Guardian that this was not being done “in their name”.

The family members claim that nationwide prisons are already unable to contain the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, and them being there witnessing the execution in a small room would limit the chances of social distancing.

The Terre Haute prison, where the execution is set to take place today, has recorded four confirmed cases of COVID-19.

A special team is set to conduct the execution. Just yesterday, on July 12, the justice department claimed that a member involved in the process of executing inmates had contracted COVID-19.

Just last year, Barr had announced plans to resume capital punishment in the country. Only three people have been put on the death row since 1988, when the death penalty was reintroduced in the country.

The first federal execution in the United States in nearly 20 years is set to take place on Monday, July 13. At 4 pm local time, Daniel Lewis Lee will be injected with a lethal substance in Indiana, at a federal prison.

The first federal execution in the United States in nearly 20 years is set to take place on Monday, July 13. At 4 pm local time, Daniel Lewis Lee will be injected with a lethal substance in Indiana, at a federal prison. Lee from Yukon, Oklahoma was convicted in Arkansas for the murders of William Mueller, a gun dealer, along with his wife Nancy and their eight-year-old daughter Sarah Powell in 1996. First execution since 2003 This is the first execution since 2003. A federal appeals court on Sunday lifted an injunction put forward by the family saying they would be risking too much by travelling during a pandemic. The family had also decided to follow it up with the US Supreme Court. The US is witnessing a resurgence in COVID-19 cases, with over 135,000 deaths in the country, and Florida inducting record-number of infections. Also read: US to resume federal executions on July 13, after a 17-year stay Critics and civil rights groups claim that this is a political move, as the American public is currently busy dealing with a pandemic. Many believe this will trigger conversations around federal executions and reform in criminal justice in the US, building up to the presidential elections set to happen later in the year. William Barr, the attorney general, last week had said that it was their “duty” to carry out the execution, in order to bring “closure to the victims” and to honour the courts. 'Not in our name' Relatives of those killed told the Guardian that this was not being done “in their name”. The family members claim that nationwide prisons are already unable to contain the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, and them being there witnessing the execution in a small room would limit the chances of social distancing. The Terre Haute prison, where the execution is set to take place today, has recorded four confirmed cases of COVID-19. A special team is set to conduct the execution. Just yesterday, on July 12, the justice department claimed that a member involved in the process of executing inmates had contracted COVID-19. Just last year, Barr had announced plans to resume capital punishment in the country. Only three people have been put on the death row since 1988, when the death penalty was reintroduced in the country.

First federal execution in US since 2003 set to take place today, July 13

Bangladesh has executed a military captain less than a week after he was arrested after nearly 25 years on the run over the assassination of the country's founding leader, a minister said Sunday.&nbsp;

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, father of current Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, was killed along with most of his family in a military coup on August 15, 1975, nearly four years after he led Bangladesh to independence from Pakistan.

In 1998 Abdul Majed was sentenced in absentia to death along with a dozen other army officers over the murders.&nbsp;

Bangladesh's Supreme Court upheld the verdict in 2009 and five of the killers were executed several months later.

On Tuesday, counter-terrorism police officers arrested Majed as he rode a rickshaw in the capital early in the morning.&nbsp;

Bangladesh prison authorities carried out Majed's execution by hanging days later, after the country's president rejected a mercy plea from the convicted killer.

"He was hanged to death at 12.01 am Sunday (1801GMT)," law minister Anisul Huq told AFP, adding the execution took place at the country's largest prison, just outside the capital Dhaka.&nbsp;

Majed is believed to have fled to India in 1996. He returned to Bangladesh last month.

Majed's wife met him at the prison one last time on Saturday evening when the prison authorities had scheduled his execution.&nbsp;

Security has been tightened at the areas outside the prison at Keraniganj town, with scores of policemen patrolling the jailgate, police chief of Dhaka district Maruf Hossain Sorder told AFP.&nbsp;

Prime Minister Hasina, whose public celebrations this year for the centenary of her father's birth have been hampered by the coronavirus pandemic, was in Europe with her sister at the time of the 1975 attack.

In a video message, the country's home minister this week called Majed's arrest "the best gift of Mujib centenary year".

The road to getting justice for the 1975 assassination was long, and the killing continues to poison Bangladesh's murky political scene to this day.

Successive post-coup military governments rewarded the killers with diplomatic positions and several of them were even allowed to form a political party and contest polls in the 1980s.

For 21 years, an indemnity law enacted by the post-coup government prevented a prosecution of the killers. This was only overturned after Hasina came to power in 1996.

Hasina has also long accused Ziaur Rahman, president from 1977 until his assassination in 1981, of orchestrating her father's murder.

This is denied by his widow Khaleda Zia, prime minister from 1991-1996 and 2001-2006 and Hasina's former ally turned arch enemy who was convicted of graft in 2018, charges she said were fabricated.

Bangladesh has executed a military captain less than a week after he was arrested after nearly 25 years on the run over the assassination of the country's founding leader, a minister said Sunday.

Bangladesh has executed a military captain less than a week after he was arrested after nearly 25 years on the run over the assassination of the country's founding leader, a minister said Sunday. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, father of current Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, was killed along with most of his family in a military coup on August 15, 1975, nearly four years after he led Bangladesh to independence from Pakistan. In 1998 Abdul Majed was sentenced in absentia to death along with a dozen other army officers over the murders. Bangladesh's Supreme Court upheld the verdict in 2009 and five of the killers were executed several months later. On Tuesday, counter-terrorism police officers arrested Majed as he rode a rickshaw in the capital early in the morning. Bangladesh prison authorities carried out Majed's execution by hanging days later, after the country's president rejected a mercy plea from the convicted killer. "He was hanged to death at 12.01 am Sunday (1801GMT)," law minister Anisul Huq told AFP, adding the execution took place at the country's largest prison, just outside the capital Dhaka. Majed is believed to have fled to India in 1996. He returned to Bangladesh last month. Majed's wife met him at the prison one last time on Saturday evening when the prison authorities had scheduled his execution. Security has been tightened at the areas outside the prison at Keraniganj town, with scores of policemen patrolling the jailgate, police chief of Dhaka district Maruf Hossain Sorder told AFP. Prime Minister Hasina, whose public celebrations this year for the centenary of her father's birth have been hampered by the coronavirus pandemic, was in Europe with her sister at the time of the 1975 attack. In a video message, the country's home minister this week called Majed's arrest "the best gift of Mujib centenary year". The road to getting justice for the 1975 assassination was long, and the killing continues to poison Bangladesh's murky political scene to this day. Successive post-coup military governments rewarded the killers with diplomatic positions and several of them were even allowed to form a political party and contest polls in the 1980s. For 21 years, an indemnity law enacted by the post-coup government prevented a prosecution of the killers. This was only overturned after Hasina came to power in 1996. Hasina has also long accused Ziaur Rahman, president from 1977 until his assassination in 1981, of orchestrating her father's murder. This is denied by his widow Khaleda Zia, prime minister from 1991-1996 and 2001-2006 and Hasina's former ally turned arch enemy who was convicted of graft in 2018, charges she said were fabricated.

Bangladesh executes killer of founding leader 

The death penalty around the world

Sri Lanka on Wednesday began interviewing 47 applicants for two positions as hangmen, officials said, as Amnesty International urged Colombo not to bring back capital punishment.

President Maithripala Sirisena announced in February that Sri Lanka would end a 43-year moratorium on executions this month in a Philippines-inspired war on drugs.

An official said that 47 male applicants would be interviewed on Wednesday and Thursday after the government advertised the vacancies in February.&nbsp;

But the successful candidates may face a delay in carrying out their new role.

"Since there is no living person in Sri Lanka who has carried out an execution, we need to send the new recruits abroad for training," the official, who asked to remain anonymous, told AFP, adding that Colombo was also yet to identify a country to provide training.&nbsp;

"The rope (used for hangings) has not been used at all since it was imported (in 2015), it will have to be tested and certified."

Rights group Amnesty International meanwhile said resuming hangings would not end drug-related crime and that innocent people could be executed due to flaws in Sri Lanka's criminal justice system.

Sirisena has said that he was inspired by the anti-drug war in the Philippines and was keen to replicate the success of his counterpart Rodrigo Duterte. Sirisena has since deployed security forces in his battle against drugs.

In a nationally televised event in Colombo, Sirisena pledged to end the spread of narcotics within two years.

Restoring capital punishment is a centrepiece of his anti-drugs policy.

Criminals in Sri Lanka are regularly given death sentences for murder, rape and drug-related crimes but until now their punishments have been commuted to life in jail.

Sri Lanka's last judicial hanging was in 1976, but an executioner was in the post until his retirement in 2014. Three replacements since have quit after short stints at the unused gallows.

On Monday, Sirisena witnessed the destruction of nearly 800 kilos (1,280 pounds) of cocaine seized between 2016 and 2018.&nbsp;

In February, police seized nearly 300 kilos of heroin worth $17 million, the island's biggest haul, at a Colombo shopping mall. In 2013, police seized 260 kilos of heroin brought into the country hidden inside tractors imported from Pakistan.

Sri Lanka's biggest drug haul, by weight, was in December 2016 when police seized 800 kilos of cocaine. Six months earlier, authorities discovered 301 kilos of cocaine inside a shipping container.

Authorities believe the Indian Ocean island is also being used as a trafficking transit point.

Sri Lanka on Wednesday began interviewing 47 applicants for two positions as hangmen, officials said, as Amnesty International urged Colombo not to bring back capital punishment.

Sri Lanka on Wednesday began interviewing 47 applicants for two positions as hangmen, officials said, as Amnesty International urged Colombo not to bring back capital punishment. President Maithripala Sirisena announced in February that Sri Lanka would end a 43-year moratorium on executions this month in a Philippines-inspired war on drugs. An official said that 47 male applicants would be interviewed on Wednesday and Thursday after the government advertised the vacancies in February. But the successful candidates may face a delay in carrying out their new role. "Since there is no living person in Sri Lanka who has carried out an execution, we need to send the new recruits abroad for training," the official, who asked to remain anonymous, told AFP, adding that Colombo was also yet to identify a country to provide training. "The rope (used for hangings) has not been used at all since it was imported (in 2015), it will have to be tested and certified." Rights group Amnesty International meanwhile said resuming hangings would not end drug-related crime and that innocent people could be executed due to flaws in Sri Lanka's criminal justice system. Sirisena has said that he was inspired by the anti-drug war in the Philippines and was keen to replicate the success of his counterpart Rodrigo Duterte. Sirisena has since deployed security forces in his battle against drugs. In a nationally televised event in Colombo, Sirisena pledged to end the spread of narcotics within two years. Restoring capital punishment is a centrepiece of his anti-drugs policy. Criminals in Sri Lanka are regularly given death sentences for murder, rape and drug-related crimes but until now their punishments have been commuted to life in jail. Sri Lanka's last judicial hanging was in 1976, but an executioner was in the post until his retirement in 2014. Three replacements since have quit after short stints at the unused gallows. On Monday, Sirisena witnessed the destruction of nearly 800 kilos (1,280 pounds) of cocaine seized between 2016 and 2018. In February, police seized nearly 300 kilos of heroin worth $17 million, the island's biggest haul, at a Colombo shopping mall. In 2013, police seized 260 kilos of heroin brought into the country hidden inside tractors imported from Pakistan. Sri Lanka's biggest drug haul, by weight, was in December 2016 when police seized 800 kilos of cocaine. Six months earlier, authorities discovered 301 kilos of cocaine inside a shipping container. Authorities believe the Indian Ocean island is also being used as a trafficking transit point.

Sri Lanka interviews 47 potential hangmen, Amnesty urges it to not bring back capital punishment

The Karnataka government is contemplating the framing of a law enabling capital punishment to rapists of minor girls, reports said on Sunday.&nbsp;

Karnataka Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy said in Bengaluru that the government would look for further details of the law passed by the Madhya Pradesh government - which states that the accused would be given death penalty if found guilty of raping girls aged 12 and below.

&quot;We will get details of the law and plan to enact the same here in Karnataka,&quot; he said.&nbsp;

&quot;You have seen the recent incident of rape and murder of a Dalit minor girl, which caused so much of tension in coastal Karnataka and its neighbouring districts. So such laws will curb such heinous crimes,&quot; Reddy further added.&nbsp;

The home minister said that he would be taking up the matter with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.

On December 4, the Madhya Pradesh government passed the bill, becoming the first state in India to award capital punishment to those convicted of raping minors.&nbsp;

The home minister said that he would be taking up the matter with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah

The Karnataka government is contemplating the framing of a law enabling capital punishment to rapists of minor girls, reports said on Sunday. Karnataka Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy said in Bengaluru that the government would look for further details of the law passed by the Madhya Pradesh government - which states that the accused would be given death penalty if found guilty of raping girls aged 12 and below. "We will get details of the law and plan to enact the same here in Karnataka," he said. "You have seen the recent incident of rape and murder of a Dalit minor girl, which caused so much of tension in coastal Karnataka and its neighbouring districts. So such laws will curb such heinous crimes," Reddy further added. The home minister said that he would be taking up the matter with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. On December 4, the Madhya Pradesh government passed the bill, becoming the first state in India to award capital punishment to those convicted of raping minors.

Karnataka contemplates capital punishment law for rapists of minor girls

On May 29th, in Manesar at Gurgaon, a 19-year-old woman was gang-raped and her 9-month-old daughter was killed by throwing her to the ground. Yesterday, The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued notices to the Director General of Police, Haryana and the Gurugram Police Commission stating, &ldquo;the night patrolling on the road by the police was not being done&rdquo;. The NHRC requested the Police Commissioners of Delhi, Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad to come up with constructive suggestions and a joint action programme is expected by the law enforcement agencies of the National Capital Region (NCR). Though this came as a positive measure to ensure women&rsquo;s safety, yet we are a long way to go.&nbsp;

The situation is particularly difficult to address as many Indian politicians across partylines often place the onus on the victims themselves.&nbsp;For instance, Azam Khan of Samajwadi Party&nbsp;remarked after two girls were raped by 14 men&nbsp;at&nbsp;Rampur in Uttar Pradesh that&nbsp;&rdquo;girls should avoid places where molesters roam free&rdquo;. The incident and bizarre assertion make us question if we women have a safe space to dwell in this country. Another leader Babulal Gaur on another gang rape case of two teenagers said, &ldquo;this is a social crime which depends on men and women. Sometimes it&rsquo;s right, sometimes it&rsquo;s wrong.&ldquo; Such remarks by leaders clearly do not reflect us in a respectable position, hence we do not want your sympathy.

The Nirbhaya verdict (5th May 2017) stirred clamour around capital punishment against the perpetrators of rape. Many believed, the perpetrators deserved &lsquo;justice served&rsquo; and some opposed the idea of capital punishment. Unfortunately, after the most celebrated verdict by the Apex court, a series of rape cases has been&nbsp;reported so far. Death penalty is commonly seen&nbsp;as a deterrent but&nbsp;so far it has failed in the prevention of rape against women. In the month of May alone, three very heinous instances of rape have made the headlines in the country.&nbsp;

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<h5>Frequently,&nbsp;police officials encourages&nbsp;the victim to settle the matter out of court, thereby,&nbsp;dissuading&nbsp;them from&nbsp;pursuing&nbsp;the case</h5>
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The dark figure of crime: Unreported Rape

The Indian Penal Code largely understands gender specific crime as an assault on women with the intent to outrage the modesty, cruelty by husband or relatives as well as kidnapping, abduction and rape. As per the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB), 327,394 cases of crimes against women were reported in 2015.&nbsp;In 95 per cent of these cases the offender knew&nbsp;the rape victim. One of the most frightening facts reported by NCRB is one rape occurs every 20 minutes in India.

Despite all the facts and figures reported by the NCRB, experts are unanimous that it is extremely to difficult to accurately calculate the number of rapes in any country, particularly in India. Victims often fail to report, more so,&nbsp;if family members are involved or in cases where the victim was found to be&nbsp;drunk or intoxicated. In the latter case, it is difficult to ascertain whether&nbsp;consent was given or not.&nbsp;Frequently,&nbsp;police officials encourages&nbsp;the victim to settle the matter out of court, thereby,&nbsp;dissuading&nbsp;them from&nbsp;pursuing&nbsp;the case.

Rape: Theories and Beliefs

If we evaluate why a woman is always the victim, it is pertinent to understand the various theories and studies done by scholars, psychologist and feminist over a period of time on rape culture. The early proponents of the Evolutionary Theory believed man rapes to enforce their sexual desires on a woman so that the offsprings bear their qualities. Whereas, the Feminist theory believed rape is &ldquo;violent and not just a sexual act&rdquo;, ideally generate fear and intimidate a woman.&nbsp;

The early proponents of feminism&nbsp;suggested, &ldquo;rape is about power and control and not sex&rdquo;. Anthropologist Peggy Reeves Sandy through her research on tribal societies presented &ldquo;rape varies cross-culturally&rdquo; and it includes, &rdquo;interpersonal violence, male dominance and sexual separation&rdquo;. Her study showcases the attitude towards women in &ldquo;rape free&rdquo; and &ldquo;rape prone&rdquo; zones. The &ldquo;rape free&rdquo; zones are ideal communities that &lsquo;respect female authority and power&rsquo; but, &ldquo;rape-prone&rdquo; are communities with male dominant societies. Her deviation from the common understanding provided a fresh perspective in understanding how certain positive attitude and behaviour in society tend to benefit women at large.&nbsp;

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<h5>&ldquo;Rape is a political matter&quot; and can be stopped only with the end patriarchy</h5>
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&nbsp;The New York Radical Feminists in their Manifesto categorically states that rape is not a &ldquo;personal&rdquo; problem. Rather, their argument is&nbsp;&ldquo;rape is a political matter&quot; and can be stopped only with the end patriarchy. The position taken by the Radical feminists complicates the common perception that capital punishment of the culprit will root out rape.&nbsp;

Capital punishment or not: The big debate

It is evident death penalty hasn&rsquo;t acted deterrent for our society. Moreover, the experts are not even sure whether the judiciary should see death penalty as a deterrent, reformation or retribution. &nbsp;Retribution is the common practice preferred however, it has failed to prove beneficial for neither our society nor criminals. This aspect is forcefully brought out by&nbsp;Professor John Braithwaite of The Australian National University who believes that&nbsp;&quot;crime hurts and justice should heal&quot;. The restorative justice cuts crime, it is noticed that after meeting their victims and engaging in a dialogue, criminals are less likely to re-offend. The survivor too gets a pivotal role in the &ldquo;justice process&rdquo;.&nbsp;

Joanne Nodding, a rape survivor, a few years ago wanted to confront the man who raped her. As part of restorative justice programme, she decided to meet him five years after the incident. The program allows victims to initiate a conversation with the person responsible. During the session, Nodding described the harrowing abuse she had to undergo. The perpetrator apologised and Nodding ended the meeting by forgiving him. She added she felt &ldquo;on top of the world, she had to release the burden so that he could look towards his future. It may stop him from doing it again&rdquo;. It is difficult to analyse the punishment that would fit the bill for the rapist.&nbsp;

Also, there exists unpredictability in awarding death sentence in rape cases, as most of the perpetrators are from underprivileged background. Raju Ramachandran, one of the amicus curie in the historic Nirbhaya&rsquo;s case, was a strong opponent of a death penalty.&nbsp;Ramachandran argued that a whole set of&nbsp;reasons, particularly one related to individual backgrounds&nbsp;should be considered rather than advocating that &quot;one penalty fits all&rdquo;. A blanket judgment&nbsp;&ldquo;hits at the very root of Article 14 which prohibits similar treatment of differently situated individuals&rdquo;. Despite a culture of &ldquo;shame and silence&rdquo;, we have to resort to progressive measures to deal with rape.

In spite of making necessary amendments in rape laws and better provisions adopted for women in India, nevertheless, we are not safe. The measures should be aimed at substantially reducing harm against women. Initiatives should be undertaken for collective actions, such as&nbsp;engaging&nbsp;bystanders, better policing, educate youth about healthy relationships and implement better prevention programs. Most of the initiatives undertaken in India have failed to achieve the desired result. It includes utilisation of Nirbhaya Fund-- &lsquo;One Stop Centre&rsquo;, &lsquo;Universalisation of Women Helpline&rsquo;, &lsquo;Mahila Police Volunteer&rsquo; and schemes of other Ministries/Departments under Nirbhaya Fund are yet to highlight their success stories.&nbsp;

To sum up, the unequal power dynamics between man and woman should be reduced; it will reduce the &ldquo;domination&rdquo; and &ldquo;discrimination&rdquo; attitude against women. Sexual violence is a public health issue,&nbsp;hence, collective action,&nbsp;implementing laws&nbsp;and generating interest are required to transform communities.

Sexual violence is a public health issue,?hence, collective action is necessary to prevent rape

On May 29th, in Manesar at Gurgaon, a 19-year-old woman was gang-raped and her 9-month-old daughter was killed by throwing her to the ground. Yesterday, The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) issued notices to the Director General of Police, Haryana and the Gurugram Police Commission stating, “the night patrolling on the road by the police was not being done”. The NHRC requested the Police Commissioners of Delhi, Faridabad, Noida and Ghaziabad to come up with constructive suggestions and a joint action programme is expected by the law enforcement agencies of the National Capital Region (NCR). Though this came as a positive measure to ensure women’s safety, yet we are a long way to go. The situation is particularly difficult to address as many Indian politicians across partylines often place the onus on the victims themselves. For instance, Azam Khan of Samajwadi Party remarked after two girls were raped by 14 men at Rampur in Uttar Pradesh that ”girls should avoid places where molesters roam free”. The incident and bizarre assertion make us question if we women have a safe space to dwell in this country. Another leader Babulal Gaur on another gang rape case of two teenagers said, “this is a social crime which depends on men and women. Sometimes it’s right, sometimes it’s wrong.“ Such remarks by leaders clearly do not reflect us in a respectable position, hence we do not want your sympathy. The Nirbhaya verdict (5th May 2017) stirred clamour around capital punishment against the perpetrators of rape. Many believed, the perpetrators deserved ‘justice served’ and some opposed the idea of capital punishment. Unfortunately, after the most celebrated verdict by the Apex court, a series of rape cases has been reported so far. Death penalty is commonly seen as a deterrent but so far it has failed in the prevention of rape against women. In the month of May alone, three very heinous instances of rape have made the headlines in the country. Frequently, police officials encourages the victim to settle the matter out of court, thereby, dissuading them from pursuing the case × The dark figure of crime: Unreported Rape The Indian Penal Code largely understands gender specific crime as an assault on women with the intent to outrage the modesty, cruelty by husband or relatives as well as kidnapping, abduction and rape. As per the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB), 327,394 cases of crimes against women were reported in 2015. In 95 per cent of these cases the offender knew the rape victim. One of the most frightening facts reported by NCRB is one rape occurs every 20 minutes in India. Despite all the facts and figures reported by the NCRB, experts are unanimous that it is extremely to difficult to accurately calculate the number of rapes in any country, particularly in India. Victims often fail to report, more so, if family members are involved or in cases where the victim was found to be drunk or intoxicated. In the latter case, it is difficult to ascertain whether consent was given or not. Frequently, police officials encourages the victim to settle the matter out of court, thereby, dissuading them from pursuing the case. Rape: Theories and Beliefs If we evaluate why a woman is always the victim, it is pertinent to understand the various theories and studies done by scholars, psychologist and feminist over a period of time on rape culture. The early proponents of the Evolutionary Theory believed man rapes to enforce their sexual desires on a woman so that the offsprings bear their qualities. Whereas, the Feminist theory believed rape is “violent and not just a sexual act”, ideally generate fear and intimidate a woman. The early proponents of feminism suggested, “rape is about power and control and not sex”. Anthropologist Peggy Reeves Sandy through her research on tribal societies presented “rape varies cross-culturally” and it includes, ”interpersonal violence, male dominance and sexual separation”. Her study showcases the attitude towards women in “rape free” and “rape prone” zones. The “rape free” zones are ideal communities that ‘respect female authority and power’ but, “rape-prone” are communities with male dominant societies. Her deviation from the common understanding provided a fresh perspective in understanding how certain positive attitude and behaviour in society tend to benefit women at large. “Rape is a political matter" and can be stopped only with the end patriarchy × The New York Radical Feminists in their Manifesto categorically states that rape is not a “personal” problem. Rather, their argument is “rape is a political matter" and can be stopped only with the end patriarchy. The position taken by the Radical feminists complicates the common perception that capital punishment of the culprit will root out rape. Capital punishment or not: The big debate It is evident death penalty hasn’t acted deterrent for our society. Moreover, the experts are not even sure whether the judiciary should see death penalty as a deterrent, reformation or retribution. Retribution is the common practice preferred however, it has failed to prove beneficial for neither our society nor criminals. This aspect is forcefully brought out by Professor John Braithwaite of The Australian National University who believes that "crime hurts and justice should heal". The restorative justice cuts crime, it is noticed that after meeting their victims and engaging in a dialogue, criminals are less likely to re-offend. The survivor too gets a pivotal role in the “justice process”. Joanne Nodding, a rape survivor, a few years ago wanted to confront the man who raped her. As part of restorative justice programme, she decided to meet him five years after the incident. The program allows victims to initiate a conversation with the person responsible. During the session, Nodding described the harrowing abuse she had to undergo. The perpetrator apologised and Nodding ended the meeting by forgiving him. She added she felt “on top of the world, she had to release the burden so that he could look towards his future. It may stop him from doing it again”. It is difficult to analyse the punishment that would fit the bill for the rapist. Also, there exists unpredictability in awarding death sentence in rape cases, as most of the perpetrators are from underprivileged background. Raju Ramachandran, one of the amicus curie in the historic Nirbhaya’s case, was a strong opponent of a death penalty. Ramachandran argued that a whole set of reasons, particularly one related to individual backgrounds should be considered rather than advocating that "one penalty fits all”. A blanket judgment “hits at the very root of Article 14 which prohibits similar treatment of differently situated individuals”. Despite a culture of “shame and silence”, we have to resort to progressive measures to deal with rape. In spite of making necessary amendments in rape laws and better provisions adopted for women in India, nevertheless, we are not safe. The measures should be aimed at substantially reducing harm against women. Initiatives should be undertaken for collective actions, such as engaging bystanders, better policing, educate youth about healthy relationships and implement better prevention programs. Most of the initiatives undertaken in India have failed to achieve the desired result. It includes utilisation of Nirbhaya Fund-- ‘One Stop Centre’, ‘Universalisation of Women Helpline’, ‘Mahila Police Volunteer’ and schemes of other Ministries/Departments under Nirbhaya Fund are yet to highlight their success stories. To sum up, the unequal power dynamics between man and woman should be reduced; it will reduce the “domination” and “discrimination” attitude against women. Sexual violence is a public health issue, hence, collective action, implementing laws and generating interest are required to transform communities.

Why can't capital punishment stop rape in India?

The 26-year-old woman facing a death sentence in Gaza was convicted of killing her husband, but her trial was secret and even her family has distanced themselves publicly from the case.

Her death sentence, the first for a Palestinian woman in more than 20 years, has raised concerns among rights activists in the Gaza Strip, the small enclave run by the&nbsp;Islamist movement Hamas.

They are trying to prevent her death by hanging, while navigating traditional values and Hamas&#39;s strict rule in the territory, hit by three wars with Israel since 2008 and under an Israeli blockade for a decade.

A wall of silence has also surrounded the case.

The family of the woman, identified only as Nahla A, declined to provide her with a lawyer, said Zeinab Al-Ghounimi of the Centre for Women&#39;s Legal Research and Consulting.

&quot;They were afraid of revenge from the husband&#39;s family,&quot; she said, explaining that her organisation had stepped in and helped.

Her lawyer, Bakr Torkmani, said the woman is the mother of a young boy and had been married against her will.

She lived in complete destitution and was repeatedly beaten by her husband, he said.

He hopes &quot;public opinion and media reports will have an impact on the judges after the haste they showed in handing out this death sentence.&quot;

Stabbed in the back?

The woman was arrested on January 31, and Gaza&#39;s attorney general Ismail Jaber has provided an outline of what is alleged to have happened.

Several days before her arrest, she had asked her husband out for some fresh air near their small home in a poor district of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, he said.

They travelled a short distance by donkey cart before her husband &quot;wanted to relieve himself&quot;, Jaber told AFP in his spacious office cluttered with files.

She is then accused of pulling out the knife she bought several days earlier and &quot;stabbing him in the back several times&quot;, he said.

Authorities say she confessed and that other testimony showed that the killing was premeditated.

She was convicted then sentenced on October 5 after a trial held behind closed doors.

&quot;Once all procedural steps have been completed, we will sign off on the implementation of the sentence,&quot; Jaber said.

She is the first woman to be sentenced to death in the Palestinian territories since 1994, said Hamdi Shaqura of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights.

&quot;There is still the possibility of an appeal and we are placing our hopes in future rulings,&quot; he said.

Nahla&#39;s case has also highlighted rights groups&#39; concerns over the continued use of the death penalty in the Palestinian territories -- and especially recent developments in the Gaza Strip.

In May, Jaber announced that a number of death sentences would soon be carried out in criminal cases.

Later that month, three Palestinian men were executed for murder in the strip, drawing condemnation from the UN.

Jaber said at the time that the executions were carried out as a deterrence and to reduce crime.

Rights activists say there is a lack of transparency surrounding such cases and point out there is no evidence the death penalty is more effective in deterring crime than prison.

Son&#39;s visit refused

Under Palestinian law, death sentences can be handed out for those collaborating with Israel, murderers and drug traffickers.

But there are stark differences between the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank, the territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority, which is dominated by president Mahmud Abbas&#39;s Fatah party.&nbsp;

No execution has been carried out in the West Bank since 2002, while only two were carried out there between 1994 and 2002.

In Gaza, 33 people have been executed since 1994.

Since Hamas took power in the Gaza Strip in 2007, 96 death penalties have been handed out, mostly by military courts and often for spying on behalf of Israel, said Shaqura.

Twenty-one death sentences have been handed out in Gaza in 2016 alone.

Gaza&#39;s attorney general says the sentences are necessary due to &quot;pressure by victims&#39; families&quot; and the need to avoid revenge attacks.

&quot;The aim is not to increase criminality,&quot; he said. &quot;What we want is to reduce it and eliminate it.&quot;

He added that &quot;Palestinian law does not make a distinction between criminals according to their sex.&quot;

Nahla meanwhile remains behind bars at a jail in Gaza City, where the territory&#39;s only women&#39;s prison unit is located.

She would like to be able to see her son, but &quot;her husband&#39;s family refuses&quot;, her lawyer said.

(AFP)

She is the first woman to be sentenced to death in the Palestinian territories since 1994

The 26-year-old woman facing a death sentence in Gaza was convicted of killing her husband, but her trial was secret and even her family has distanced themselves publicly from the case. Her death sentence, the first for a Palestinian woman in more than 20 years, has raised concerns among rights activists in the Gaza Strip, the small enclave run by the Islamist movement Hamas. They are trying to prevent her death by hanging, while navigating traditional values and Hamas's strict rule in the territory, hit by three wars with Israel since 2008 and under an Israeli blockade for a decade. A wall of silence has also surrounded the case. The family of the woman, identified only as Nahla A, declined to provide her with a lawyer, said Zeinab Al-Ghounimi of the Centre for Women's Legal Research and Consulting. "They were afraid of revenge from the husband's family," she said, explaining that her organisation had stepped in and helped. Her lawyer, Bakr Torkmani, said the woman is the mother of a young boy and had been married against her will. She lived in complete destitution and was repeatedly beaten by her husband, he said. He hopes "public opinion and media reports will have an impact on the judges after the haste they showed in handing out this death sentence." Stabbed in the back? The woman was arrested on January 31, and Gaza's attorney general Ismail Jaber has provided an outline of what is alleged to have happened. Several days before her arrest, she had asked her husband out for some fresh air near their small home in a poor district of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, he said. They travelled a short distance by donkey cart before her husband "wanted to relieve himself", Jaber told AFP in his spacious office cluttered with files. She is then accused of pulling out the knife she bought several days earlier and "stabbing him in the back several times", he said. Authorities say she confessed and that other testimony showed that the killing was premeditated. She was convicted then sentenced on October 5 after a trial held behind closed doors. "Once all procedural steps have been completed, we will sign off on the implementation of the sentence," Jaber said. She is the first woman to be sentenced to death in the Palestinian territories since 1994, said Hamdi Shaqura of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights. "There is still the possibility of an appeal and we are placing our hopes in future rulings," he said. Nahla's case has also highlighted rights groups' concerns over the continued use of the death penalty in the Palestinian territories -- and especially recent developments in the Gaza Strip. In May, Jaber announced that a number of death sentences would soon be carried out in criminal cases. Later that month, three Palestinian men were executed for murder in the strip, drawing condemnation from the UN. Jaber said at the time that the executions were carried out as a deterrence and to reduce crime. Rights activists say there is a lack of transparency surrounding such cases and point out there is no evidence the death penalty is more effective in deterring crime than prison. Son's visit refused Under Palestinian law, death sentences can be handed out for those collaborating with Israel, murderers and drug traffickers. But there are stark differences between the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank, the territory controlled by the Palestinian Authority, which is dominated by president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah party. No execution has been carried out in the West Bank since 2002, while only two were carried out there between 1994 and 2002. In Gaza, 33 people have been executed since 1994. Since Hamas took power in the Gaza Strip in 2007, 96 death penalties have been handed out, mostly by military courts and often for spying on behalf of Israel, said Shaqura. Twenty-one death sentences have been handed out in Gaza in 2016 alone. Gaza's attorney general says the sentences are necessary due to "pressure by victims' families" and the need to avoid revenge attacks. "The aim is not to increase criminality," he said. "What we want is to reduce it and eliminate it." He added that "Palestinian law does not make a distinction between criminals according to their sex." Nahla meanwhile remains behind bars at a jail in Gaza City, where the territory's only women's prison unit is located. She would like to be able to see her son, but "her husband's family refuses", her lawyer said. (AFP)

Silence, concern surround Gaza woman's death sentence

A rights group&nbsp;on Friday&nbsp;spoke against the hanging of a&nbsp;man suffering from paranoid schizophrenia after a court in Pakistan scheduled his execution for next week. 
 
Fifty-year-old Imdad Ali was sentenced to death for the murder of a religious teacher in 2002, international news agency AFP reported today.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Imdad Ali is&nbsp;mentally&nbsp;ill&nbsp;and has suffered years without proper treatment,&quot; a report by rights group,&nbsp;the Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) said, adding he had been diagnosed as a &quot;paranoid schizophrenic&quot;. 
 
JPP told AFP that it had filed an appeal against a Lahore High Court decision last month which rejected&nbsp;pleas that Ali could not be executed on the basis of his mental illness. 
 
The rights group argued that Ali&#39;s medical condition should be taken into account,&nbsp;and also the&nbsp;circumstances that had aggravated his mental illness trial&nbsp;period. 
 
Pakistan had reintroduced death penalty following the 2014 school attack in Peshawar but for those convicted of terrorism. It was only later that the capital punishment was extended to all capital offences. 
 
JPP executive director Sarah Belal also told AFP that Pakistan would violate its international legal commitments if it executed a&nbsp;mentally&nbsp;ill&nbsp;person. 
 
&quot;Executing Imdad will exemplify Pakistan&#39;s failure to abide by its international legal commitments that forbid the death penalty for persons suffering from mental disabilities,&quot;&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Knowing what they do about his condition would make his hanging a most serious crime.&quot; 
 
The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CPRD), which Pakistan ratified in 2011, guarantees the &ldquo;inherent dignity&rdquo; of individuals with disabilities, she said. 
 
( WION with inputs from AFP)

50-year-old Imdad Ali was sentenced to death for the murder of a religious teacher in 2002. He will face execution next week

A rights group on Friday spoke against the hanging of a man suffering from paranoid schizophrenia after a court in Pakistan scheduled his execution for next week. Fifty-year-old Imdad Ali was sentenced to death for the murder of a religious teacher in 2002, international news agency AFP reported today. "Imdad Ali is mentally ill and has suffered years without proper treatment," a report by rights group, the Justice Project Pakistan (JPP) said, adding he had been diagnosed as a "paranoid schizophrenic". JPP told AFP that it had filed an appeal against a Lahore High Court decision last month which rejected pleas that Ali could not be executed on the basis of his mental illness. The rights group argued that Ali's medical condition should be taken into account, and also the circumstances that had aggravated his mental illness trial period. Pakistan had reintroduced death penalty following the 2014 school attack in Peshawar but for those convicted of terrorism. It was only later that the capital punishment was extended to all capital offences. JPP executive director Sarah Belal also told AFP that Pakistan would violate its international legal commitments if it executed a mentally ill person. "Executing Imdad will exemplify Pakistan's failure to abide by its international legal commitments that forbid the death penalty for persons suffering from mental disabilities," "Knowing what they do about his condition would make his hanging a most serious crime." The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CPRD), which Pakistan ratified in 2011, guarantees the “inherent dignity” of individuals with disabilities, she said. ( WION with inputs from AFP)

Rights group speaks against hanging of mentally ill man in Pakistan

A Saudi court sentenced two men it said were al-Qaeda followers to death on charges of decapitating a Saudi intelligence service colonel in 2007, local media reported on Tuesday.

The men attacked Colonel Nasser al-Othman at his farm near the city of Buraidah in northern Saudi Arabia, tied him up and severed his head because they viewed him as an apostate, online news website sabq.org said, citing the court ruling.

Between 2003 and 2006, al Qaeda carried out a campaign of attacks in the kingdom against Western and Saudi targets that killed hundreds of people.

Since stamping out the insurgency, Saudi Arabia has convicted and sentenced hundreds of people to prison or death for militancy. It executed dozens on January 2.

In Tuesday&#39;s verdict a third man was sentenced to 30 years in jail for attempting to kill the commander of emergency forces in Saudi Arabia&#39;s northern Qassim region, Dubai-based al-Arabiya television channel said.

The court ruling, published by al-Arabiya on its website, did not identify the three convicted men.

A Justice Ministry spokesman confirmed the court verdict was an initial ruling which was subject to levels of appeal before it can be implemented.

Death sentences must be signed by the king before they are carried out. Human rights groups say Saudi Arabia&#39;s justice system is flawed and that its campaign against Islamist militants has also been used to suppress peaceful dissent.

Saudi Arabia says the system is fair and independent.

Since 2014 Islamic State, like al Qaeda a predominantly Sunni hardline group, has carried out attacks in the kingdom that have killed dozens and led to hundreds of arrests.

(Reuters) 
 
&nbsp;

Since stamping out insurgency, Saudi Arabia has convicted?hundreds of people to prison or death for militancy

A Saudi court sentenced two men it said were al-Qaeda followers to death on charges of decapitating a Saudi intelligence service colonel in 2007, local media reported on Tuesday. The men attacked Colonel Nasser al-Othman at his farm near the city of Buraidah in northern Saudi Arabia, tied him up and severed his head because they viewed him as an apostate, online news website sabq.org said, citing the court ruling. Between 2003 and 2006, al Qaeda carried out a campaign of attacks in the kingdom against Western and Saudi targets that killed hundreds of people. Since stamping out the insurgency, Saudi Arabia has convicted and sentenced hundreds of people to prison or death for militancy. It executed dozens on January 2. In Tuesday's verdict a third man was sentenced to 30 years in jail for attempting to kill the commander of emergency forces in Saudi Arabia's northern Qassim region, Dubai-based al-Arabiya television channel said. The court ruling, published by al-Arabiya on its website, did not identify the three convicted men. A Justice Ministry spokesman confirmed the court verdict was an initial ruling which was subject to levels of appeal before it can be implemented. Death sentences must be signed by the king before they are carried out. Human rights groups say Saudi Arabia's justice system is flawed and that its campaign against Islamist militants has also been used to suppress peaceful dissent. Saudi Arabia says the system is fair and independent. Since 2014 Islamic State, like al Qaeda a predominantly Sunni hardline group, has carried out attacks in the kingdom that have killed dozens and led to hundreds of arrests. (Reuters)

Saudi court sentences two Al-Qaeda followers to death for killing army colonel

The Supreme Court of Maldives has quashed a stay order issued on Sunday by the High Court halting executions by the state, the Maldives Independent has reported. 
 
&quot;An order issued around 1.30 am local time states that there are no &#39;judicial or legal grounds to challenge the constitutionality of the regulations&#39; as the apex court has upheld two death sentences and ordered the state to carry out executions in accordance with the regulations,&quot; the report said. The Supreme Court of Maldives suggested that it has therefore deemed the regulations to be valid and constitutional. 
 
The case was filed by a local human rights NGO Maldives Democratic Network (MDN) and the high court&#39;s decision to hear the case was considered by the Supreme Court as violating the constitution. It deemed the hearing &#39;void by its nature&#39;.&nbsp; 
 
According to Maldives Independent, the Supreme Court has also declared that the appellate court shall not adjudicate on the matter and nullified the case. 
 
Speaking to the website, Shahindha Ismail, executive director of the NGO questioned the &ldquo;validity of the midnight order&rdquo; by the apex court. 
 
She said that she does not believe the apex court has issued a ruling because &ldquo;there has not been a hearing of this case at the Supreme Court, as the most fundamental of rights in this issue, of being heard, was never afforded to MDN by the court.&rdquo; 
 
&ldquo;Further, the document going around on social media does not even have a signature or initial of an authorised person of the Supreme Court and the case number quoted on last night&rsquo;s order seems to be that of a previous case. We will go ahead with our petition,&rdquo; she added. 
 
The order was first put up on the Twitter account of the Department of Judicial Administration, which falls under the direct supervision of the Supreme Court. 
 
It has now been published on the Supreme Court website, without a signature, the Maldives Independent said.&nbsp; 
 
In its public interest claim, the MDN had meanwhile argued that the death penalty regulations restricted a fundamental constitutional right, which could only be done by an act of parliament, the Maldives Independent report mentioned.&nbsp; 
 
The website reported that the panel who heard the case at the High Court comprised of Chief Judge Abdulla Didi along with Judges Ali Sameer and Abdul Rauf Ibrahim. 
 
The Supreme Court&rsquo;s intervention comes in the midst of mounting international pressure against the re-introduction of capital punishment&nbsp;in Maldives after a six-decade unofficial moratorium. 
 
President Abdulla Yameen declared earlier this month that his administration will not baulk at enforcing the death penalty, claiming that it is necessary for public safety. 
 
The Supreme Court upheld its first death sentences last month after Yameen urged the highest court of appeal to conclude death penalty cases. 
 
The regulations approved by the cabinet in April 2014 require a final judgment by the apex court to carry out executions. 
 
Two young men, Hussain Humam Ahmed and Ahmed Murrath, are now awaiting execution by lethal injection or hanging. 
 
Earlier this month, the UN Human Rights Committee requested the government to halt Humam&rsquo;s execution pending the outcome of a review of his conviction on the murder of Dr Afrasheem Ali in October 2012. 
 
But the foreign ministry said the request does not constitute a legally binding order. 
 
The UN Human Rights committee is investigating a complaint alleging violations of Humam&rsquo;s right to a fair trial as set forth in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. 
 
The European Union, four UN human rights experts, and Amnesty International have also called on the government to maintain the moratorium on the death penalty. 
 
(WION) 
&nbsp;

International pressure has been mounting against the re-introduction of death penalty in Maldives after lifting of a six-decade moratorium

The Supreme Court of Maldives has quashed a stay order issued on Sunday by the High Court halting executions by the state, the Maldives Independent has reported. "An order issued around 1.30 am local time states that there are no 'judicial or legal grounds to challenge the constitutionality of the regulations' as the apex court has upheld two death sentences and ordered the state to carry out executions in accordance with the regulations," the report said. The Supreme Court of Maldives suggested that it has therefore deemed the regulations to be valid and constitutional. The case was filed by a local human rights NGO Maldives Democratic Network (MDN) and the high court's decision to hear the case was considered by the Supreme Court as violating the constitution. It deemed the hearing 'void by its nature'. According to Maldives Independent, the Supreme Court has also declared that the appellate court shall not adjudicate on the matter and nullified the case. Speaking to the website, Shahindha Ismail, executive director of the NGO questioned the “validity of the midnight order” by the apex court. She said that she does not believe the apex court has issued a ruling because “there has not been a hearing of this case at the Supreme Court, as the most fundamental of rights in this issue, of being heard, was never afforded to MDN by the court.” “Further, the document going around on social media does not even have a signature or initial of an authorised person of the Supreme Court and the case number quoted on last night’s order seems to be that of a previous case. We will go ahead with our petition,” she added. The order was first put up on the Twitter account of the Department of Judicial Administration, which falls under the direct supervision of the Supreme Court. It has now been published on the Supreme Court website, without a signature, the Maldives Independent said. In its public interest claim, the MDN had meanwhile argued that the death penalty regulations restricted a fundamental constitutional right, which could only be done by an act of parliament, the Maldives Independent report mentioned. The website reported that the panel who heard the case at the High Court comprised of Chief Judge Abdulla Didi along with Judges Ali Sameer and Abdul Rauf Ibrahim. The Supreme Court’s intervention comes in the midst of mounting international pressure against the re-introduction of capital punishment in Maldives after a six-decade unofficial moratorium. President Abdulla Yameen declared earlier this month that his administration will not baulk at enforcing the death penalty, claiming that it is necessary for public safety. The Supreme Court upheld its first death sentences last month after Yameen urged the highest court of appeal to conclude death penalty cases. The regulations approved by the cabinet in April 2014 require a final judgment by the apex court to carry out executions. Two young men, Hussain Humam Ahmed and Ahmed Murrath, are now awaiting execution by lethal injection or hanging. Earlier this month, the UN Human Rights Committee requested the government to halt Humam’s execution pending the outcome of a review of his conviction on the murder of Dr Afrasheem Ali in October 2012. But the foreign ministry said the request does not constitute a legally binding order. The UN Human Rights committee is investigating a complaint alleging violations of Humam’s right to a fair trial as set forth in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The European Union, four UN human rights experts, and Amnesty International have also called on the government to maintain the moratorium on the death penalty. (WION)

Supreme court of Maldives quashes high court stay order halting executions

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