We are pleased to attach our minutes of the group’s meeting in April thanks to group member Lesley for preparing them and for various group members submitting reports for inclusion. They are a kind of ‘hybrid’ style of minutes as they contain narrative material which we hope readers will find of interest. At the end you will find a short list of upcoming events the group will be running or participating in.
The report highlights a sharp increase in numbers executed – the highest level since 2015 – but the number of countries holds steady. Amnesty has recorded 1,518 executions in 2024 a 32% increase over the previous year. A problem with producing statistics of this nature is that countries who are major users of the penalty, keep their figures a secret. China for example, believed to be the world’s largest executioner with thousands of its citizens executed each year – does not publish figures regarding them as a state secret. Another secretive nation is Vietnam where, similarly, the numbers are a state secret, and Belarus and Laos who release limited information. The figures are accordingly a minimum estimate of the actual numbers executed. The full report can be accessed here (pdf).
The penalty is not solely used to put to death people who have committed serious crime, but is used as a repressive tool. Saudi Arabia (image), and Iran, for example use the penalty to stifle dissent, targeting human rights defenders, protestors, dissidents and political opponents. There is also a disproportionate use of the penalty against minorities particularly religious minorities. Iran, which executed no less than 972 individuals last year, uses the penalty to execute those who challenge, or who are perceived to challenge, the Islamic Republic. It is also noted that these regimes have poor levels of justice. Defendants are often tortured to secure confessions and are denied access to lawyers. It is highly likely, not to say probable, that many wholly innocent people lose their lives.
Another trend is the use of the penalty as part of drugs programmes against dealers and users.
There is little sign, and very little evidence, that the penalty is some kind of deterrent, an argument frequently put forward for its retention or return. The leader of UK’s Reform party for example recently called for its reintroduction following the dreadful murder of three little girls which took place in Southport*. YouGov surveys show mixed views among Britons about the penalty. Generally, people are opposed but there is more support for its use among Conservative voters. The strongest support comes from the 65+ age group. Attitudes do change however, following a particularly unpleasant murder of a child, a policeman or as a result of terrorist activity. It was last used in 1964, suspended in 1965, abolished in 1969 and completely abolished in 1998 when treason was removed (different dates in Northern Ireland).
Terrible abuses take place in Somalia with little attention paid by the media
March 2025
The news is filled with the terrible events in Gaza and the resumption of bombing there, the war in Ukraine which, following President Trump’s activities and support for Russia, shows no sign of an equitable or fair resolution, and a possible resumption of hostilities in Lebanon means other conflicts receive little attention. This is true of Somalia on the horn of Africa where corruption and lawlessness are rife.
At South West conference in Exeter of Amnesty groups organised by the City’s Amnesty group, we heard first hand from a Somalian human rights defender Abdalle Mumin (pictured). Entitled Human Rights in Somalia: the Struggle of Defenders in a Dangerous Environment, he gave a detailed description of the severe problems being experienced in that country but which remain largely unreported. His descriptions of being held in an underground cell was chilling.
He explained the power set up in the country which provides valuable background to understanding the politics of repression. There are three centres of power: 1. Al-Shebaab a terrorist organisation with close links to Al-Qaeda 2. the government and 3. the clans of which there seem to be three. All are male dominated and the role of women in the political process is much reduced he said.
Corruption is rife and there is no independent judiciary. Women who are not wanted for some reason or complain too much can be murdered with impunity as there are no investigations carried out. Femicide is frequently practised. There is considerable sexual and gender based violence. The corruption starts with the business of getting into government for which a bribe of around $1m dollars is required. This has to be paid back of course which is done by purloining food aid and selling it off, accepting bribes for favours, money laundering and rewarding friends and family.
‘Terrorism and corruption are like brother and sister‘
This corrupt state of affairs can be kept going because attempts to publish stories is difficult. Many journalists are murdered: 85 in the period 1991 – 2024. There is also straightforward intimidation of news outlets by all the parties with many being closed. There are heavy restriction on human rights groups. This has now become the standard playbook for authoritarian and dictatorial regimes.
Foreign interventions he described as ‘confused’. Much aid in recent times is tied to resource extraction and there is an emphasis on security over human rights. Different agencies have different agendas making offering concerted help difficult.
There has been a huge displacement of population with around 2.9m affected. 80% of children do not receive an education and girls none at all in the rural areas because of the influence of Al-Shabaab.
Altogether a grim tale and finding hope is difficult. The problem in Somalia and in much of sub-Saharan Africa is the battle for resources. Countries desperate for minerals, oil and rare earth metals are concerned only to extract what they can and they show little regard for human rights. Their activities fuel the corruption since mining is impossible without the say so and bribes of one or all the various powers in the country. Abdalle Mumin himself was some kind of inspiration however. Despite the difficulties and the risks he faces – which include death from people unconstrained by law or justice – he was both inspiring and uplifting not to say humbling. Amnesty members present in Exeter were grateful for his talk.
One of the issues with the death penalty is that mistakes cannot be rectified. Once someone has been executed, they cannot be brought back to life. The case of Richard Glossip has shown that flaws in the legal process can deliver poor justice. The Supreme Court’s decision to vacate his death sentence is welcome news and the change of heart of some of the people involved is welcome.
Mr Glossip was convicted and sentenced to death in the 1997 killing in Oklahoma City of his former boss, motel owner Barry Van Treese, in what prosecutors have alleged was a murder-for-hire scheme.
The prosecution’s star witness was Glossip’s co-defendant, Justin Sneed, who admitted to robbing and killing Van Treese but testified he only did so after Glossip promised to pay him $10,000. Mr Sneed was given a life sentence in exchange for testifying against Mr Glossip. He had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, and had been taking medication, but denied it during the trial. Mr Glossip’s prosecutors knew the truth but did not correct the false evidence in the course of the trial. Mr Sneed later recanted his claim, Mr Glossip has always maintained his innocence and there was no physical evidence.
The US Supreme Court Ruling
On 25th February, in a 5:3 decision, the US Supreme Court ordered a new trial for Mr Glossip because errors committed by prosecutors violated his constitutional rights, invoking the 14th Amendment’s right to due process.
Response of Attorney General Gentner Drummond to US Supreme Court’s overturning of Richard Glossip’s Conviction
In the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to vacate Richard Glossip’s 2004 death sentence, public officials and advocates have expressed strong reactions. Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond acknowledged the significance of the ruling, stating, “Our justice system is greatly diminished when an individual is convicted without a fair trial, but today we can celebrate that a great injustice has been swept away.”
While maintaining his belief that Mr. Glossip is not innocent, AG Drummond emphasized that “it is now an undeniable fact that he did not receive a fair trial.” He committed to reviewing the high court’s ruling and determining “the most appropriate course of action to ensure justice is secured for all involved” and that he would work with Oklahoma County District Attorney Vicki Behenna to determine the next steps in Mr. Glossip’s case. “She and I will collaborate together with our staffs and will review the evidence with fresh eyes and interview those witnesses that would be available to us to make a determination whether we should proceed seeking again the death penalty, whether we should proceed seeking life without the opportunity for parole, or if we should proceed with a lesser charged crime.”
“Our justice system is greatly diminished when an individual is convicted without a fair trial, but today we can celebrate that a great injustice has been swept away.” (Source: Death Penalty Information Center)
Response of Don Knight, Mr Glossip’s Attorney
“We are thankful that a clear majority of the Court supports long-standing precedent that prosecutors cannot hide critical evidence from defense lawyers and cannot stand by while their witnesses knowingly lie to the jury. Today was a victory for justice and fairness in our judicial system. Rich Glossip, who has maintained his innocence for 27 years, will now be given the chance to have the fair trial that he has always been denied”.
Chair of Pardon & Parole Board speaking out against death penalty and the system in Oklahoma
Adam Luck, the former Chairman of Oklahoma’s Board of Pardons and Parole and former member of the Oklahoma Board of Corrections, is now speaking out against the death penalty in Oklahoma. Explaining his change of heart, Mr. Luck cites to his first-hand experience with flaws in Oklahoma’s capital punishment system, including botched executions, and his deep Christian faith. “Having the unique experience of voting on the life of another human being forced me to consider the implications of my faith in ways I never had before,” Mr. Luck said.
During his time as Chairman, Mr. Luck presided over clemency hearings for five death row prisoners, including Julius Jones and Bigler Stouffer, and supported clemency in each case. He also points to the alarming number of death row exonerations — at least 200 nationally, with 11 in Oklahoma alone — as evidence that the justice system condemns innocent people to death. “For a place that has more churches per capita than almost any other place in the world, to also have a greater percentage of its population behind prison walls than almost any place in the world inherently holds some contradictions.”
“I am convinced that the death penalty is deeply flawed, I am committed to working towards ending it wherever it is still practiced, and I believe conversations within the Christian faith practice will be critical in making progress towards that end.”
Action
Please write to Governor J Kevin Stitt expressing your delight at the good news that the US Supreme Court has ordered a new trial for Richard Glossip, and the hope that he will now receive justice.
Please also express concern at the miscarriage of justice which has resulted in his spending over 20 years on death row, highlighting in addition the recent statement by the former Chair of the Pardon & Parole Board regarding the death penalty itself and the serious problems with its use in Oklahoma.
You may like to include the hope that the investigations that will now be conducted might result in the conclusion that Richard Glossip is innocent and should be exonerated, with no further trial necessary.
Please send a copy of your letter to Attorney General Gentner Drummond.
The 27 January, was Holocaust Memorial Day. We remember the millions of Jews, Romanies, Sinti and others who were murdered in a variety of camps in Germany and occupied Poland. Around 6 million Jews were murdered by the Nazis.
Reform calls for return of death penalty for Southport murderer
January 2025
Following the horrific murder of three young girls in Southport last year and the attempted murder of others, the man who committed the murders, Axel Rudakubana, was sentenced this week to 52 years in custody before he can be considered for parole. He could not be sentenced to a whole life tariff because he was 17 at the time he committed the crime and such a sentence cannot be passed on someone below the age of 18.
As is normal in cases of crimes of this gravity which deeply shocked the nation, there are some who call
for the return of the death penalty. This was kicked off this week by the Reform party currently doing well in the polls. They have called for a debate on the issue although it is clear from the chief whip Lee Anderson MP, he is keen for the penalty to be restored. The Labour MP for Southport, Patrick Hurley, said the sentence ‘was not severe enough’.
“This animal has no right to breathe the same air as the rest of us” Lee Anderson MP [Daily Express]
This came up on today’s Any Questions (24 January) programme on BBC Radio 4 and Any Answers was substantially devoted to the topic. The answers were interesting and there did seem a majority in favour for its return. The presenter of the programme, Anita Anand asked several times about mistakes. If you have executed someone and discover a mistake some years later it is too late to undo it. Answers mostly seemed to base themselves on the availability now of DNA inferring that this provides some kind of guarantee of correctness. She also questioned the deterrent claims by pointing out that several North American states maintain the penalty but studies show no link to a reduction in violent crime as a result. One person tried to say that violent crime has increased since the death penalty was abolished in the ’60s. As Anand pointed out, it hasn’t and the murder rate has remained fairly consistent for many years. There did seem to be a touching faith in the justice system not making mistakes because we have DNA evidence now. Have they not heard of Andrew Malkinson, released after 17 years for a crime he did not commit?
One feature which came up was cost. Several people phoned in to say keeping him incarcerated for 52 years or more will be very expensive (someone had done a calculation). Whereas they argued, an execution would be over and done with. A few argued he would have time in prison to reflect on his crime.
A high degree of emotion and disgust at crimes as serious and heinous as this is to be expected. The moral argument did not make an appearance however and whether it is right for the state to take someone’s life. One thought it might make him a martyr.
A lot of the debate focused on how do you stop this kind of thing happening in the first place. Young men (it mostly is) sat in their rooms downloading violent material including the al Qaeda training manual. He bought his knife just days before from Amazon. It is reported today that he deleted his search history and if Google, Facebook, X et al decline to release details from their servers, it could take years through the American courts to retrieve the information. Finding out the source of his rage may take years.
Death penalty sentence against Pakhshan Aziz has been upheld
January 2025
Iran is a country which executes a large number of its citizens and possibly as many as 1000 have been put to death last year, some in secret [WARNING: the link has distressing details]. This followed an estimated 853 executed in 2023. This makes Ian one of the world’s leading executioners. We attach details of one recent case which is an urgent action. It concerns Pakhshan Aziz (pictured) who’s appeal has been turned down and is at risk of execution. She was tried for peaceful humanitarian and human rights activities. She is from the oppressed Kurdish minority and received a grossly unfair trial. She only met her lawyers at the trial itself. There are allegations of torture which have not been investigated. Full information and a suggested letter are attached.
Following the Women, Life, Freedom uprising, the authorities have increased the number of executions. It includes executions of ethnic minorities including Baluchis and Kurds. You can write to Embassy in Brussels remembering to add your address on the back of the envelop. Ignore the September date on the Action. We hope you find time to write using the sample letter or your own words.
Humanist sentenced to 24 years for blasphemy is released
January 2025
We are delighted to report that Mubarak Bala has been released from prison in Nigeria having been sentenced to 24 years for the ‘crime’ of blasphemy. Two members of the Salisbury Amnesty group attended a demonstration outside the Nigerian Embassy in London organised by the Humanists.
Mubarak, President of the Nigerian Humanist Association, was arrested under Sharia law in Kano state for peacefully expressing humanist beliefs on Facebook. He was denied access to his legal team and his family and at times feared for his life.
Humanists International and Humanists UK campaigned for his release and meetings were held with Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office ministers, they staged a protest outside the Nigerian Embassy (pictured) and raised his case at the UN Human Rights Council. His case was raised on many occasions in parliament. The Nigerian Court of Appeal reduced his sentence to 5 years but the Humanists argued for his immediate and unconditional release. After four and a half years, he has now been released. He still fears for his life.
Twelve countries still have the death penalty for the so-called crime of blasphemy. Other countries will imprison such people. It encourages mobs to act violently against those who allegedly cause ‘religious offence’. The Humanists will continue to act for the repeal of all blasphemy laws.
Amnesty International hosted a webinar on 3 December in which the UN Rapporteur on the occupied Palestine territories Francesca Albanese, discussed her report on the area. The report sets out in excruciating detail the extent of destruction in both Gaza and the West Bank and concludes that the extent and comprehensive nature of the destruction amounts to genocide. Parts of the report are distressing to read and anyone accessing it should be aware of the distress it might cause.
The prevailing narrative that much of the Western media have followed, directly or implicitly, is that the current conflict in Gaza is a direct response to the attack by Hamas on 7 October 2023. The IDF is engaged in defensive actions to locate and destroy Hamas operatives and the tunnel network from which they operate. The destruction of hospitals, schools and a host of other buildings is because these buildings are being used by Hamas as covers for their terrorist activities. The thousands of Gazans killed is because they are being used as human shields by Hamas. Little evidence has been provided of this. Thus Israel is acting in a reasonable way to protect its territorial integrity against a ruthless terrorist organisation bent on destroying the state. This is the narrative that Israel has deployed with considerable success. Many believe that if the remaining hostages were released, hostilities would cease and Gaza could return to some kind of normality.
The UN report debunks this narrative comprehensively. It reveals that there are solid grounds for believing that Israel’s intention, as revealed in a leaked Ministry of Intelligence concept paper in October 2023, was to drive all the Gazans out of the territory into the Sinai desert.
There has always been an intention for a Greater Israel (Eretz Yisrael). It is indeed ironic that one of the criticisms of Hamas contained in the disputed phrase ‘from the river to the sea’ to mean driving all the Jews out of Israel from the Jordan river to the Mediterranean, is precisely what Israel is trying to do to the Palestinians.
Descriptions of how Palestinians have been treated are horrific. Around 13,000 thousand children and 700 babies have died many shot in the head or torso (paragraph 14). There have been systematic attacks on food supplies and agriculture which ‘indicate an intent to destroy its population through starvation’ (20). 83% of food aid has been prevented from reaching Gaza.
Unreported, and truly shocking, is the network of Israeli torture camps where thousands have been detained in appalling conditions and many just ‘disappeared’. Many are bound to beds, blindfolded and in nappies (diapers), denied medical treatment, starved, subject to severe beatings, electrocution, and sexual assaults by both humans and animals (22).
West Bank
Violence in the West Bank has increased markedly. Israeli soldiers have carried out over 5,500 raids and conducted over 1,000 attacks. Children have been killed with 169 shot in the head or torso (27). Settler numbers have increased from 256,400 to 714,600 post the Oslo Accords. There has been a campaign of mass arrests and 9,400 are currently detained.
One of the most telling statements in the report is: The cultivation of a political doctrine that frames Palestinian assertions of self-determination as a security threat to Israel has served to legitimize permanent occupation. The deliberate dehumanization of the Palestinians has accompanied systematic ethnic purges from the period 1947–1949 to today. Ideological hatred of Palestinians as such has pervaded segments of society and the Israeli State apparatus (57).
Albanese in her talk said that land is central to Palestinian identity. It is being systematically being removed from them. The central issue is colonialism she says and Britain played a key part in this. She makes the point that Palestinians had nothing to do with the Holocaust but are today suffering from its aftermath.
Journalists are not allowed into Gaza and the UN rapporteur was not allowed in either.
Israel has successfully persuaded Western leaders and much of the media that their actions are somehow a response to violence. They have also been successful in selling the idea that it all started with the attacks of October 7th. Western leaders have gone along with this narrative, giving Israel support both diplomatic and military, enabling them to continue and now intensify their activities in Gaza and the West Bank. In reality, there has long been a plan to create a Greater Israel and finally to dispose of the Palestinian population by a combination of violence, destruction, starvation and genocide. Critics are demonised as ‘anti Israel’ or ‘anti-Semitic’ which has served them well to silence or inhibit them.
Gaza has exposed multiple weaknesses in the world order. History will judge our leaders harshly for their supine approach to Israel and their pusillanimous support for the Palestinians.
The Vigil will be held on Saturday at 5pm in the Market Square in Salisbury and lasts 30 minutes. Please join us.
Amnesty in Salisbury & South Wiltshire 