Amnesty in Salisbury & South Wiltshire
Promoting human rights from Salisbury UK
We are pleased to attach this month’s death penalty report with thanks to group member Lesley for the work in compiling what is quite a lengthy item. There is a lot on USA and some good news from Saudi. Note as usual there is nothing about China which is believed to execute more of its citizens than the rest of the world combined but whose activities on this front are a state secret.
Jagtar Singh Johal is a British national who was abducted by Indian authorities just three weeks after his wedding. He’d gone to India to visit family, but Indian authorities tortured him into signing a blank confession. We described his case in a previous post.
That was in 2017. Now, he could be sentenced to death.
It’s up to us to make sure Jagtar knows he’s not alone while Reprieve investigators, lawyers and campaigners fight to get him home.
You can send a message and birthday greetings by going to the Reprieve site via this link.
It is not often we get to report good news from Saudi Arabia on the human rights front but we are pleased to report the release of Dawood al Marhoon from prison where he has languished since 2012. He was arrested aged 17 following the Arab Spring protests in 2012. He was condemned to death in 2015 which may have been carried out in public by beheading and crucifixion. Many people from Amnesty and via Reprieve have signed petitions and it has been announced that he has been released.
Hassan al-Maliki could be sentenced to death on Monday 31 January. His crime was “owning books”, “publishing books” and “publishing tweets”. Hassan peacefully expressed his opinions on religion and called for a more open society. His only crime is that his views aren’t shared by Saudi Arabia’s ruling elite.
In 2018, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman promised that Saudi Arabia was changing and moving away from its use of the death penalty. But the fact is, Hassan is facing death for something that never should have been considered a crime. Mohammed Bin Salman is trying to silence those that disagree with the status quo. That’s why this community is speaking out for Reprieve clients in Saudi Arabia. And now, we’re supercharging the campaign for Hassan.
Hassan was arrested on September 11, 2017. No warrant was shown and he was locked up for a year without charge or trial. His detention and the charges brought against him violate his most basic rights.
On Monday, regardless of the outcome in Hassan’s hearing, we will continue to fight for him and for all those who face injustice around the world.
If you want to take action, please go to the Reprieve web site for the link.
We are delighted to post this video produced by Amnesty on the state of the death penalty around the world.
We are pleased to attach the latest monthly death penalty report thanks to group member Lesley for compiling it. Note that China – which is believed to execute more of its citizens than the rest of the world combined – is not included since details are a state secret.
Dr. Osama Yassin is a paediatrician – but right now, he is sitting on death row in Egypt – where there is human rights crisis.
He was arrested in 2013 and has been in solitary confinement since – often denied food and water. He was sentenced to death alongside 11 other men in a mass trial of 739 people and faces imminent execution.
No specific evidence was introduced against Dr Osama in his trial.
This is reproduced from a message from Reprieve. If you can add your name to their petition that would be wonderful. You can access it here.
Abdullah was 14 years old when he was abducted by Saudi Arabian authorities in 2017. He was tortured until he ‘confessed’ to crimes he couldn’t have committed. He has several alibis—he was at the seafront 200 km away, playing football with his friends, at the time of the alleged crime.
Abdullah’s conviction was overturned in November 2021. This should be good news, but under Saudi Arabian law there must now be a retrial. That’s why we can’t stop fighting now.
Saudi Arabian authorities say that they ended the use of the death penalty for child defendants in April 2020. But this is clearly a lie—Abdullah is a child defendant. We’re holding them accountable and making sure the death penalty and his so-called ‘confession’ are off the table.
Thousands of us in the Reprieve community are helping build a huge swell of public attention and demanding that UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss steps in to protect Abdullah. Will you help too?
If you would like to take part follow this link to the Traidcraft site.
We are pleased to attach the latest death penalty report for the month thanks to group member Lesley for compiling it. The report features events in Egypt which is executing large numbers of people, USA, India and other countries. Note that China, which probably executes more of its citizens than the rest of the world combined, does not feature because it keeps details a state secret.
Update 30 November
The 30 November appeal hearing has been postponed. Ahead of the appeal hearing before the planned execution of Malaysian national Nagaenthran K Dharmalingam, Amnesty International’s Singapore Researcher Rachel Chhoa-Howard said:
“Singapore authorities must listen to the global outcry against executing Nagaenthran, whose case has shocked people around the world. This appeal hearing provides an opportunity to call off this horrific punishment against a man who may not fully understand what is happening to him.
“Nagaenthran’s case has been marred by multiple human rights violations including deep concerns about Nagaenthran’s intellectual disability, which UN experts have stressed would render his execution unlawful. Recent testimony from his family and lawyer about his current mental health condition reinforces these concerns.
“Singapore must act now to avoid a stain on its international reputation by commuting Nagaenthran’s sentence, and avoiding another case like this by urgently reforming its use of the death penalty, and introducing a moratorium on executions as first steps towards full abolition of this cruel punishment.”
Background
Lawyers for Nagaenthran made an application to Singapore’s High Court seeking a stay on the ground that executing him would be unconstitutional in light of his intellectual disability. This application was dismissed, but his lawyers were able to appeal the decision to the Court of Appeal.
The hearing was postponed after Nagaenthran tested positive for COVID-19 on 9 November, was rescheduled for 30 November, and has now been postponed again. The next date has yet to be confirmed. If appeals are unsuccessful, a stay will be lifted and the execution will proceed, possibly in a matter of days.
Nagaenthran was convicted and sentenced to the mandatory death penalty in November 2010 for importing 42.72 grams of diamorphine (heroin) into the island state in April 2009. His conviction and death sentence have so far been upheld on appeal.
Medical experts who have assessed Nagaenthran found that his cognitive deficits may have contributed towards his diminished responsibility when carrying out his offence. In recent weeks, Nagaenthran’s youngest brother has expressed deep concerns about his brother’s mental state and incomplete understanding of his imminent execution when he was able to visit him in prison.
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception. As of today, 108 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes and more than two-thirds are abolitionist in law or practice.
Amnesty in Salisbury & South Wiltshire 