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TOKYO, May 12 (IPS) - The final seconds in the life of a Japanese death row inmate -- the rasping muffled last words, the trapdoor springing open, the whip of a noose and a Buddhist gong signalling the end -- has made radio history here, waking listeners up to what goes on in one of the most secretive execution systems in the world.
BRUSSELS, May 8 (IPS) - More than 50 years after its inception, the European Union continues to lack a "coherent and hard-hitting policy to uphold and promote human rights around the world", a new report by the EU's only directly-elected body has complained.
PESHAWAR, May 7 (IPS) - The Taliban have confirmed that their sympathisers have executed by stoning a runaway couple in this remote tribal region bordering Afghanistan -- their first known use here of this long drawn-out death sentence for a so-called "honour crime".
MEXICO CITY, May 6 (IPS) - The Mexican government’s aggressive strategy to prevent the execution of Mexican citizens in the United States has so far failed to bear fruit, despite a landmark international court ruling.
SEATTLE, Apr 30 (IPS) - Forget the ethics of capital punishment in the United States. Forget the disproportionate number of blacks on death row, or the possibility of executing an innocent victim. The death penalty may really be just too expensive, according to a report released by the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California (ACLU-NC).
KABUL, Apr 30 (IPS) - By lifting the shroud of secrecy over the number of Afghans on death row -- some 100 -- the government has ended up raising grave doubts about the trial procedures that led to the extreme sentences.
HAVANA, Apr 29 (IPS) - Cuban President Raúl Castro’s announcement that virtually all death sentences would be commuted to terms of 30 years to life was welcomed Tuesday by social sectors calling for the abolition of capital punishment.
MOSCOW, Apr 25 (IPS) - How close is Russia to abolishing the death penalty? Possibly just two or three years away, suggests Penal Reform International's director for Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, Victoria Sergeyeva. In an interview with IPS correspondent Kester Kenn Klomegah, she explains that leading Russian politicians have already made up their minds on the issue, though their follow MPs still need prodding out of their indecision. Across the country, young, educated city dwellers would welcome the move.
BOSTON, Apr 23 (IPS) - After eight years and millions of dollars spent, New Mexico has decided to quit pursuing two death penalty cases when lawmakers ducked away from voting additional money for court-appointed defence lawyers.
KARACHI, Apr 18 (IPS) - In 2007, Pakistan executed someone, somewhere on an average, every three days. And every single day 7,000 others died -- ''figuratively speaking" -- waiting in dread for the black warrant announcing their own date with the gallows, says I.A. Rehman, director of the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP).
WORLD COALITION AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY
The Jordan-based Amman Centre for Human Rights has released its second annual report on the status of the death penalty in Arab countries. The report gives both an overview of the region and a detailed look at each Arab state.
After the Supreme Court re-opened the possibility of lethal injections, executions are scheduled to resume in the US on May 6, starting with William E. Lynd (photo) in Georgia. TCADP International chairperson Sandrine Ageorges denounces an "inhumane" process.
Democratic Republic of Congo abolitionists have been leading a non-stop fight for two years to have the death penalty recognised as incompatible with their country's constitution. Ongoing penal code reform is giving them a chance to defend their case.
On 27 March, a US federal appeals court overturned Mumia Abu-Jamal's death sentence, but not his conviction for murder. His lead counsel Robert R. Bryan gives his reaction to the ruling and the next steps in America's most high-profile capital case.
The report of the Paris World Congress, organised by Together Against the Death Penalty with the help of the World Coalition in Paris in 2007, is just out. Its aim is to serve as a “guide to abolitionist strategy”.
The World Coalition Against the Death Penalty calls on President Mahmoud Abbas to declare an official moratorium on the death penalty and not to ratify Mr Tha’er Rmailat’s death sentence.
Death Watch News
2007 death penalty figures
published
Death Watch International have updated “the facts” section of our site to include figures on death sentences and executions during 2007 from Amnesty International and others.
Bin It! focuses on Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone is the latest focus of Death Watch International's Bin It! campaign - see Bin It! for more details.
Death Watch President tours UK
Former death row inmate, Billy Moore, will be in the UK from 17-27 April as part of his anti-death penalty campaign work. His engagements will include a public interview with Rageh Omaar in London on 25 April - for more details contact Kim.Manning.Cooper@amnesty.org.uk
Death Watch International have updated “the facts” section of our site to include figures on death sentences and executions during 2007 from Amnesty International and others.
Bin It! focuses on Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone is the latest focus of Death Watch International's Bin It! campaign - see Bin It! for more details.
Death Watch President tours UK
Former death row inmate, Billy Moore, will be in the UK from 17-27 April as part of his anti-death penalty campaign work. His engagements will include a public interview with Rageh Omaar in London on 25 April - for more details contact Kim.Manning.Cooper@amnesty.org.uk
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