Sunday, November 25, 2007

NEED TO LOBBY TO ENSURE global moratorium on executions is adopted by the UN General Assembly..

The UN General Assembly would be voting on the RESOLUTION calling for a global moratorium on executions some time in mid-December (possibly on 10 or 11th December)

On 15/11/2007, a call for a global moratorium on executions by the UN General Assembly's Third Committee was an "historic resolution and major step towards the abolition of the death penalty worldwide" - but the real vote will be made at General Assembly - and we all need to lobby our countries to vote in favour of this resolution.

In Malaysia, the Malaysian Bar in 2006 passed a Resolution calling for the abolition of the death penalty. There has been much debate - but the Malaysian government has not yet taken any moves towards abolition. On 15/11/2007, Malaysia was one of those that voted against on 15/11/2007 for the resolution that was adopted by 99 countries in favour, 52 against and 33 abstentions.

Before the vote on the 15th, Malaysia had this to say:-
Making the first explanation of vote before the vote, the representative of Malaysia said the viewpoints of other countries had to be fully respected. The language in the draft resolution contained biased assumptions and erroneous facts. It was unfortunate the issue had come up during the current session and the Committee was divided. Malaysia would vote against the draft; whatever the outcome of the vote, it could not be seen as a victory for any side, as divisions caused by a draft represented a defeat for all. In any State, change had to be undertaken at a pace that the people of that country were comfortable with, free of outside pressure or interference. Conciliation was needed; that would not happen if the issue returned at future sessions. More reasonable heads had to prevail.

Thus, there is a need for Malaysians (in fact all ASEANs and others around the world) to do some serious lobbying to ensure that the UN Resolution for a global moratorium on executions is passed in December 2007.


Votes from Asian countries:
In favour: Australia, Cambodia, Marshall Islands, Micronesia (Federated States of), Nepal, New Zealand, Philippines, Samoa, Sri Lanka, Timor-Leste, Tuvalu, Vanuatu.

Against: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Brunei Darussalam, China, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Singapore, Thailand, Tonga.

Abstain: Bhutan, Fiji, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nauru, Palau, Republic of Korea, Solomon Islands, Viet Nam.


The arguments that were used by the opponents were mainly focusing on:
-the principle of non-intervention (article 2.7 of the UN Charter) of the UN in domestic matters, and the States' will to maintain national sovereignty and territorial integrity
-the perceived imposition of Western values --Singapore in particular was claiming that the resolution was an attempt by the EU to impose its values on the rest of the world
-the fact that the death penalty is a matter of national criminal justice systems and should not be considered under international human rights law
-the need to consider the right to life comprehensively, including abortion
-the fact that the death penalty is not illegal under International Law and there is no international consensus on it anyway.

We are reporting some of the statements made by representatives from Asian countries. We hope you find this information useful for any future lobbying against the death penalty. For full details please see:
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2007/gashc3905.doc.htm
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2007/gashc3906.doc.htm

Please keep up the lobbing - the vote is expected around 10/11 December. The vote in the UN General Assembly plenary will be an endorsement of the resolution adopted in the Third Committee on 15 November. It is possible for governments to change their votes and it is also possible for governments to oppose the resolution by making further amendments which we hope will not be the case!


Wednesday 14 November 2007
Introduction of the draft resolution and amendmends

The representative of the Philippines then made a statement in connection with action on the draft resolution entitled Moratorium on the use of the death penalty. She said the text was the result of a comprehensive effort by the main sponsors, who had worked in a transparent and cooperative manner. In a sincere effort, the main sponsors had made several modifications to the text, which had led to a rise in the number of co-sponsors. Beginning with the title, as well as the preambular and operative paragraphs, the focus of the draft was on a moratorium. Abolition would be the result of a step-by-step process. The text began with a reference to the Charter of the United Nations, and that document should be read and understood in its entirety; selective quotation would undermine the text. As the main sponsors had taken those changes to the text on board, the co-sponsors reiterated that such changes did not aim to challenge national sovereignty and were rather aimed at reinforcing the phasing out of the death penalty. Making a correction, she said she thought she had mentioned Rev.1, but there was no such document, and the Committee was still working on document A/C.3/62/L.29.

The representative of Pakistan, on behalf of member States of the Organization of the Islamic Conference, said that States belonging to the Conference strongly believed that every human being had a right to life. It was the duty of States to respect the right to life, in line with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and relevant instruments. A number of States had exercised their sovereign right to impose a moratorium or to abolish the death penalty. For a majority of member States of the Organization, the issue was one related to their criminal justice systems, with an obligation on them to carry out the death penalty subject to competent courts and after exhausting all legal remedies. The OIC recognized that the issue of establishing a moratorium lacked international consensus, especially in view of existing international human rights instruments.

The representative of China said her delegation regretted the fact that the death penalty was again being discussed in the Third Committee, as there was no international consensus on its abolition. She said in 1994 and 1999, the General Assembly had discussed that issue without results. The death penalty was not prohibited by international law. According to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the death penalty might be imposed only because of the most serious of crimes. Deciding on the most appropriate penalty was a question of sovereignty and therefore a matter for the State. The Assembly was not the proper forum to address the death penalty question. To discuss the issue in such a political forum would only further politicize it. It was inappropriate to submit a draft resolution to the General Assembly which asked for a moratorium on the death penalty. She called upon all delegations to support the amendments proposed.

The representative of Singapore said that a divisive, unpleasant and unnecessary fight was about to begin. A group of countries led by the European Union had decided to table a resolution knowing fully well that it would not only not enjoy consensus, but that it would polarize the Committee. They had done so because they wanted to impose their values on others; apparently, anyone who had a different view had to be forced to change. The tabled amendments were a defence against the European Union’s aggressiveness. The ultimate objective of the main draft was not a moratorium, but the abolition of the death penalty. For many countries, such a penalty was a criminal justice matter, not a human rights issue, and despite what many co-sponsors claimed, that penalty could not be a violation of human rights, as it was not forbidden under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Now that all States in the European Union had abolished the death penalty, it expected all others to follow, he said. The Union wanted everyone to think as they did; “when their values ‘shift,’ our values should also ‘shift’.” If anyone had the audacity to be different, then the European Union thought it was open season to badger them. That trait had been seen before. Singapore supported the amendment introduced by Egypt; it was nonsense to argue that it was a selective quotation from the Charter of the United Nations. The Committee had before it a blatant attempt to impose the values of one set of countries upon everyone else.


The representative of Gabon, given the floor on a point of order, asked to correct what his counterpart from Singapore had said. The draft resolution on a moratorium was an interregional initiative, not an initiative of the European Union.


The Chairman said that the representative of Gabon was not making a point of order, but rather an explanation that could be delivered after a vote.


The representative of Gabon responded that it was necessary for delegations to be well-informed and to avoid confusion. Gabon was not in the European Union, but it was an African country that was supporting the initiative; others were from Asia and South America.

The representative of Timor-Leste said her country was one of the main sponsors of the cross-regional initiative and her delegation wished to state the following before the vote: the main sponsors had provided plenty of opportunity to put forward amendments. The amendment in question sought to undermine the spirit of the resolution. The purpose of the draft was not to intervene, but to reinforce a growing trend towards phasing out the death penalty, which was a legitimate concern of the international community. Timor-Leste would vote against it and urged others to do the same.

The representative of New Zealand, speaking as a co-author of the main draft “L.29”, said the amendment was a selective and partial quotation from the Covenant that was misleading and imbalanced. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights pointed to the abolition of capital punishment. The co-sponsors had been open to feedback, and the feedback had been that there was no wish for selective quotations from international instruments on which the main draft was founded. New Zealand would oppose the amendment.
In an explanation of position before the vote, the representative of New Zealand agreed with her counterpart from Uruguay that the amendment was unnecessary and, though it may be factual, that did not justify its inclusion. She said 130 countries –- or more than two thirds of the United Nations membership -- had abolished the death penalty, in law or in practice, for all crimes. The representative of Botswana had referred earlier in the day to inflated statistics. The number of Member States that still had the death penalty had sharply declined, a clear trend that had been mentioned in the main draft. The amendment was contrary to the spirit and intention of the main draft, and New Zealand would vote against it.


Thursday 15 November 2007
Statements before the vote on the draft resolution

Making the first explanation of vote before the vote, the representative of Malaysia said the viewpoints of other countries had to be fully respected. The language in the draft resolution contained biased assumptions and erroneous facts. It was unfortunate the issue had come up during the current session and the Committee was divided. Malaysia would vote against the draft; whatever the outcome of the vote, it could not be seen as a victory for any side, as divisions caused by a draft represented a defeat for all. In any State, change had to be undertaken at a pace that the people of that country were comfortable with, free of outside pressure or interference. Conciliation was needed; that would not happen if the issue returned at future sessions. More reasonable heads had to prevail.


The representative of Singapore said the events of the past two days proved that the issue of a moratorium on capital punishment was a divisive one. There had never been a genuine desire on the part of the co-sponsors to seek consensus; the main sponsors had gone so far as to suspend freedom of expression. The Committee had become a forum for recrimination and self-righteous morality that brooked no dissent. Those behind the draft had acted in a sanctimonious, hypocritical and intolerant way, but that was not a surprise. The draft did not reflect the range of opinions that existed in the United Nations on the issue. The co-sponsors had contradicted the spirit of cooperation and consensus building that was supposed to be the foundation of the Committee’s work. Every State had a sovereign right to choose its own systems. Singapore would vote against the draft; to vote for it would be to encourage countries which sought to impose their views.

The representative of Nepal, speaking in explanation of vote before the vote, said there was no law in his country that provided for capital punishment. It was not Nepal’s intention, however, to impose values on others. It was possible, though, for humanity to abolish the death penalty, and his delegation thought the resolution would only encourage States to put moratoriums on the death penalty. Nepal would vote in favour of the resolution.


The representative of Thailand said the United Nations Charter could not interfere in matters pertaining to domestic affairs. As a State party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Thailand was committed to upholding its commitments vis-à-vis that instrument, and the Convention did not prohibit the use of the death penalty. Thai law only permitted the death penalty for the most serious of crimes and violations, and no execution had been carried out for some time. Thailand would therefore vote against “L.29”.

Statements after the vote on the resolution


Speaking first after the vote, the representative of India said there had to be recognition that it was the sovereign right of States to determine their own legal systems, and added that there was no consensus on capital punishment. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights spoke only of the desirability of abolition of the death penalty. In India, the death penalty was an exception to be exercised in the rarest of rare occasions. His country had seen a single use of it since 1995, and there were many legal safeguards present. Indian law also had provisions for suspension of the death penalty for pregnant women, he said, adding that juveniles could never be sentenced to death in India. His delegation had not been in a position to support the draft resolution, as it went against his country’s statutory law.

The representative of Japan said he had voted against “L.29”. In his view, the question of abolishing the death penalty should be decided only after every country had considered the matter in light of its own criminal issues. Most of the public believed that the most vicious criminals should receive the death penalty. There was no international consensus on the abolition of the death penalty, and it was regrettable that the resolution had been tabled without sufficient discussion. Many countries had voiced strong opposition to the proposal in informal meetings, but the sponsors had pursued the resolution’s passage despite that.


The representative of Viet Nam said he had abstained in the vote on the resolution because the death penalty was “indispensable” in Viet Nam at present, in order to ensure a peaceful life for the whole of the community. That penalty was applicable only to the most violent criminals, and not to children or pregnant women, among other groups. Viet Nam respected the decision by countries that had abolished the death penalty, given the concrete national situations. He stressed the importance of dialogue on human rights issues on the basis of common respect.


The representative of China said the fact that 50 countries had voted against the draft proved there was no consensus and there were therefore doubts about the effects of such a resolution. All countries had the right to choose their own judicial systems. The death penalty was an issue of criminal justice and was part of a country’s internal affairs. China regretted that two days had been spent on the resolution, which had increased tension and led to a major confrontation, and deplored also the request to vote on a separate paragraph. China could not accept that co-sponsors had applied pressure on other countries and did not wish to see a repeat of the process.

The representative of Bhutan said his country had abolished the death penalty, and would like to see that done worldwide. Nevertheless, he respected the right of each country to make its own laws, in accordance with the United Nations Charter. He had voted in accordance with that view.

The representative of Bangladesh said his country’s criminal justice system had provisions for the death penalty, but only in the case of the most heinous crimes. That sentence involved an exhaustive and transparent legal process, with opportunities for redress. The resolution just adopted was an example of the growing trend against the death penalty, but the time had not come yet for such a ban. He had been constrained to vote against the resolution.

The representative of Singapore congratulated the co-sponsors on their “pyrrhic victory”. The vote had proved that there was no international consensus on the resolution, as almost half of the delegations had not voted in its favour. That should be an indication that many delegations were uncomfortable with the resolution. Co-sponsors had brought the resolution fully aware of how acrimonious and divisive the issue was. He suspected that different countries, with their domestic considerations, would not impose a moratorium because of passage of the resolution. Domestic issues were clearly “irrelevant” to the co-sponsors, and the resolution had made a mockery of the Committee.


The representative of Myanmar said the country had not carried out capital punishment since 1988. Myanmar was not happy with how the resolution had been approved. Every Member State had the right to choose without interference, and the resolution as it had been drafted was, in Myanmar’s view, an attempt to impose a choice on countries. Thus, Myanmar had voted against “L.29”.

Working to protect human rights worldwide

RESOLUTION OF THE MALAYSIAN BAR FOR THE ABOLITION OF THE DEATH PENALTY

60th AGM of Malaysian Bar – 18/3/2006

RESOLUTION OF THE MALAYSIAN BAR FOR THE ABOLITION OF THE DEATH PENALTY
(which was adopted at the 60th AGM of the Malaysian Bar on 18/3/2006)

WHEREAS every human being has the inherent right to life;

WHEREAS Malaysia has hanged at least 358 persons between 1981 and 2005;

WHEREAS about 173 persons are on death row as at December 2005;

WHEREAS :

a) studies conducted throughout the world over the past seventy years have failed to find convincing evidence that capital punishment is a more effective deterrent of crime than long-term imprisonment;

b) studies conducted in Australia show that abolition of the death penalty had no effect on the homicide rate and in Canada there in fact was a sharp decline in the homicide rate after abolition;

c) in the United States over the past twenty years, states with the death penalty in general have had a higher homicide rate than states without the death penalty;

WHEREAS on the other hand the execution of human beings by the State gives an ‘example of barbarity’ to society and legitimizes the taking of human life;

WHEREAS Malaysia lacks safeguards that would ensure a fair trial such as the right to immediate access to a lawyer upon arrest, right to full disclosure of evidence in the possession of the police and prosecution, and has to the extreme prejudice of accused persons loaded a capital crime statute such as the Dangerous Drugs Act 1952 ( which generates the largest number of death sentences annually ) with presumptions of trafficking that compromise the presumption of innocence which is integral to any fair and just criminal justice system;

WHEREAS:

a) it is not possible in any system of human justice to prevent the horrifying possibility of the execution of innocent persons; and

b) the infliction of the death penalty makes wrongful convictions irreversible;

WHEREAS :

a) 122 countries have abolished the death penalty in law or practice as opposed to 74 countries which retain the death penalty;

b) An average of three countries have abolished the death penalty each year over the last decade;

c) the trend worldwide has been for the abolition of the death penalty;

WHEREAS the UN Commission on Human Rights Resolution 2005/59 passed in 2005 calls upon all states to abolish the death penalty and states that the abolition of the death penalty is essential for the protection of the right to life of every human being;

WHEREAS Article 1 of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) provides that ‘ No one within the jurisdiction of a State party to the present Optional Protocol shall be executed ’.

WHEREAS the death penalty has no place in any society which values human rights, justice and mercy;

NOW IT IS HEREBY RESOLVED that the Malaysian Bar calls for the:

1) Abolition of the death penalty in Malaysia;

2) An immediate moratorium on all executions pending abolition;

3) Commutation of the sentences of all persons currently on death row;

4) Ratification by Malaysia of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).


Proposers: N.Surendran , Charles Hector, Amer Hamzah Arshad, Sreekant Pillai

* the facts and statistics relied on here are from Professor Roger Hood’s The Death Penalty( A Worldwide Perspective) OUP 2002, Amnesty International and statistics released by the Government of Malaysia.

UN adopts landmark decision on global moratorium on executions

UN adopts landmark decision on global moratorium on executions

Today's call for a global moratorium on executions by the UN General Assembly's Third Committee is an "historic resolution and major step towards the abolition of the death penalty worldwide", Amnesty International said.

The landmark decision had cross-regional support and was co-sponsored by 87 states from around the world.

The resolution was adopted by 99 countries in favour, 52 against and 33 abstentions. The General Assembly is expected to endorse the decision in a plenary session in December.

"Amnesty International calls on all countries to establish a moratorium on executions as soon as the General Assembly endorses the resolution later this year," said Irene Khan, Amnesty International's Secretary General.

In 1971 and 1977 the General Assembly adopted two resolutions on capital punishment, saying that it was "desirable" for states to abolish the death penalty.

Today's resolution goes further, calling on states that still maintain the death penalty "to establish a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty". It urges these states "to respect international standards that provide safeguards guaranteeing the protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty" and "progressively restrict the use of the death penalty and reduce the number of offences for which it may be imposed."

The resolution also requests the UN Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly in 2008 on the implementation of the resolution.

Today's decision -- adopted by the UN's highest political body with universal membership -- is a clear recognition of the growing international trend towards worldwide abolition of the death penalty, endorsed by the UN Secretary-General," said Irene Khan. "It is a crucial step forward in creating a death penalty free-world -- as envisaged by the General Assembly three decades ago."

Although the resolution is not legally binding on states, it carries considerable moral and political weight, as it was adopted by the UN's principal organ in which all UN members participate.

"Establishing a moratorium on executions is an important tool to convince states still using the death penalty to engage in a nationwide debate and to review their laws on capital punishment. If death penalty laws are under review, it is only fair to stop executing people in the meantime," said Irene Khan.

The cross-regional initiative for a global moratorium on executions was led by ten countries: Albania, Angola, Brazil, Croatia, Gabon, Mexico, New Zealand, the Philippines, Portugal (for the EU) and Timor Leste.

Background information
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases, without exception. The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights -- the premeditated and cold-blooded killing of a human being by the state in the name of justice. It violates the right to life as proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment.

So far, 133 countries have abolished the death penalty in law or practice. Only 25 countries actually carried out executions in 2006. In 2006, 91 percent of all known executions took place in China, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan and the US. Amnesty International's statistics also show an overall decline in the number of executions in 2006 -- a recorded 1,591 executions, compared to 2,148 in 2005.

Monday, November 19, 2007

UN panel votes for death penalty moratorium

UN panel votes for death penalty moratorium

Fri 16 Nov 2007, 6:40 GMT

By Claudia Parsons

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - A U.N. committee voted on Thursday in favor of a resolution calling for a moratorium on the death penalty in a key step toward the passing of the nonbinding motion by the world body.

Opponents had tried to derail the resolution in the U.N. General Assembly's human rights committee by inserting amendments on the right to life of unborn children.

More than 15 amendments were voted down in two days of acrimonious debate that touched on whether the death penalty was a human rights issue or a domestic matter. Some Caribbean and other countries accused the European Union, a key backer of the text, of seeking to impose its values on other nations.

The resolution, which calls for "a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty," was passed 99-52 with 33 abstentions. It is likely to go to the full 192-member assembly in mid-December where supporters say they expect few countries to change their position.

"It's a question of coherence -- a country that votes in a certain way here will do so there," Italian Ambassador Marcello Spatafora told Reuters shortly before the vote.

Eighty-seven countries -- including the 27 EU states, more than a dozen Latin American countries and eight African states -- jointly introduced the draft resolution, though opponents singled out the EU as the driving force.

Two similar moves in the 1990s failed in the assembly. This time, the text of the resolution stops short of an outright demand for immediate abolition.

ANGRY OPPOSITION

Vanu Gopala Menon, ambassador of Singapore which has a mandatory death penalty for most drug offenses, accused those who brought the resolution to the committee of being "sanctimonious, hypocritical and intolerant."

Barbados was among the most vocal in complaining that "a group of countries" was trying to impose its will, saying it had been threatened with the withdrawal of aid over the issue.

Human rights organization Amnesty International welcomed the vote as a "historic resolution and a major step towards the abolition of the death penalty worldwide."

"Although the resolution is not legally binding on states, it carries considerable moral and political weight," Amnesty International said in a statement.

China, Iran, Iraq, the United States, Pakistan and Sudan account for about 90 percent of all executions worldwide.

According to Amnesty, 133 countries have abolished the death penalty in law or in practice -- a statistic that opponents of the resolution contested. They said more than 100 countries retained capital punishment on their statutes, even if they did not all use it.

Botswana's representative Rhee Hetanang said the death penalty was a domestic criminal justice issue. "No amount of intimidation and bullying will cause us to go against the expressed wish of the people of Botswana," he said.

Egypt and Iran were among countries proposing a last-minute amendment that would have urged member states "to take all necessary measures to protect the lives of unborn children."

The United States, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Zimbabwe were among the countries voting for that amendment. It was rejected 83-28 with 47 abstentions.

"We are in agreement with the view expressed in this amendment that the lives of the unborn deserve the strongest protection, and we agree that countries that advocate for the abolition of the death penalty should be at least equally scrupulous in showing concern for innocent life," U.S. representative Joseph Rees said.

The United States abstained in a vote on a more strongly worded amendment that would have said abortion was only admissible in necessary cases, "in particular where the life of the mother and or the child is at serious risk."

© Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved.