Resolve fate of 1,300 death row prisoners, govt urged

Source: FMT (9 January 2023)

https://www.freemalaysiatoday.com/category/nation/2023/01/09/resolve-fate-of-1300-death-row-prisoners-govt-urged/

PUTRAJAYA: The Malaysian Bar has urged the government to work with the Pardons Board to ensure that more than 1,300 convicted persons currently on death row are also spared the death penalty.

This follows a statement by law minister Azalina Othman Said last month that Putrajaya will amend laws that carry a mandatory death sentence to allow for alternative sentencing.

Bar president Karen Cheah said these prisoners should not be allowed to linger in prison uncertain of their fate.

At present, there is a moratorium on the execution of death row inmates.

“It is an inhumane way of treating convicts on death row,” she said at a ceremony to mark the opening of the legal year here today.

Cheah said as Malaysia progressed democratically, it must shift away from killing people in the name of justice.

She said these convicts deserve some baseline protection.

“We, therefore, welcome the announcement that the mandatory death penalty will be done away with in respect of 11 offences carrying such sentences, with the discretion as to sentencing returning to the unfettered domain of the judiciary,” she said.

Azalina had said amendment to the penal laws will be tabled at the next session of Parliament.

Cheah said the death penalty is cruel and degrading, and breaches the rights to life and to live free from torture.

She said sentencing should focus on rehabilitation and restoration, adding that the death penalty achieves very little except to satisfy the need for retribution.

“The irreversible, irreparable and non-deterrent nature of the death penalty should in and of itself be sufficient (reason) to abolish the death penalty,” she said.

On another matter, Cheah said that as of November last year, the National Legal Aid Foundation, or YBGK, had assisted 222,361 Malaysians.

It was established in 2012 with the help of the government, which had provided RM5 million to kickstart the programme.

Under the scheme, lawyers assisted the poor and needy by representing them in cases involving arrests, remands, mitigation and bail, trials and appeals.

Cheah said access to justice is the hallmark of a strong presence of the rule of the law in the country.

“The Bar, therefore, seeks to continue facilitating the provision of access to justice by lending the assistance of our members to Malaysians,” she said.

Cheah said it is the duty and responsibility of the government to ensure that access to justice remains strong and present.

“We urge that sufficient resources be made available for this programme to continue to be a success,” she said.

China prisoners on death row to get free legal aid

Source: Asia One (16 September 2015)

http://news.asiaone.com/news/asia/china-prisoners-death-row-get-free-legal-aid

Convicted criminals on death row will be entitled to free legal representation under a new rule drafted by the Ministry of Justice, a ministry source told China Daily.

The ministry will assign lawyers to condemned prisoners who cannot afford one during the review of their sentences to ensure equal access to justice, according to the source.

The source said officials from the ministry and the high court are "finalizing some detailed implementation measures and the rule will be released in the next few months".

The source asked not to be identified because she was not authorised to discuss the draft plan with the media.

Under Chinese law, all death sentences must be reviewed by the Supreme People's Court before defendants can be executed. Currently, defendants who cannot afford to hire lawyers are not guaranteed representation during a death penalty review.

Che Xingyi, a lawyer at Beijing's Yingke Law Firm, which specializes in representing clients in death penalty cases, said the top court conducts reviews based on files from local courts and lawyers' previous defence statements.

This method has limitations and is not sufficient to ensure justice, Che said.

It is "more than necessary" to offer legal aid during a review of a death sentence, he said. "If the lawyers discover flaws in sentencing criteria or new evidence, they will fully defend the suspects and communicate with the judges quickly to stop imminent execution."

China does not reveal the number of prisoners on death row.

However, last year, Chinese lawyers provided free legal aid to nearly 40,000 suspects facing life imprisonment or the death penalty, a year-on-year increase of 7 per cent, according to the ministry.

The new rule follows a recent meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, which stressed the importance of legal aid and was attended by the country's top leaders.

Paul Dalton, team leader for the China-EU Access to Justice Program, which was created to strengthen equality of justice in China especially among disadvantaged groups, recommended that Chinese judicial authorities be cautious when imposing the death penalty.

The top court would better protect prisoners' rights by holding public hearings during a death penalty review, Dalton said.

This would enable judges to listen to defence arguments by defendants and their lawyers instead of just reading the files.