Amnesty International springs into action, protests execution of 'Palestinian criminals'
Amnesty International is urging Hamas not to execute 'Palestinian criminals' as part of their celebration of Eid al-Fitr. The executions are planned as a 'crime deterrent.'
“This and other recent announcements by Hamas authorities that they will carry out further executions are deeply disturbing,” said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa Program at Amnesty International.
“We acknowledge the right and responsibility of governments to bring to justice those suspected of criminal offenses, but the death penalty is cruel and inhuman, and there is no evidence that it deters crime more effectively than other punishments,” Luther added.
According to Amnesty International, several of the 'criminals' slated for execution confessed to their crimes under extreme duress.
This suggests a possible breakdown in Hamas' judicial system.
Luther said, “Hamas should pursue justice by prosecuting people accused of internationally recognizable crimes in fair trials without recourse to the death penalty and ensuring all allegations of torture are investigated."
However, whether or not the crimes were indeed committed by those accused, Luther slammed the concept of public executions calling them "degrading" and adding that they "compound the cruelty of the death penalty."Richard Goldstone could not have said it better. The problem here is that Amnesty insists on treating Hamas as a credible, legitimate 'government,' and not as the brutal, repressive thugocracy that it really is.
Labels: Amnesty International, executions, Hamas, Hamas prisoners, human rights
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 12:37 PM
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