FEATURED POST

Biden Fails a Death Penalty Abolitionist’s Most Important Test

Image
The mystery of Joe Biden’s views about capital punishment has finally been solved. His decision to grant clemency to 37 of the 40 people on federal death row shows the depth of his opposition to the death penalty. And his decision to leave three of America’s most notorious killers to be executed by a future administration shows the limits of his abolitionist commitment. The three men excluded from Biden’s mass clemency—Dylann Roof, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and Robert Bowers—would no doubt pose a severe test of anyone’s resolve to end the death penalty. Biden failed that test.

Indonesia recalls ambassador over Saudi beheading

Indonesia on Monday recalled its ambassador to Saudi Arabia amid anger over the beheading of an Indonesian maid convicted of murdering her Saudi employer, Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said.

Riyadh carried out the execution by sword without giving Indonesia prior notice, Natalegawa told reporters after being grilled about the government's response in parliament.

"We cannot accept it and will file a strong protest to the Saudi government," he said, adding that Jakarta's ambassador had been recalled for consultations.

The woman, Ruyati binti Sapubi, was found guilty of murdering Saudi woman Khairiya bint Hamid Mijlid by striking her repeatedly on the head with a meat cleaver and stabbing her in the neck.

The migrant worker had been subjected to constant verbal abuse and refused permission to leave the kingdom, according to Indonesia's National Agency for Placement and Protection of Migrant Workers.

"In court, Ruyati confessed she killed her employer's wife after a quarrel because her request to be allowed to go home was turned down," agency chief Jumhur Hidayat told Antara news agency.

In parliament on Monday, lawmaker Teguh Juwarno called on Natalegawa to resign and said Indonesia should stop sending migrant workers to Saudi Arabia in the wake of a spate of abuse cases.

"This is obviously the government's failure. I ask Minister Marty to be a gentleman and admit his failure, suspend the Indonesian ambassador to Saudi Arabia or resign himself as a gesture of accountability," he said.

The beheading brought the number of executions in the ultra-conservative kingdom this year to 28, according to an AFP tally based on official and human rights group reports.

Around 70 % of the 1.2 million Indonesians working in Saudi Arabia are domestic helpers, according to officials.

Indonesians were outraged in April when a Saudi court overturned the conviction of a Saudi woman who had been jailed for three years for allegedly torturing her Indonesian maid.

Sumiati binti Salan Mustapa, 23, claimed her employer beat her causing internal bleeding and broken bones, scalded her head with an iron and slashed her with scissors, leaving her horribly disfigured and traumatised.

In November last year the beaten body of another Indonesian maid, Kikim Komalasari, 36, was found near Abha. Two people, her employers, were arrested in that case.

Labour activists and rights groups have said the incidents highlight the paucity of protection for millions of mostly Asian domestic workers in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states.

Local media reported there are 22 Indonesian migrant workers facing execution in Saudi Arabia.

London-based watchdog Amnesty International this month called on Saudi Arabia to stop applying the death penalty, saying there had been a significant rise in the number of executions carried out over the past 6 weeks.

Source: Agence France-Presse, June 20, 2011
_________________________
Use the tags below or the search engine at the top of this page to find updates, older or related articles on this Website.

Most Viewed (Last 7 Days)

Women Being Sent to the Gallows in Alarming Numbers in Iran

USA | Biden commutes sentences of 37 of the 40 men on federal death row, excluding Robert Bowers, Dylann Roof, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev

Biden Fails a Death Penalty Abolitionist’s Most Important Test

Oklahoma executes Kevin Underwood

Indonesia | Ailing Frenchman on death row pleads to return home as Indonesia to pardon 44,000 prisoners

USA | The Death Penalty in 2024: Report

UN | Philippines votes to end death penalty worldwide

Japan | Hideko Hakamada, one woman's 56-year fight to free her innocent brother from death row

Trump vows to pursue executions after Biden commutes most of federal death row

Iran | Executions in Rasht, Mahabad, Karaj, Nahavand, Roudbar