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Biden Fails a Death Penalty Abolitionist’s Most Important Test

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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.
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Taiwan: Photo exhibitions, concert aim to provoke thoughts on death penalty

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Taipei, April 2 (CNA) A Japanese photographer and harpists from France and Taiwan are encouraging Taiwanese people to reconsider their thoughts on issues related to the death penalty through photo exhibitions and a concert in Taiwan, organizers said Monday.

The arts events kicked off in Taipei Monday with a two-day display of 16 photos taken by U.S.-based photographer Toshi Kazama, featuring pictures of death-row inmates in the United States and Taiwan, execution sites, execution devices like the electric chair and a prisoner's last meal.

Taiwan ended a four-year-long moratorium on executions in 2010, executing four prisoners that year and another five in March of 2011, drawing criticism from the European Union and human rights advocates.

Speaking at a news conference, Kazama said he wanted to encourage the Taiwanese public to think deeply about more aspects of the practice of capital punishment.


Source: Focus Taiwan, April 2, 2012
Location: Taiwan
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