Saudi Arabia: Combating Disinformation In the Wake of Rizana Nafeek's Execution

The international condemnation of Rizana Nafeek's unjust execution has not elicited a positive response from Saudi authorities. There have been no promises for reform or pledges to reexamine the justice system's flawed management of migrant workers.

Instead, Saudi Arabia has adopted a defensive approach to combat these "defamatory" and "misleading statements."

Officials denied Nafeek was underage and claimed that she not only had a lawyer, but that the Sri Lankan embassy was deeply involved in the case.

However, Nafeek's passport was falsified - a fact that was established years ago, and that has even been confirmed by Saudi authorities in the past.

Additionally, officials distorted the support mechanisms available to Nafeek; she did not have a lawyer during her initial confession, she was not provided with a translator during her initial trials, and the embassy did not intervene in her case until she was sentenced to death.

Saudi authorities claim Nafeek was awarded "her full legal rights' - but the absence of sufficient legal rights for domestic workers is precisely what NGOs have denounced.

Opinion commentators and media figures have also parroted similar distortions in defense of the legal system's treatment of foreign workers.

This article cross-posted in the Saudi Gazette begins, predictably, by justifying Nafeek's execution with problematic references to Sharia.

Saudi's misappropriation of the Sharia is a complex discussion that is beyond the scope of this article - however, it is worth exploring less politically motivated, mainstream interpretations of the death penalty in Islamic jurisprudence. The following excerpts are from a translation of a speech by Dr Hamdy Murat, a professor of Sharia at Al Balqa Applied University in Jordan:

Sharia stresses averting punishments (Hudud) if suspicions arise. Prophet Mohammed said: "Avert punishments if suspicions arise". Suspicion means that for any offense that cannot proved 100%, so to speak, punishments should be averted.

"Suspicion" means the presence of deficiency in absolute certainty. If suspicion arises, the punishment set for a certain offense must be prevented and milder penalties should be sought.

Decisive Sharia regulations specify five objectives. After the 1st objective, which is the preservation of religion, comes the protection of life. Every attempt should always be made to avert capital punishment.

The answer is that the certainty of the person being a murderer must be 100%; allow me to use that expression. If the percentage is lower, no matter what the reason, then suspicion arises in this case.

There was much uncertainty in Nafeek's case. Her account was at odds with the employer's account, but there was no forensic evidence to indicate that Nafeek was lying. That there was not 100% certainty is especially evident in the years her case rebounded between courts.

Click here to read the full article

Source: migrant-rights.org, January 25, 2013

Florida executes Michael Tanzi

Florida on Tuesday executed a death row inmate described by one local detective as a "fledgling serial killer" for the murder of a beloved Miami Herald employee. Florida executed Michael Tanzi on Tuesday, 25 years after the murder of beloved Miami Herald employee Janet Acosta, who was attacked in broad daylight on her lunch break in 2000. Michael Tanzi, 48, was executed by lethal injection at the Florida State Prison in Raiford and pronounced dead at 6:12 p.m. ET.

South Carolina executes Mikal Mahdi

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Arizona | The cruelty of isolation: There’s nothing ‘humane’ about how we treat the condemned

On March 19, I served as a witness to the execution of a man named Aaron Gunches, Arizona’s first since 2022. During his time on death row, he begged for death and was ultimately granted what is likely more appropriately described as an emotionless state-assisted suicide. This experience has profoundly impacted me, leading to deep reflection on the nature of death, humanity, and the role we play in our final moments. When someone is in the end stages of life, we talk about hospice care, comfort, care, easing suffering and humane death. We strive for a “good death” — a peaceful transition. I’ve seen good ones, and I’ve seen bad, unplanned ones.

Execution date set for prisoner transferred to Oklahoma to face death penalty

An inmate who was transferred to Oklahoma last month to face the death penalty now has an execution date. George John Hanson, also known as John Fitzgerald Hanson, is scheduled to die on June 12 for the 1999 murder of 77-year-old Mary Bowles. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals on Tuesday set the execution date. The state’s Pardon and Parole Board has a tentative date of May 7 for Hanson’s clemency hearing, executive director Tom Bates said.

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