The prison news magazine The Angolite features an in-depth piece on the use of capital punishment around the world in its recent isssue. Citing a 2008 Amnesty International report, the article notes that China, Iran, Pakistan, Iraq, and the United States lead the world in executions. Japan, the only other industrialized democracy besides the U.S. that uses capital punishment, averages five executions a year but is known for inhumane death row conditions. Author and inmate Lane Nelson details the conditions, the methods, and the controversies surrounding capital punishment in China, Iran, and Japan.

One story chronicled by Nelson is the story of the former Japanese death row prisoner Masao Akahori, who spent 31 years on death row before being exonerated and freed. Akahori described how prisoners are not told in advance the date of their execution and once he was pulled from his cell to be executed before the guards realized they had the wrong prisoner. He was so traumatized by the experience he was unable to speak for several years.

(L. Nelson, “Executions International,” The Angolite, September/October 2008). See International and Articles.

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