Entries tagged with “Zimbabwe”
Policy Issues
Human Rights
,International
,Jun 05, 2024
Worldwide Wednesday International Roundup: China, Iran, Malaysia, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia, and Zimbabwe
On May 7, 2024, Harm Reduction International (HRI) released a special global overview report on the use of the death penalty for drug offenses, which is a violation of international law because drug offenses do not meet the “most serious” crimes threshold. HRI found that by the end of 2023, there were 34 countries which still retained the death penalty for drug-related offenses; Pakistan was the only country to recently eliminate the death penalty for such offenses – the first country in more…
Policy Issues
Human Rights
,International
,May 01, 2024
Worldwide Wednesday International Roundup: Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iran, Japan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Uganda, United States, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe
Missouri’s April 9th execution of Brian Dorsey, despite widespread support for his clemency, once again garnered condemnation from the European Union, which described it as a “inhuman and degrading practice.” The EU’s statement highlighted the lack of the death penalty as a deterrent and the irreversibility of the punishment, noting that 197 death-sentenced prisoners have been exonerated. “The EU continues to call for the universal abolition of the death penalty and for States, that maintain…
Policy Issues
Human Rights
,International
,Mar 06, 2024
Worldwide Wednesday International Roundup: Afghanistan, China, Iran, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United States, Vietnam, Yemen, and Zimbabwe
In the aftermath of Idaho’s failed execution of Thomas Creech and Texas’ execution of Ivan Cantu on February 28, the European Union released a statement expressing its regret and reiterating its unequivocal opposition to the death penalty.. “[The death penalty] is a violation of the right to life and fails to act as a deterrent to crime. It represents the ultimate punishment that makes miscarriages of justice irreversible,” said the statement. “[W]e are concerned by the fact that the number…
Policy Issues
Human Rights
,International
,Methods of Execution
,Feb 07, 2024
Worldwide Wednesday International Roundup: China, Ghana, Iran, Japan, Saudi Arabia, United States, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe
The January 25, 2024 execution of Kenneth Smith in the state of Alabama with nitrogen gas received widespread international condemnation. The European Union reiterated its commitment to abolishing the death penalty and called the execution method a “particularly cruel and unusual punishment.” The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, stated: “I deeply regret the execution of Kenneth Eugene Smith in Alabama despite serious concerns that this novel and untested method of…
Policy Issues
Human Rights
,International
,Dec 06, 2023
Worldwide Wednesday International Roundup: China, Israel, Iran, Malaysia, Philippines, Qatar, Somalia, Vietnam, and Zimbabwe
On November 7, Chinese media reported that former primary school principal Zhang Longji was executed via lethal injection for raping five girls, age 8 – 12, and sexually molesting 17 girls, age 8 – 14. Sun Deshun, former president of China CITIC Bank Corporation Limited, who was convicted of accepting $1 billion yuan ($137 million) in bribes, was given a suspended death sentence by the Intermediate People’s Court in Jinan on November 10. If no new crimes are committed during the two-year…
Policy Issues
Human Rights
,International
,Jun 07, 2023
Worldwide Wednesday’s International Roundup: Zimbabwe, Vietnam, South Korea, Singapore, Iran, and Saudi Arabia
On March 23, Zimbabwe’s parliament passed a new “Patriotic Bill” which carries the possibility of a death sentence for non-violent crimes in violation of the “most serious crimes” international legal standard. The law will punish citizens whose activities “willfully damage the sovereignty and national interest of Zimbabwe,” including boycotts, sanctions, and any act considered “subversion” by the state. Depending on the offense, punishments include a loss of citizenship, heavy fines,…