Four convicts to be put to death after president announced end to 42-year-old moratorium

This article is more than 2 months old

This article is more than 2 months old

Sri Lanka has hired two executioners as it prepares to put four prisoners convicted of drug offences to death in what would be its first use of capital punishment for more than 40 years.

The executioners were picked from among 100 applicants who responded to an advertisement calling for male Sri Lankans aged between 18 and 45 with “excellent moral character” and “mental strength”.

The prisons department began the recruitment process in March after the last executioner quit in 2014, citing stress after seeing the gallows for the first time. Another, hired last year, never turned up for work.

President Maithripala Sirisena announced on Wednesday an end to a moratorium on the death penalty in force since 1976, a move political analysts said was meant to boost his chances of re-election if he stands again later this year.

Local and international rights groups, as well as the former colonial ruler Britain, Canada, the EU and UN have raised concerns about the south Asian nation’s restoration of capital punishment.

“The recruitment process is finalised and two [executioners] have been selected. The two need to go through final training which will take about two weeks,” prisons spokesman Thushara Upuldeniya said.

The prisons commissioner, TMJW Thennakoon, declined to provide details of the four convicts whose death penalties the president approved.

On Friday, a Sri Lankan journalist filed public interest litigation seeking to stop any executions, arguing that people’s rights were being violated. A court hearing will be held on 2 July, and Thennakoon pledged there would be no executions for the next seven days.

A spokesman for the UN office on drugs and crime said on Thursday international drug control conventions could not be used to justify the use of the death penalty for drug-related offences alone.

Sri Lanka advertises for two hangmen as country resumes capital punishment Read more

“Application of the death penalty may also impede international cooperation in fighting drug trafficking as there are national laws that [bar] the exchange of information and extradition with countries which may impose capital punishment for the offences concerned,” the spokesman said. </s> Prison officials in Sri Lanka Thursday said they were yet to receive the documents related to President Maithripala Sirisena's signed death warrants to hang four drug convicts.

President Sirisena on Wednesday signed the death warrants to hang four drug convicts, ending a four-decade-long moratorium on the capital punishment in Sri Lanka. The last execution in Sri Lanka was 43 years ago.

A senior prison official told reporters they have not received any written instructions for the hanging until Thursday morning.

"The president's secretary must write to the secretary to the ministry of Justice and Prison Reforms. Then the ministry secretary must intimate in writing to the Commissioner General of Prisons," said the official who did not want to be named.

He said the four convicts would be informed in writing of their death sentence and if they are currently housed in any other prison, then they would have to be brought to the Welikada prison in the capital Colombo.

Sirisena said Wednesday he was committed to bringing back capital punishment for drug offenders, months after vowing a tougher line on spiralling narcotics-related crime.

This was despite Sri Lanka having become a party to the UN moratorium on death penalty and voting in favour of the moratorium just six months back.

The international condemnation of decision to resume capital punishment has been coming since the President made his announcement.

The British government in a statement condemned the move, saying the decision would have implications on many areas including counter-terrorism cooperation.

The decision would hamper Sri Lanka's reputation as a tourist destination, the statement added. The decision will require us to review our technical assistance programme on relevant policing, defense and other security issues, it said.

Sirisena's signing of death warrants came during the ongoing 'Drug Prevention' week from June 23 to July 1.

All of Sirisena's predecessors as Presidents had refused to sign the death warrants to carry out capital punishment. The death sentences have been commuted to life terms which usually lasts 20 years.

The last hanging came in June 1976 when Siripala alias Maru Sira, a noted criminal was hanged for murder and Sri Lanka's last hangman quit in 2014 without ever having to execute anyone, citing stress after seeing the gallows for the first time. Another hangman hired last year never turned up for work.

Justice Ministry in March said there were over 450 prisoners in Sri Lankan jails, including five women. Out of that at least 48 are drug convicts. While 30 of them appealed against their death sentence, 18 of them could be hanged, officials said.

Sri Lanka in March advertised to recruit two hangmen to carry out executions. There were over 100 applications received by February 25 deadline, officials said.

The New York-based rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in April that some 1299 Sri Lankan prisoners, including 84 women are on death row.

"Imposing the death penalty for drug offences would violate Sri Lanka's human rights obligations," the HRW said.

Sirisena said he would sign death warrants only for the drug convicts. PTI CORR MRJ AKJ MRJ </s> President Maithripala Sirisena reinstated the death penalty to boost his chances for in the upcoming election.

One day after reinstating the death penalty in Sri Lanka, two executions have been hired, prison authorities confirmed Friday.

The pair were chosen from 100 applicants, aged between 18 and 45 years, who eagerly awaited the execution of four prisoners convicted for drug offences.

“The recruitment process is finalised and two (hangmen) have been selected. The two need to go through final training which will take about two weeks,” prisons spokesman Thushara Upuldeniya said.

More than 40 years have past since the last state-sanctioned execution was performed. On Wednesday, President Maithripala Sirisena announced an end to a moratorium on the death penalty in force since 1976, a move political analysts said was meant to boost his chances of re-election if he stands again later this year.

“I signed the document to execute the drug offenders not with hatred and cruelty towards anyone, but to save the nation and the future generation from the drug menace, which is our worst social catastrophe,” Sirisena said.

A spokesman for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said on Thursday international drug control conventions cannot be used to justify the use of the death penalty for drug-related offences alone.

“Application of the death penalty may also impede international cooperation in fighting drug trafficking as there are national laws that (bar) the exchange of information and extradition with countries which may impose capital punishment for the offences concerned,” the UNODC spokesman said. </s> COLOMBO: The European Union has criticized Sri Lanka 's move to resume executions, saying it would directly contradict the country's commitment to maintain a 43-year moratorium on death penalty at the UN General Assembly last year.The EU said in a statement on Thursday that Sri Lanka's planned executions will send the wrong signals to the international community and investors. It said it will monitor Sri Lanka's commitments to international conventions upon which hinges a preferential trade deal with the country.Sri Lanka has a lucrative market access to the EU through the generalized scheme of preferences plus. The concessions were withdrawn over alleged abuses immediately after a long civil war, which ended in 2009. President Maithripala Sirisena 's government took steps toward reforms and commitments on human rights to secure the program back on being elected to office in 2015.But Sirisena said this week he had signed the death warrants for four drug convicts and they would be executed soon.Sirisena told a school function on Friday that he had decided to resume executions to save the youth from narcotics and that he has explained his position to UN chief Antonio Gutteres during a telephone conversation on Thursday night.Sri Lanka last executed a prisoner in 1976."The death penalty is a cruel, inhuman and a degrading punishment, and the EU unequivocally opposes its use in all circumstances and all cases," the EU statement said. "While the Sri Lankan authorities have cited the need to address drug-related offences, studies show that the death penalty fails to act as a deterrent to crime."Sri Lanka has been grappling with drug-related crimes for years and is believed to be used by the peddlers as a transit hub.In April, police publicly destroyed 770 kilograms (1,695 pounds) of drugs seized in 2016 and 2017. Police have seized 731 kilograms (1,608 pounds) of heroin , 1 kilogram (2.2 pounds) of cocaine and 1,607 kilograms (3,535 pounds) of marijuana so far this year. </s> Mahinda Rajapaksa has resigned this morning as Sri Lanka's prime minister amid a two-month long power tussle in the island nation, local media reported today.

Ranil Wickremesinghe, who was ousted by Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, is set to return as the prime minister after taking oath on Sunday.

President Sirisena has reportedly agreed to reinstate ousted Prime Minister Wickremesinghe in the post after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday, Colombo Page reported.

Mr Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) said that it was decided during the discussion that he will take oath as the Prime Minister at 10 am on Sunday.

The President removed Wickremesinghe from the post of Prime Minister on October 26 and appointed former president Rajapaksa as the Premier, plunging the country into an unprecedented crisis.

Mr Wickremesinghe refused to accept the sacking and challenged it in a court and in the Parliament.

The daily reported that a new Cabinet will be sworn in on Monday. The Cabinet will consist of 30 members and include six Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) parliamentarians, it said.

Mr Rajapaksa's son on Friday announced that the former strongman will resign on Saturday, after two crucial Supreme Court decisions made the embattled leader's efforts to cling to premiership untenable.

Sri Lanka's Supreme court on Friday refused to stay a court order restraining Rajapaksa, 73, from holding the office of Prime Minister until it fully heard the case next month.

"To ensure stability of the nation, Former President @PresRajapaksa has decided to resign from the Premiership tomorrow after an address to the nation," Rajapaksa's son Namal tweeted.

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) with former president, SLFP and others will "now work to form a broader political coalition with President Sirisena", Namal, a lawmaker, added.

The top court's Friday ruling came a day after it unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by President Sirisena was "illegal". </s> COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) - The Latest on explosions in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday (all times local):

The United Nations secretary-general is expressing condolences over the Sri Lankan bombings on Easter Sunday.

The statement issued by spokesman Stephane Dujarric said Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was outraged by the terrorist attacks on churches and hotels on a “sacred day for Christians around the world” and hoped the perpetrators will be swiftly brought to justice.

He said Sri Lanka had the support and solidarity of the United Nations in its difficult moment.

The bombings killed 290 people and were Sri Lanka’s deadliest violence since a devastating civil war ended a decade ago.

Police say the death toll from the Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka has increased to 290.

Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara also said Monday more than 500 people had been wounded.

The nine bombings of churches, luxury hotels and other sites was Sri Lanka’s deadliest violence since a devastating civil war ended a decade ago.

Indian officials say five Indians were killed in Sunday’s Sri Lanka bombings.

The external affairs minister and the Indian High Commission in Sri Lanka identified the five victims in a series of tweets.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke to Sri Lankan leaders and condemned the blasts. Modi tweeted, “There is no place for such barbarism in our region. India stands in solidarity with the people of Sri Lanka.”

Sri Lankan authorities have said at least 27 of the more than 200 dead were foreigners. The United States said several were Americans but didn’t give a figure. Japan has confirmed one dead. Sri Lanka’s foreign ministry says one Portuguese, two Turkish nationals, three British nationals and two holding U.S. and British nationalities were among the dead.

Sri Lankan authorities have lifted a curfew that was in place overnight following Easter Sunday bombings that killed more than 200 people.

The streets in the capital, Colombo, were largely deserted Monday morning, with most shops closed and a heavy deployment of soldiers and police. Stunned clergy and onlookers gathered at St. Anthony’s Shrine, looking past the soldiers to the damaged church that was targeted in one of the blasts.

The nine bombings of churches, luxury hotels and other sites was Sri Lanka’s deadliest violence since a devastating civil war ended a decade ago. Police the death toll, which was 207 late Sunday, had risen overnight but the figure wasn’t immediately released.

Police in Sri Lanka say the investigation into the Easter Sunday bombings will examine reports that the intelligence community failed to detect or warn of possible suicide attacks before the violence.

The nine bombings of churches, luxury hotels and other sites was Sri Lanka’s deadliest violence since a devastating civil war in the South Asian island nation ended a decade ago. Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara said Monday the death toll, which was 207 late Sunday, had risen overnight but the figure wasn’t immediately released.

Two government ministers have alluded to intelligence failures. Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara said Monday that the Criminal Investigation Department investigating the blasts will look into the reports.

Defense Minister Ruwan Wijewardena previously described the blasts as a terrorist attack by religious extremists. </s> Colombo, Dec 16: Sri Lanka's sacked prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was reinstated on Sunday, a legislator said, ending a 51-day political crisis in the island nation.

Wickremesinghe's comeback is an embarrassment for President Maithripala Sirisena, who replaced him with former president Mahinda Rajapaksa following differences over policymaking and other issues.

However, Rajapaksa failed to win a parliamentary majority and resigned on Saturday as a government shutdown loomed.

Also Read | Mahinda Rajapaksa resigns as Prime minister of Sri Lanka

The President removed Wickremesinghe from the post of Prime Minister on October 26 and appointed former president Rajapaksa as the Premier, plunging the country into an unprecedented crisis.

Wickremesinghe refused to accept the sacking and challenged it in a court and in the Parliament.

The apex court on Friday refused to stay a court order restraining Rajapaksa, 73, from holding the office of Prime Minister until it fully heard the case next month. </s> The Latest: New Zealand says it has not seen Sri Lanka link

COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — The Latest on the Easter attacks in Sri Lanka (all times local):

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says she hasn't received any official advice from Sri Lanka or seen any intelligence reports to corroborate claims from Sri Lanka's government that the Easter attacks were in retaliation for the mosque massacres in Christchurch last month.

Ardern told reporters in Auckland that Sri Lanka is in the early stages of its investigation, and that New Zealand plans to stand back and allow it to proceed. She said she hadn't been in direct contact with Sri Lanka, although officials from the two countries were in contact.

Sri Lanka's State Minister of Defense Ruwan Wijewardene said earlier the government had evidence the bombings were carried out by an Islamic fundamentalist group in retaliation for the March 15 mosque shootings in Christchurch that killed 50 people.

The U.S. Embassy in Sri Lanka says the FBI is on the ground in the country to help assist its investigation into the Easter suicide bombings that killed 359 people.

The embassy said it was part of the support extended by President Trump.

The embassy in Colombo declined to immediately elaborate.

Police say the death toll in the Easter attacks in Sri Lanka has risen to 359 and more suspects have been arrested.

Police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara also said Wednesday morning that 18 suspects were arrested overnight, raising the total detained to 58.

The prime minister warned on Tuesday that several suspects armed with explosives were still at large.

Another top government official said the suicide bombings at the churches, hotels and other sites were carried out by Islamic fundamentalists in apparent retaliation for the New Zealand mosque massacre last month.

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the Sri Lanka attacks and released images that purported to show the attackers. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that investigators were still determining the extent of the bombers' foreign links. </s> Mahinda Rajapaksa signed what was called a 'resignation' letter at his residence in capital Colombo.

Sri Lanka's disputed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has reportedly resigned from his post. (Photo: AP)

Colombo: Sri Lanka's disputed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has reportedly resigned from his post, ending a period of turbulence in the country's parliamentary history where he clung on to power despite suffering no-confidence motions.

Mahinda Rajapaksa signed what was called a 'resignation' letter at his residence in capital Colombo.

Rajapaksa informed the lawmakers of United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) that he has resigned from the post, MP Shehan Semasinghe told reporters.

Rajapaksa was appointed as the prime minister on October 26 by President Sirisena in a controversial move after sacking Ranil Wickremesinghe, which plunged the country into an unprecedented constitutional crisis.

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay a court order restraining Rajapaksa, 73, from holding the office of Prime Minister until it fully heard the case next month.

The apex court on Thursday unanimously declared that the dissolution of Parliament by Sirisena was "illegal".

Pro-Rajapaksa lawmaker, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena, had told reporters that Rajapaksa decided in a meeting on Friday with President Sirisena to resign to allow the President to appoint a new government.

After Rajapaksa's resignation, Ranil Wickremesinghe is expected to take oath as Sri Lanka's Prime Minister on Sunday.

President Maithripala Sirisena has reportedly agreed to reinstate ousted Prime Minister Wickremesinghe in the post after a discussion with him over the phone on Friday, Colombo Page reported.

Wickremesinghe's United National Party (UNP) said that it was decided during the discussion that he will take oath as the Prime Minister on Sunday.
For the first time in 43 years, Sri Lanka hires executioners to reinstate the death penalty.