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Human rights group slams 'death penalty' legislation

Imposing the death penalty for those disclosing state secrets and documents to enemy countries as part of a proposed law was criticised by leading human rights group here on day.

  • Staff Report
  • Published: 00:01 August 9, 2008
  • Gulf News

Manama: Imposing the death penalty for those disclosing state secrets and documents to enemy countries as part of a proposed law was criticised by leading human rights group here on day.

The Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society (BHRWS) highlighted in a statement its concern for the bill tabled by five members to the upper house for including the death sentence in new legislation despite worldwide rejection of such punishment.

"Lawmakers should keep up with international trends while drafting their legislation as many countries are fighting to scrap the death penalty in their outdated laws, while here we are reimposing it," a BHRWS member and member of the upper house, Faisal Fulad said in the statement.

Right to live

"Killing people cannot be justified as those with massive crimes could be sentenced to life imprisonment because life and death are granted by God only."

He said that every human being had the right to live even those who were disloyal to their state as emphasised by the International Declaration for Human Rights.

"The death penalty that has been imposed for many centuries has failed to eliminate crimes and harm done to nations because of the disloyalty of some of their citizens, so different measures should be considered."

"As a lawmaker I will support my colleagues' bill to protect state secrets as top priority but I will lobby the house to reduce the death penalty to life imprisonment," he added.

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