To:
President Mahmoud Abbas
Office of the President
Ramallah
Prime Minister Dr. Salam Fayyad
The Prime Minister’s office
Ramallah
Minister of Justice Dr. Ali Khashaan
Ministry of Justice
Ramallah
(By Fax and E-Mail)
Re: Death Penalty: the sentencing to death of Emad Mahmoud Sa’ed Sa’ed
and Tha’er Mahmoud Husni Ermeliat
Dear Sirs,
The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI) opposes the death penalty, considering it fundamentally immoral and a violation of the basic rights to life and to freedom from torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. We call on President Mahmoud Abbas not to ratify the death sentences imposed on 28 April 2008 by the High Military Court of the Palestinian National Authority against Emad Mahmoud Sa’ed Sa’ed, convicted of treason and collaboration with Israel, and Tha’er Mahmoud Husni Ermeliat, who was convicted on 6 April 2008 of the murder of a National Security Forces officer.
No matter how serious the offences, PCATI condemns the death sentences imposed in these cases. In the case of Emad Mahmoud Sa’ed Sa’ed, in particular, the death sentence was the outcome of legal proceedings that fail to meet international standards of a fair trial including the right of appeal.
Criminals must be tried and sentenced but the process of justice must be carried out in accordance with international standards of fair trial. Every person has the right not to be subjected to cruel and inhuman treatment and punishment, a right proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and embodied in the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights and the United Nations Convention Against Torture. The inherent dignity and worth of every human being is incompatible with punishment by death. While it is true that Palestine cannot yet be a state party to international treaties and covenants, protecting fundamental human rights is in the interests of all peoples in the region and can only contribute to a future that we all desire.
Therefore The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel calls on you to assure that the death sentences imposed upon Emad Mahmoud Sa’ed Sa’ed and Tha’er Mahmoud Husni Ermeliat be commuted. We also urge the Palestinian National Authority to alter its penal and security legislation with the view of banning the death penalty, as is the trend in the international community.
Respectfully yours,
Dr. Ishai Menuchin
Executive Director
Cc:
Tzipi Livni, Minister of Foreign Affairs
Xavier Solana, EU Foreign Minister
Tony Blair, Official Envoy of the Quartet on the Middle East
Al Haq, Ramallah
PCHR, Gaza
United Against Torture Coalition
Amnesty International, London
World Organization Against Torture (OMCT), Geneva
Human Rights Watch, USA
The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network
The International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH)
The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT)
Rehabilitation and Research Center Center for Torture Victims (RCT), Denmark
Agir Ensemble
Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens’ Rights
B’tselem
Physicians for Human Rights
The Association for Civil Rights in Israel
Shomrei Mishpat-Rabbis for Human Rights
Hamoked-Center for the Defense of the Individual
Adalah
Arab Human Rights Association
Amnesty International-Israel Section
