Word: shaikh
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...Such progress came too late to save Akmal Shaikh, who on Dec. 29 became the first European in 50 years to be executed in China when he was given a lethal injection in the northwestern city of Urumqi. The 53-year-old Brit was convicted of smuggling 4 kg of heroin into China from Tajikistan. Shaikh's family had pleaded for Chinese courts to take into account his history of mental illness. The human-rights group Reprieve documented numerous incidents of erratic and delusional behavior by Shaikh, including his recording of a song, titled "Come Little Rabbit," that he apparently...
...British government made dozens of appeals on Shaikh's behalf. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said he was "appalled and disappointed" that requests for clemency were denied and that he was "particularly concerned that no mental-health assessment was undertaken." The U.K. Foreign Office also summoned China's ambassador. China's Foreign Ministry rejected the criticism. At a recent briefing, spokeswoman Jiang Yu called complaints "groundless" and said China expressed "resolute opposition." She added that the U.K.'s response threatened to undermine the countries' bilateral relations...
...past, the Chinese government has cited the need for deterrence and public support of the death penalty to justify its broad use of capital punishment. In online forums on Chinese websites, opinion over the Shaikh case tends to back the official stance. "We should stick to the Chinese law no matter what, instead of bending under the pressure from Western countries," wrote a commentator in a chat room on Tianya.com. "Otherwise, we would only damage the dignity of China's judicial system...
That's of little comfort to members of Shaikh's family. On Wednesday they expressed "grief at the Chinese decision to refuse mercy" and thanked "all those who tried hard to bring about a different result," according to a statement released by Reprieve. But China's willingness to at least discuss the death penalty offers the slim hope that in the future it will become less of a source of anger and dismay at home and abroad.- With reporting by Jessie Jiang / Beijing...
Mohammed, Khalid Shaikh • claims of that torture led to making up of stuff...