ID :
115200
Mon, 04/05/2010 - 21:44
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/115200
The shortlink copeid
China to execute convicted Japanese drug smuggler Tuesday
+
DALIAN, China, April 5 Kyodo -
(EDS: UPDATING WITH MORE INFO)
China has told Japan it plans to execute the first of four convicted Japanese
drug smugglers on Tuesday, a source involved in Japan-China relations said
Monday.
The source said China plans to put to death Mitsunobu Akano, 65, who was
convicted in 2008 of attempting to smuggle 2.5 kilograms of stimulant drugs
from China to Japan with an accomplice in 2006.
Akano was earlier expected to be executed Monday. The reason for the delay was
not immediately clear.
Earlier Monday, Akano's family members met him at a detention facility in the
northeastern city of Dalian, another source said after a Japanese diplomatic
vehicle believed to be carrying them was seen leaving the facility.
The Dalian Intermediate People's Court sentenced Akano to death in June 2008.
He appealed, but the sentence was finalized after the High People's Court of
Liaoning upheld it in 2009.
If Akano is executed, it will be the first execution by China of a Japanese
national since the two countries normalized diplomatic relations in 1972.
China has also told Japan it will execute three more Japanese, convicted in
separate drug smuggling cases, as early as Thursday, as part of its strict
treatment of both Chinese and foreign criminals given a sharp increase in
drug-related crimes in China.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Saturday asked Japanese Deputy Prime Minister
Naoto Kan to accept Beijing's decision to execute the four convicts, saying
stimulant drug smuggling is a ''serious crime'' and the measure is ''based on
Chinese law.''
But Kan voiced concern over the planned executions, saying many people in Japan
feel the penalty is severer than Japanese standards.
''This issue is being handled on the basis of Chinese law,'' Kan quoted Wen as
telling him at a meeting in Beijing. ''The stimulant drugs they attempted to
take (to Japan from China) would have exposed thousands of people to danger.''
Similarly, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has expressed regret over the
planned execution.
In late December last year, China executed a British man convicted of smuggling
drugs into the country, which drew strong criticism from British Prime Minister
Gordon Brown and human rights groups.
==Kyodo
2010-04-05 23:07:16
DALIAN, China, April 5 Kyodo -
(EDS: UPDATING WITH MORE INFO)
China has told Japan it plans to execute the first of four convicted Japanese
drug smugglers on Tuesday, a source involved in Japan-China relations said
Monday.
The source said China plans to put to death Mitsunobu Akano, 65, who was
convicted in 2008 of attempting to smuggle 2.5 kilograms of stimulant drugs
from China to Japan with an accomplice in 2006.
Akano was earlier expected to be executed Monday. The reason for the delay was
not immediately clear.
Earlier Monday, Akano's family members met him at a detention facility in the
northeastern city of Dalian, another source said after a Japanese diplomatic
vehicle believed to be carrying them was seen leaving the facility.
The Dalian Intermediate People's Court sentenced Akano to death in June 2008.
He appealed, but the sentence was finalized after the High People's Court of
Liaoning upheld it in 2009.
If Akano is executed, it will be the first execution by China of a Japanese
national since the two countries normalized diplomatic relations in 1972.
China has also told Japan it will execute three more Japanese, convicted in
separate drug smuggling cases, as early as Thursday, as part of its strict
treatment of both Chinese and foreign criminals given a sharp increase in
drug-related crimes in China.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Saturday asked Japanese Deputy Prime Minister
Naoto Kan to accept Beijing's decision to execute the four convicts, saying
stimulant drug smuggling is a ''serious crime'' and the measure is ''based on
Chinese law.''
But Kan voiced concern over the planned executions, saying many people in Japan
feel the penalty is severer than Japanese standards.
''This issue is being handled on the basis of Chinese law,'' Kan quoted Wen as
telling him at a meeting in Beijing. ''The stimulant drugs they attempted to
take (to Japan from China) would have exposed thousands of people to danger.''
Similarly, Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama has expressed regret over the
planned execution.
In late December last year, China executed a British man convicted of smuggling
drugs into the country, which drew strong criticism from British Prime Minister
Gordon Brown and human rights groups.
==Kyodo
2010-04-05 23:07:16
