"La fecha ha sido fijada para ejecutar a criminales de drogas", dice el Presidente de Sri Lanka

Flickr CC Patrick Feller

Noticias

"La fecha ha sido fijada para ejecutar a criminales de drogas", dice el Presidente de Sri Lanka

5 abril 2019

El país termina así con su moratoria de casi cuatro décadas sobre la pena de muerte, so pretexto de reducir el tráfico. Más información, en inglés, está disponible abajo.

By Meera Srinivasan

President Maithripala Sirisena on Sunday said he had fixed a date to execute convicted drug traffickers, reiterating his earlier announcement on restoring the death penalty in Sri Lanka.

He was speaking at an event on drug prevention, attended by religious heads representing different faiths, and underscored his resolve to eradicate the problem of illegal drug trafficking, braving “any challenge” that might come his way, a press statement issued by the President’s Media Division said. “A schedule is ready,” he said. Amid what officials call “a heightening drug menace”, President Sirisena announced in February that the death penalty would be restored to combat the problem.

Sri Lanka has a four decade-long moratorium on capital punishment and his controversial decision lifting that has drawn considerable criticism from international rights watchdogs and local civil society. Further, authorities advertised for the job of a hangman and received over 100 applications, according to a Reuters report early March.