New Delhi: The European Union (EU) Friday condemned the hanging of four convicts of the 16 December Delhi gang rape case, calling it a “cruel and inhumane punishment”.
“Today, four executions took place in India. Those executed were convicted of gang-rape and murder of a paramedical student. The European Union reiterates its condemnation in the strongest terms of these heinous crimes and expresses its sympathy to the family of the victim. Perpetrators must be held accountable for their acts and receive appropriate punishments,” said Virginie Battu-Henriksson, spokesperson for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, European Union External Action, in a statement.
At the same time, the spokesperson added: “The EU recalls its unequivocal opposition to the use of capital punishment in all circumstances. It is a cruel and inhumane punishment, which fails to act as a deterrent and represents an unacceptable denial of human dignity and integrity.”
The four convicts — Mukesh Kumar Singh (32), Pawan Gupta (25), Vinay Sharma (26) and Akshay Kumar (31) — were hanged early Friday morning, seven years after the crime.
This is the first time that four convicts were hanged together on the same platform.
Also read: Day before 2012 gangrape convicts’ hanging, disbelief and despair at their Ravidas Camp homes
International jurist panel condemns too
Meanwhile, calling for an abolition of death penalty, the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) also denounced the executions and urged the Indian government to introduce “systemic changes to the legal system that would deter violence and improve access to justice for women”.
“State-sanctioned executions are little more than public theatre that risk celebrating and perpetuating violence at the expense of the rule of law,” said Frederick Rawski, ICJ’s Asia-Pacific Director in a statement.
“As heinous as these crimes were, the imposition of the death penalty — the deterrent effect of which has been widely debunked — does nothing to improve the lives of women,” Rawski added.
The ICJ also highlighted a statement made by the UN Human Rights Committee that said: “The death penalty cannot be reconciled with full respect for the right to life, and abolition of the death penalty is both desirable and necessary for the enhancement of human dignity and progressive development of human rights.”
Also read: ‘Will rapes magically end now?’ — Families of 16 December convicts blame media trial
Cruel act..they were very young ..nd above all the disgusting is people rejoiced the death. this case has lots of flaws. nd people proved that they r really illogical vnd violent..all r sinners..a fully biased case..God is there to see..still rape cases r here.. grassroot level erasement is needed..which comes from each home..killing 4 people in the name of justice is totally inhuman..SAD
Death penalty should be abolished because in this case I highly doubt the fairness of investigation and court decision which was under high media pressure and political pressure. Why a CBI enquiry was not done. Who knows some of the so called convicts were innocent or even did not legally deserved a death sentence
But illogical nd violent people don’t understand.This case has flaws.
EU can mind its own business. It is governed by fools anyway
Sinners are always punished since the hamans were made and before any law was made.Demons should not survive on plant though in the form of humans. This was wanted by our country people where they live and not from other country’s people.Others should mind their own problems.
Was the act of murder and rape humane conduct? I think, Europe and America should keep their collective corona-infected noses out of India’s affairs. They are at liberty abolish capital punishment in their countries. Let not EU lecture India. This is the territory where even as late as early 19th century, people were burned at stake for religious dissent. Barbarians lecturing others.
True.
Punishment in heinous crimes should be such that it not only punishes the criminal , but also works as example of deterrent to others to indulge in such crimes . On this criterion awarding death sentence in gang rape is not disproportionate to crime committed. Rather delay in executions in this types of crimes is regrettable. The legal luminaries should find ways to shorten the period between crime and punishment.
“Cruel and inhumane” – in fact is the so-called juvenile getting away. The most depraved of the lot according to media reports — now cooking biryani in the South.
The left liberal cabal is the same whether in India or European Union or any other country. There seems to be a LEFT VIRUS as dangerous as Corona virus. Once a person is infected with the LEFT VIRUS, his/her mind doesn’t work in normal way. As Conrona infected people are quarantined, left liberal cabal must be quarantined to check the spread of LEFT VIRUS.
So many people were killed or driven out of their home by state orchestrated terrorism by Pakistan. Did these international court ever intervened or passed judgement against Pakistan?
Where did these jokers to when the rape incident was happening?
I think distributing sweets, celebrating execution, doing fireworks, dancing on streets when family of accused were crying.
Does that enough barbaric?
Europe’s former colonial powers suddenly turned anti death penalty after WW-2 when they lost their colonies, because they did not want to be subject to the same laws that they had oppressed their slaves with for 300+ years. Whether it was Belgium which killed Congolese toddlers before their parents when they took a break from working in mines, or a Britain which took a delight in blowing Indians up in a public spectacle with cannons, it was fear of possibly finding their citizens subject to cruelty that these nations had pioneered that suddenly gave them a “moral” tone. India would do well to give these pompous former thugs the Hawaiian good luck gesture for trying to talk down to it. It is time to let them know that they are no longer India’s colonial overlords.
Well said
Thanks for sharing this historical perspective. The colonial rulers were barbaric and inhuman. How soon they have become the torch bearers of human rights.
Death is a very good deterrent. EU leaders need to get off their high horses and admit their culture is not always the RIGHT way for everything.
Who cares what these impotent scoundrels think ? EU has no business giving “Sermons” – the Europeans should tell us how they are working to atone for their centuries of colonialism and slave trade first.
ICJ is not a judicial body in India and their idea of justice is of no consequence in India – as Justice flows through the will of the people.
I would happily bring the rope.
Surely these EU commenters are not aware of the full details of the crime. If they are, and are still calling it “cruel and inhuman”, then ask them how many women in their country are willing to give a f*** as a charity, and then have iron rod pressed into their vagina to further satiate a deprived man. To demonstrate their personal commitment to the “cruel & inhuman” comment, ask the male commenter if he would quickly offer to go to the nearest prison and have himself buggered by a poor deprived prisoner, and ask a female commenter if she would do likewise. And for effects, if they would personally insist on the iron rod sequence.
These jokers will not say the same if something happens to them.