Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Heated debate has gripped China's web and
social media following the decision of Chinese authorities to broadcast on live
TV the final moments ahead of the execution of four people sentenced to death
for murder and drug trafficking. Among those executed was Burmese Naw Kham,
considered one of kingpins of the "Golden Triangle" drug world that
encompasses Thailand, Myanmar and Laos, the epicenter of world's opium crops. The
sentence was carried out yesterday in Kunming, Yunnan Province, by lethal
injection.
In November, four men - a Burmese, a Laotian, a Thai citizen and a stateless
person - were sentenced to death for the murder in October 2011 of 13 Chinese
fishermen on the Thai side of the Mekong River. The sailors were on board two
vessels flying the Chinese flag, the Hua Ping and Yu Xing 8. In May last year,
the four were arrested by police in Laos and Beijing immediately demanded their
extradition for trial, because they claimed the attack took place "in
Chinese territory."
Chinese state television CCTV broadcast images of the men being taken from
their cells to the place where the execution was scheduled to take place.
However, the cameras have stopped moments before the four were handed over to
the Executioner, in the death chamber. The face of the Burmese Naw Kham, the
best known of the group, was devoid of expression. A trace of a smile only
appeared as a guard read him his sentence.
Executions are a common practice in China: every year almost 5 thousand death
sentences are carried out, but the real number - according to experts - could
be far greater. Until 30 years ago it was common practice to parade the
condemned in public before subjecting them to the firing squad. However, over
time the practice has acquired a "private" character with only a few
"witnesses" admitted into the death chamber, where the condemned are
killed by lethal injection.
Human rights activists speak of an "affront to human dignity" and
"unethical behavior, contrary to the spirit of the law." Some
Internet users approve the move, but the majority of bloggers have expressed
condemnation. For experts, the decision is "strongly symbolic", given
that the TV is controlled by the Chinese leadership thus leaving "no
doubt" that the "green light" to go ahead with the live
broadcast was given by very highest levels of the Communist Party.