LONDON —

Amnesty International Secretary General Irene Khan expressed disappointment Tuesday that Japan not only continues to use the death penalty but that executions have actually increased, totaling seven since this January alone. At the launch of the human rights organization’s annual report in central London, an Amnesty Asia spokesperson expanded on Khan’s disappointment, saying, ‘‘We have been very discouraged by the increase in the number of executions in Japan over the past six months.’’

‘‘We will continue, both through our membership in Japan itself and internationally, to press the Japanese government to backtrack on this very alarming trend,’’ the spokesperson said, confirming there had been no response from the Japanese government to an open letter Amnesty sent it in April urging a cessation of executions.

The extensive 150-country report also raised ‘‘serious concern’’ that the daiyo-kangoku system of pre-trial detention does not comply with international standards and held Japan to account for its lack of action to resolve the justice issue surrounding the survivors of Japan’s World War II military sexual slavery system despite international pressure.

Japan was far from the only country to come under fire, with Khan remarking there has been 60 years of human rights failure around the world since the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Khan challenged world leaders to recommit themselves to delivering concrete improvements to the global human rights situation.

‘‘2008 presents an unprecedented opportunity for new leaders coming to power and countries emerging on the world stage to set a new direction and reject the myopic policies and practices that in recent years have made the world a more dangerous and divided place,’’ Khan said, referencing the United States in particular as a country where ‘‘the most powerful must lead by example.’’

June 3 2008

Latest 15 of 37 Total Comments Show All

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  usaexpat at 12:42 AM JST - 29th May

  Patrick, Japan's legal system is far from perfect but so is the US and many others. To argue your point which I assume is a fear of executing the innocent you need to have statistics on false convictions. How many people do you really believe are wrongly jailed here?

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  1proudamerican at 03:12 AM JST - 29th May

  its far more cruel to make someone sit, and think about loss of liberity,and freedom for the rest of there life. so im all for letting them sit there and rot.i dont care how much money it cost,it is only money.

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  1proudamerican at 03:22 AM JST - 29th May

  killing then gives tham an eazy way out in my view.

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  WhiteHawk at 03:51 AM JST - 29th May

  1proudamerican:

  its far more cruel to make someone sit, and think about loss of liberity,and freedom for the rest of there life.

  You're assuming such people are capable of feeling guilt or remorse. More often than not, they're just shy of being sociopaths. Prison life is its own society, and pretty much anyone capable of murdering another person on the outside can comfortably adjust to life on the inside.

  Granted, I'm talking about American prisons. Japanese prisons have the reputation of being rougher than Gitmo.

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  1proudamerican at 04:39 AM JST - 29th May

  thats why i say let them sit.

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  1proudamerican at 04:44 AM JST - 29th May

  if they fear for there own life, maybe they will get a taste of what they put there victims felt. to me thats as close an eye for a eye justice as you can get,i could be wrong.

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  KitsuneYoukai at 05:55 AM JST - 29th May

  PatrickSmash...Perhaps in New Jersey that's the way it was but not everywhere else. I took a cultural anthropology course in college and life in prison is more expensive than giving them death. And stop with the rhetoric speach about the innocent. I think we all here understand that that is a potential. It doesn't mean that we want it to happen or will not regret it if it happens.

  Some of you say, giving them death is an easy way out, well, we don't know that for sure now do we? Perhaps they o to a far worse and darker place.

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  nimbus at 06:14 AM JST - 29th May

  Of course the death penalty is more expensive when you have unlimited and unending appeals even if the guy is obviously guilty beyond any doubt.

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  akuma1985 at 10:41 AM JST - 29th May

  to kitsune

  in first i m not sure than death sentence is cheaper thans life in prison. when someone will be convict for 10 or 20 years before execution it s just no sense. yes i think than we can stop death sentence just because the life in jail is maybe worst. last years i saw than italian life sentenced prisoner asked to be executed because for them the life in jail was worst so just think about it. If someone kill me or someone than i like i prefer than this person will be sentence to life in jail than death, death sentence is too easy. an unknow just kill someone and it s over, but your life or pain stay same.

  amnisty international are clown why does they speak about human right in japan but do nothing about US? it s right US is an exemple. death sentence, torture, war and some other.

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  blvtzpk at 06:24 PM JST - 29th May

  amnisty international are clown why does they speak about human right in japan but do nothing about US? it s right US is an exemple. death sentence, torture, war and some other.

  Clearly, another person with a ton of knowledge about AI!

  http://www.amnesty.org/en/region/americas/north-america/usa

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  himasan at 10:38 PM JST - 29th May

  A length of rope and a tree doesnt sound very expensive to me.

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  vultor at 05:16 AM JST - 31st May

  Whatever disappoints AI!

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  European1 at 05:58 PM JST - 31st May

  interesting thing is that I`ve never heard of foreigner being executed. We know Japanese do not commit crime and we have to be fingerprinted because we are potential risk. How it comes?

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  Damax6 at 10:04 PM JST - 2nd June

  fry em all!!!!gas them, inject them, whatevers mean necessary, why in hell do i have to pay for their "3-squares",rack, and raping in the sack. all sick puppies, FRY EM!!!

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  Molenir at 05:29 AM JST - 4th June

  lol, the death penalty is a good example of where the US is leading by example. Murderers should be executed. No other way to say it.

  Making Amnesty Int. unhappy in this instance can only be a good thing.

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