Justice Denied: A Global Study of Wrongful Death Row Convictions January 2018 THE CORNELL CENTER ON THE DEATH PENALTY WORLDWIDE Artwork by Aftab Bahadur, wrongfully convicted in Pakistan, and executed on June 10, 2015. 1 © CORNELL CENTER ON THE DEATH PENALTY WORLDWIDE Justice Denied: A Global Study of Wrongful Death Row Convictions THE CORNELL CENTER ON THE DEATH PENALTY WORLDWIDE January 2018 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................................................................2 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................................4 THE PREVALENCE OF WRONGFUL CONVICTIONS AROUND THE WORLD ............................................................6 SYSTEMIC RISK FACTORS FOR WRONGFUL CONVICTIONS: LESSONS LEARNED FROM THE INNOCENCE MOVEMENT WORLDWIDE..................................................................................................................................8 COUNTRY PROFILES .......................................................................................................................................... 13 Chapter 1: Cameroon ........................................................................................................................................ 13 Case Study: Moctar Amadou and Salissou Moussa ....................................................................................................... 13 Risk Factors for WronGful Convictions in Cameroon ..................................................................................................... 15 Chapter 2: Indonesia ......................................................................................................................................... 19 Case Study: Humphrey Jefferson Ejike Eleweke ............................................................................................................. 19 Risk Factors for WronGful Convictions in Indonesia ...................................................................................................... 22 Chapter 3: Jordan.............................................................................................................................................. 27 Case Study: Badar Ramadan Shaath ............................................................................................................................ 27 Risk Factors for WronGful Convictions in Jordan ........................................................................................................... 29 Chapter 4: Malawi............................................................................................................................................. 34 Case Study: John Nthara, Jamu Banda, and Michael Banda .......................................................................................... 34 Risk Factors for WronGful Convictions in Malawi .......................................................................................................... 36 Chapter 5: Nigeria ............................................................................................................................................. 41 Case Study: Monday Ilada Prosper ............................................................................................................................... 41 Risk Factors for WronGful Convictions in NiGeria .......................................................................................................... 44 Chapter 6: Pakistan ........................................................................................................................................... 49 Case Study: AftaB Bahadur .......................................................................................................................................... 49 Risk Factors for WronGful Convictions in Pakistan ........................................................................................................ 52 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS ......................................................................................................... 57 ENDNOTES ........................................................................................................................................................ 60 FURTHER READING ........................................................................................................................................... 82 THE CORNELL CENTER ON THE DEATH PENALTY WORLDWIDE aims to bridge critical gaps in research and advocacy around the death penalty. First, the Center provides comprehensive, transparent data on the death penalty laws and practices of all countries and territories that retain the death penalty. Second, it publishes reports and manuals on issues of practical relevance to defense lawyers, governments, courts, and organizations grappling with questions relating to the application of the death penalty, particularly in the global south. Third, it engages in targeted litigation and advocacy focusing on the implementation of fair trial standards and the rights of those who come into conflict with the law, including juveniles, women, and individuals with intellectual disabilities and mental illnesses. Finally, it provides training through the Makwanyane Institute to a cadre of competitively chosen Fellows, who undergo intensive capital defense training with the intent to return home and share their knowledge with other capital defenders around the globe. More information is available at www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org. 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This report was authored by Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide Executive Director Delphine Lourtau, Faculty Director Sandra Babcock, and Expert Consultant Katie Campbell. Research and Advocacy Director Sharon Pia Hickey, Clinical Teaching Fellow Madalyn Wasilczuk, Research and Advocacy Associate Julie Bloch, and Center Assistant Randi Kepecs provided substantial research, editing, and technical assistance. We are grateful to Cornell students Avery Cummings, Darnell Epps, Laurel Hopkins, Charlotte Hopkinson, Jenna Kyle, and Tang Rongjie, for providing critical research support. The authors are immensely grateful to the many individuals and organizations who shared their time, knowledge, and insights with us. Without their contributions, this publication would not have been possible. We are particularly indebted to the following organizations and individuals who conducted on-the-ground investigations that informed the country chapters: IN CAMEROON: The Réseau des avocats camerounais contre la peine de mort (RACOPEM), or Cameroonian Network of Lawyers Against the Death Penalty, is a national association of lawyers that advocates for the abolition of the death penalty and the respect of human rights within the criminal justice system. It does so by undertaking research on death penalty issues, organizing capital defense trainings, and holding awareness-raising events to encourage civil society and media debates on capital punishment issues. IN INDONESIA: LBH Masyarakat is a not-for-profit non-governmental organization, based in Jakarta, that provides free legal services for the poor and victims of human rights abuses, including people facing the death penalty or execution; undertakes community legal empowerment for marginalized groups; and advocates for law reform and human rights protection through campaigns, strategic litigation, policy advocacy, research, and analysis. IN JORDAN: Iyad Alqaisi is a practicing lawyer based in Amman and the director of Justice Clinic, an NGO focused on legal reforms. He is a member of the Jordan Bar Association and the Palestinian Bar Association. An Open Society Foundation Rule of Law Fellow, he holds an LL.M from Syracuse University, New York and an LL.B from Jordan's Yarmouk University. IN MALAWI: We relied heavily on data generated by the Malawi Resentencing Project, spearheaded by the Malawi Human Rights Commission in collaboration with the Cornell Law School International Human Rights Clinic, Reprieve, the Paralegal Advisory Services Institute, the Director of Public Prosecutions, Legal Aid, the Malawi Law Society, Chancellor College of Law, and the Malawi Prisons Service. Through this project, paralegals and lawyers gathered mitigating evidence for more than 150 prisoners who had received mandatory death sentences. After hearing this evidence in accordance with a new, discretionary sentencing regime, the high courts released 124 prisoners—the rest received reduced sentences. IN NIGERIA: The Legal Defence and Assistance Project (LEDAP) is a non-governmental organization of lawyers and law professionals engaged in the promotion and protection of human rights, the rule of law, and good governance in Nigeria. LEDAP employs a range of methods to achieve its mission. It employs impact 2 litigation and social advocacy to advance the rule of law and good governance, and provides free legal representation to poor and vulnerable victims of human rights violations, with special projects to support representation of women and children. LEDAP also works with the Directors of Public Prosecution to improve administration of criminal justice in the country, and undertakes programs to raise awareness of international human rights norms within the legal community in Nigeria. IN PAKISTAN: Justice Project Pakistan is a legal action non-profit organization based in Lahore, Pakistan.