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Fury as China executes British drug smuggler

Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/dec/29/akmal-shaikh-execution-china

China will not be intimidated.

Who else will manufacture our children's toys and mobile phones?.... you?

Comments

  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    thats a shame :(
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    The Chinese have a bit of a grudge against the British on drugs... you know the bit when we went to war with them because they didn't want us to sell them our opium.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    justjames wrote: »
    Who else will manufacture our children's toys and mobile phones?.... you?

    That's okay then, we'll let them execute a few Brits just so that we can have cheap tacky shite for Xmas every year.

    The Death Penalty is never justice.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    It seems that the Chinese are now saying that if they had known about his mental illness then they might have considered it, but that he had no prior record of it?

    The long rambling speeches made to judges that left many in creases of laughter, and amongst other things, the crazy chats that people have had with him, might have shown something was a bit wrong.

    What annoys me is the Chinese reluctance to investigate this blokes illness despite being made aware of it.

    My personal view is that the Chinese dont want the embarassment of having to go back on themselves and show weakness in the eyes of the international world in regards to their judicial system.

    Its a shame that compassion isnt weakness.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Check out some of the Chinese news websites just to see the slant some of them have taken on it.

    I always thought that the Chinese had slanted pussies. Sorry, couldn't resist it! It was something I read a few years back while the China vs USA computer hacking wars were going on :-)
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Awful and sickening, but not surprising considering their track record wth human rights, particularly their oppression and murder of innocent Tibetan monks.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    whats the worst that could happen to China? nothing.

    The world has to work with China. China can do whatever it wants and theres nothing the West can do about it. The most we can do is say how much we find it despicable, but if we are truly honest to ourselves we know that China cannot be intimidated. Never has.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    justjames wrote: »
    Who else will manufacture our children's toys and mobile phones?.... you?

    Mine came from Finland. Shame the battery didn't, but it's a start.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Given they routinely celebrate UN Drug Free Day by putting lots of drug dealers to death I don't see why they would treat this guy any differently.

    As others have pointed out they are the World power now and I doubt even if the US could have the power to stop them putting an American in the same situation to death.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    MoK wrote: »
    That's okay then, we'll let them execute a few Brits just so that we can have cheap tacky shite for Xmas every year.

    The Death Penalty is never justice.
    hm...

    The death penalty may not be justice from your western eyes perspective, but if that’s what the Chinese want then I really don’t think you should condemn them. We should "let" them govern their country how they wish.

    Wouldn’t you be pretty fucked off if a foreign national came to your country, broke one of your laws, got convicted and got punished, only to hear their home nation being whipped into a frenzy about how your laws are wrong?

    If you think my comments sound familiar... click here
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    sanitize wrote: »
    hm...

    The death penalty may not be justice from your western eyes perspective, but if that’s what the Chinese want then I really don’t think you should condemn them. We should "let" them govern their country how they wish.

    Wouldn’t you be pretty fucked off if a foreign national came to your country, broke one of your laws, got convicted and got punished, only to hear their home nation being whipped into a frenzy about how your laws are wrong?

    If you think my comments sound familiar... click here



    I kind of agree. As distasteful as it might be to execute people, it is the way China and the Chinese have decided they want to do things. Justice or not, we have neither the influence nor the right to tell them how to do things.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I have to disagree. As a society that is supposedly caring and civilised, we have every right in the world to demand people are treated humanely, regardless of what the local laws might say.

    It is now the position of this country and various others that the death penalty is unjustifiable and a barbarity. As such we have every right to protest against such practices, and to try to dissuade others if at all possible from carrying it out.

    Would you guys be still saying the same if the British person executed had been a woman stoned to death for adultery in, say, Somalia?

    If we and the rest of the EU had any spine, we would create a system in which countries with poor human records and those with the death penalty in their justice system would see reduced trade and diplomatic ties- and if that includes the likes of China and the US, fuck them too.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    MoK wrote: »
    That's okay then, we'll let them execute a few Brits just so that we can have cheap tacky shite for Xmas every year.

    The Death Penalty is never justice.

    My perspective is generally one where the best way to influence China is to become closer with them, exchange cultures, let them adopt some of our values (and maybe just maybe we adopt some of theirs as well!)... rather than shouting at them and trying to make a stand everytime they do something we don't like.

    But that's a generalisation of my feelings.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I don't think that it's really possible to "make a stand" but we shouldn't stop shouting.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Aladdin wrote: »
    I have to disagree. As a society that is supposedly caring and civilised, we have every right in the world to demand people are treated humanely, regardless of what the local laws might say.

    Surely you don't mean us do you? Frankly I wouldn't describe our 'justice' system as caring or civilised.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    MoK wrote: »
    I don't think that it's really possible to "make a stand" but we shouldn't stop shouting.

    I agree, I just think it's one of those two-sided things. Like, imagine you made a friend, and you would hang out with your friend, and they were a bit different from you. And maybe, when you went out for drinks, they started saying sexist things and wolf whistling at girls. Now, you can do option a) ignore b) shout at them and storm off or c) change the subject, try to set a nice example... which is very generalistically speaking my perspective of what we should attempt to do with China. And perhaps America even, as we never seem to call them out for their naughty behaviour do we?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I would like to know what would happen to a chinese man smugging 5kg of heroin to UK and getting caught.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    StrubbleS wrote: »
    I would like to know what would happen to a chinese man smugging 5kg of heroin to UK and getting caught.

    He'd probably get between 8-12 years I would think depending on the circumstances.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    He may also have at least a chance of a mental health assessment.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    He may also have at least a chance of a mental health assessment.

    Really? I presume you know an alarming percentage of our prisoners have mental health problems. Now they are so overcrowded prisons have basically become holding pens, any idea that they might actually help/treat/rehabilitate has gone out of the window.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Has being close to America stopped them executing mentally ill people?
    Has it stopped them from locking up more of their own people than any other nation on earth?
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Really? I presume you know an alarming percentage of our prisoners have mental health problems. Now they are so overcrowded prisons have basically become holding pens, any idea that they might actually help/treat/rehabilitate has gone out of the window.

    Oh yeah, that's why I said 'might have a chance' - as opposed to no chance at all.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    Has it stopped them from locking up more of their own people than any other nation on earth?

    In percentage terms of population China is behind the US in terms of prison population.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    budda wrote: »
    In percentage terms of population China is behind the US in terms of prison population.

    I know ...thats why I said Americans lock up more of their own people than anyone else on earth ...and in case you missed it ...they also execute mentally ill people.
  • Former MemberFormer Member Posts: 1,876,323 The Mix Honorary Guru
    I know ...thats why I said Americans lock up more of their own people than anyone else on earth ...and in case you missed it ...they also execute mentally ill people.

    Oh I thought you meant the Chinese imprison more people than anyone else, which I suspect they might in pure numbers terms. Although having said that I did hear a while ago that the US has 2% of the Worlds population and about 25% of its prisoners, but I can't provide a source for that.
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