URGENT ACTION

MAcau resident AT RISK OF EXECUTION IN CHINA

A man sentenced to death in China for drugs offences, Lau Fat-wai, is currently having his case reviewed by the Supreme People's Court. If the Supreme People's Court upholds his death sentence, he could be executed within a week of the court's decision.

Lau Fat-wai is a resident of Macau, a partly autonomous special administrative region of China. He was arrested in mainland China in April 2006 accused of transporting and manufacturing drugs and the illegal trading in materials for manufacturing drugs. He was sentenced to death by the Guangzhou City Intermediate People's Court, south-east China, on 16 March 2009. Thirteen other co-defendants were convicted for various crimes including manufacturing and selling drugs and illegal possession of firearms, and were given sentences ranging from three years to death sentence with a two year reprieve.

Guangdong Provincial Higher People’s Court upheld Lau Fat-wai’s death sentence on 28 September 2011. The Supreme People's Court, which reviews all death sentences in China and has the power to approve or revise them, is now reviewing Lau Fat-wai's case.

Lau Fat-wai is currently detained in Guangzhou City No. 1 Detention Centre. According to his family, the authorities have not allowed them to meet with Lau Fat-wai since his arrest April 2006. They have only been able to correspond with him through letters.

Please write immediately in Chinese or your own language:

urging the Chinese authorities not to execute Lau Fat-wai;

calling on the authorities to ensure that Lau Fat-wai has access to his family and any medical attention he may require;

urging the National People’s Congress to introduce a legal procedure for requesting clemency and to eliminate the death penalty for all non-violent crimes;

urging the authorities to establish an immediate moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty, in line with UN General Assembly resolutions 62/149 of 18 December 2007, 63/168 of 18 December 2008 and 65/206 of 21 December 2010.

P LEASE SEND APPEALS BEFORE 1 MARCH 2012 TO :

Supreme People's Court President

WANG Shengjun Yuanzhang

Zuigao Renmin Fayuan

27 Dongjiaomin Xiang

Beijingshi 100745

People's Republic of China

Fax: +86 10 6529 2345

Salutation: Dear President

National People's Congress Standing Committee Chairman

WU Bangguo Weiyuanzhang

Quanguo Renda Changwu Weiyuanhui Bangongting, 23 Xijiaominxiang

Xichengqu

Beijingshi 100805

People’s Republic of China

Salutation: Dear Chairman

And copies to:

Chief Executive of Macau Special Administrative Region

CHUI Sai On Fernando

Sede do Governo da RAEM

Avenida da Praia Grande

Macau

Fax: +853 2872 6168

Email: gce@raem.gov.mo

Salutation: Dear Chief Executive

Also send copies to diplomatic representatives accredited to your country. Please insert local diplomatic addresses below:

Name Address 1 Address 2 Address 3 Fax Fax number Email Email address Salutation Salutation

Please check with your section office if sending appeals after the above date.

URGENT ACTION

MACAU RESIDENT AT RISK OF EXECUTION IN CHINA

ADditional Information

No one sentenced to death receives a fair trial in China. There are also significant gaps between the law, practice and international commitments made by China to uphold international fair trial standards. Many have had confessions accepted despite saying in court that these were extracted under torture; have had to prove themselves innocent, rather than be proven guilty; and have had limited access to legal counsel.

The death penalty is applicable to at least 55 offences in China, including non-violent ones, such as drug-related crimes. Statistics on the death penalty are a state secret but Amnesty International estimates that China executes thousands of people every year and certainly more than the rest of the world combined.

In January 2007, the practice of having the Supreme People’s Court (SPC) review all death sentences was restored. It had been suspended in 1982. All death sentences must now be reviewed by the SPC, which has the power to approve or revise death sentences. The Chinese authorities have reported a drop in executions since the SPC resumed this review but decline to release relevant statistics which remain classified as a State Secret. Legal academics and court officials in China have occasionally been quoting estimating the decrease at between 10-15% each year since 2007. Whilst information on the application of the death penalty remains shrouded in secrecy in China, it is impossible to make a full and informed analysis of death penalty developments in China, or to verify if there has been such a reduction in its use.

China provides no clemency procedures for condemned prisoners after they have exhausted their appeals through the courts.

Name: Lau Fat-wai

Gender m/f: male

UA: 10/12 Index: ASA 17/003/2012 Issue Date: 19 January 2012