News:
Human rights group, Amnesty International, criticised the US in a report for the 10th October ‘World Day against the Death Penalty”. Steven W. Hawkins, executive director of Amnesty International USA, said: “It is shameful that the United States continues to allow this cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment at all, especially for those living with mental and intellectual disabilities.”
Comment:
The US is in the lead of executing mentally disabled Americans this year. The Amnesty report states that of the 30 people executed in the US so far this year, two of them were mentally disabled and many others with severe intellectual disabilities are currently awaiting execution! “International standards clearly require that those suffering from mental and intellectual disabilities should not face the ultimate punishment,” said Audrey Gaughran, Amnesty International’s Global Issues director.
US law on the subject is based on the case of Ford v. Wainwright, 1986, that states that execution of the insane violates the US constitution, and yet the executions continue because man-made law failed to set a measure for judging mental competence in the US.
Islam, however, did give a clear verdict on this issue many centuries ago and set up judicial principles for implementing this ruling through judges appointed by a Caliph. The Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
«رُفِعَ الْقَلَمُ عَنْ ثَلاَثَةٍ: عَنِ الصَّبِيِّ حَتَّى يَبْلُغَ، وَعَنِ النَّائِمِ حَتَّى يَسْـتَـيْقِظَ، وَعَنِ الْمَعْـتُوهِ حَتَّى يَبْرَأَ»
“The Pen is lifted from three (i.e., their deeds are not recorded against them):
1. a child until he reaches puberty;
2. one who is asleep until he wakes up;
3. an insane man until he comes to his senses.”
The US has no right to claim that it sets the standards or upholds human values in other countries when it fails in its own. The US, for example, justifies its hypocritical and cynical war against Islam and Muslims in Iraq and Syria because of the execution of American journalists, but at the same time executes mentally sick people who lack legal competence? Aren’t the mentally insane at least as innocent as the US journalists that were executed by ISIS? Such is the irony of US double standards.
Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Dr. Abdullah Robin