Three Inmates On Death Row In Warrap: Judge

This article was last updated on May 25, 2022

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According to the state High court acting president, Nyok Monyrac, who was also the presiding judge, the cases said the three accused were proved beyond reasonable doubt guilty of murder.

“The three convicts sentenced to hanging [death penalty] in all our proceedings were proved beyond reasonable doubt that they intentionally killed the people they murdered,” he stated.

The Kuacjok based judge detailed that one convict committed a crime under the influence of alcohol and also admitted that he intended to kill someone but not the one he had killed.

Meanwhile the other two were also sentenced for jointly spearing a person to death in Majokanyar market of Tonj North County.

In the verdicts passed in April, the judge cited 206 and 207 sections of South Sudan Penal Code Act 2008 which stated that intended murder offences upon convictions are sentenced to death and life imprisonment.

Despite South Sudan being among 111 member states that supported the U.N. General Assembly resolution that called for removal of death penalty, little is improved locally since law implementers still argued that the penalty will not stop not until the supreme laws of South Sudan are amended.

“Our constitution allows death penalty but according to Amnesty International, death penalty should be abolished. However constitution is a primacy law, unless it is amended so that the article that called for the death penalty is removed,” Judge Monyrac explained.

He further argued that even in Criminal procedure Act 2008, section 275, it is clearly stated that when a person is sentenced to death, sentence shall be directed that the convict be hanged by the neck until he or she is dead.

“Although International Community is against death penalty, our laws still recommend for it and we who are applying the laws can’t stop just because international community is talking,” the Judge said.

Monyrac further noted that unless those laws especially articles that called for such punishment are amended because the courts cannot direct the punishment without referring to the law.

According to the authorities, the crime rate this year in Warrap is on rise with over 40 murder and rape cases already reported.

“The registration of cases we have so far especially murder and rape cases in 2013 is very high,” he said adding that starting from January, they received more than 40 cases compared to last year in which they had only about 20 cases.

According to him, four counties that include Tonj East, Tonj South, Gogrial East and Twic, are among the leading in crime.

This however means that more of these reported cases are likely to earn death penalty.

Another legal officer working in high court who doesn’t want to be named also reiterates that very many cases of similar nature are pending and may receive the same punishment.

Several human right reports have shown that over 200 prisoners are on death row in South Sudan.

However, the international and local human right groups voiced their concerns over judicial system of the newest among them; lack of legal representations and proper judicial proceedings while settling cases.