SUDAN: WOMAN SENTENCED TO DEATH BY STONING FOR ADULTERY

July 10, 2012: a Sudanese court in Khartoum State sentenced a 23-year-old woman to death by stoning for adultery (Zina), reported a human rights group, the African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies (ACJPS).
Judge Imad Shamoun of Al-Nasir Criminal Court in Khartoum sentenced the young woman, identified only as L.I.E, under Article 146 of the 1991 Penal Code, ACJPS said in a press statement on July 15.
L.I.E, who is a Misseriya tribe member residing in Alizba area in the city of North Khartoum, did not have any legal assistance and she pleaded guilty to the charge of adultery. She is shackled by the legs and detained in an individual cell "giving rise to serious concerns about her health," the group stressed.
The ACJPS urged the Sudanese government to overturn the sentence of death by stoning, which was applied in violation of both domestic and international law and guarantee L.I.E's immediate and unconditional release.
"Under Article 135(3) of the Sudanese Criminal Procedure Code of 1991, a defendant is entitled to legal representation in any criminal case that carries a punishment of 10 years or more imprisonment, amputation or death," the group said. (Sources: allafrica.com, 16/07/2012)