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Death row inmates sue Japan over ‘cruel’ executions by hanging

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Three death row inmates in Japan are filing a case against the Fumio Kishida administration seeking abolition of the “cruel” practice of execution by hanging, their lawyer said on Tuesday.

The three prisoners have called the method of capital punishment – the only one that is used in Japan – inhumane and sought 33 million yen (£198,000) in compensation for psychological distress caused to them since they were given the death sentence in 2000.

The three have argued that living in fear and anticipating death for many years has caused “mental agony”, the plaintiff’s lawyer said.

Death by hanging “causes unbearable pain and violates international covenants on human rights,” he was quoted as saying by Kyodo news.

The trio have been detained at a detention centre in Osaka for over a decade now, during which two have been in the process of appealing their sentences.

Their lawyer Kyoji Mizutani said the plaintiffs are “seeking an injunction” against death by hanging as the lawsuit is aiming at “highlighting the reality of capital punishment” in Japan.

There has been no immediate response from Japan’s justice ministry. Officials at the ministry said they have not received the complaint yet.

Japan is one of the few major economies that still uses hanging as its only method to execute people on death row. The practice has been used there for around 150 years.

Over 100 people, including serial killers, face capital punishment in the country.

If the petitioners secure a legal victory, the move will lead to a domino effect on the execution laws governing Japan, where there is still strong public support for the death penalty.

Japan’s laws on death penalty do not require the convict to be informed of the date of the execution. The convicts awaiting punishment are only informed of their impending death a few hours before they are sent to the gallows.

Japanese authorities usually implement the executions long after sentencing.

At the time of their execution, the blindfolded convicts are taken to a spot with their feet bound and hands cuffed before a trapdoor opens below them. Several officers then each press a button in the adjacent room simultaneously with none being informed which one is “live”.

The case comes just a year after two prisoners filed a separate lawsuit against the late-notice system, arguing that it causes psychological pain.

The Independent and the nonprofit Responsible Business Initiative for Justice (RBIJ) have launched a joint campaign calling for an end to the death penalty in the US. The RBIJ has attracted more than 150 well-known signatories to their Business Leaders Declaration Against the Death Penalty - with The Independent as the latest on the list. We join high-profile executives like Ariana Huffington, Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg, and Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson as part of this initiative and are making a pledge to highlight the injustices of the death penalty in our coverage.