Akmal Shaikh was sentenced to death on 29 October 2008, by the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR) Intermediate People's Court.
His appeal was rejected by the Uighur Autonomous Regional Higher People's Court in October 2009, despite his lawyer's argument that he is mentally ill. Akmal Shaikh was detained at airport in the XUAR capital, Urumqi, on 12 September 2007, when he arrived on a flight from Tajikistan. He was accused of carrying four kilograms of heroin in his luggage.
According to Hong Kong and international media, Shaikh had been tricked by a criminal gang in Poland, where he had been living. Gang members had promised to introduce him to people in the music business, who would assist him with his music career, and arranged for him to travel to Kyrgyzstan and then to China; they asked him carry the luggage that contained the heroin. Believing that he was going to be able to launch a career as a pop star, he boarded a plane for China, carrying the piece of luggage.
Shaikh's lawyer and family claim that he is mentally ill, and despite this, the Chinese government refuse to even let a doctor see him. Despite the fact that 'the evidence clearly points to the fact that Mr. Shaikh was and/or is suffering from a severe mental disorder.' Dr Peter Shaapvald was not allowed to see Shaikh, despite having gone to China purely to see him. The Chinese law states that if a criminal is mentally ill, then they are to be given lighter punishments. However, Shaikh is to be executed within days. This is a clear breach of Chinese law, and Shaikh is set to become one of the thousands of 'criminals' executed every year in China.
China executes more people than anywhere else in the world. In 2008, at least 1718 people were executed, and 7003 sentenced to death. These figures are a minimum, and it is far more likely that thousands more are executed every year. The Dui Hua foundation estimates that somwhere between 5000 and 6000 were executed last year, based on local information. None of these people sentenced to death were given a fair trial. In China, 'confessions' are gathered from torture, and you must prove yourself innocent, rather than be proven guilty.
This is a horrific abuse of human rights, but it will continue relatively unchallenged, unless we all take action. To help Shaikh, and to find more information, go to http://www.amnesty.org.uk/actions_details.asp?ActionID=638
