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British man said to be mentally ill executed in China

Akmal Shaikh was arrested in 2007
A British man convicted of drug smuggling in China has been executed, the Foreign Office has confirmed.

Akmal Shaikh, 53, a father-of-three, of London, had denied any wrongdoing and his family said he was mentally ill.

The execution took place despite repeated calls from his family and the British government for clemency

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British man tries to blow up a plane as a terrorist

Will the British government call for clemency?
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Its amazing that the MEDIA try to humanise the first, as being a Father, and mentally ill, whilst the second is seen as the spawn of the Devil

PLEASE DISCUSS!

The FIRST man could have been innocent. He might not have been, but COULD have been. The SECOND man was found with explosive powder in his underwear.

The FIRST man claims he knew nothing about it. The SECOND man was CAUGHT trying to ignite his explosives.

The FIRST man did not kill, or even attempt to kill. If he was innocent, an innocent man has been executed, more than likely without a fair trial. The SECOND man tried to end the lives of 300 innocent people by blowing up an aircraft. He will get a fair trial, and will more than likely not be put to death, even though he is 150% guilty.

Terrorists ARE the "spawn of the devil".

mattreddan wrote:The FIRST man could have been innocent. He might not have been, but COULD have been. The SECOND man was found with explosive powder in his underwear.

The FIRST man claims he knew nothing about it. The SECOND man was CAUGHT trying to ignite his explosives.

The FIRST man did not kill, or even attempt to kill. If he was innocent, an innocent man has been executed, more than likely without a fair trial. The SECOND man tried to end the lives of 300 innocent people by blowing up an aircraft. He will get a fair trial, and will more than likely not be put to death, even though he is 150% guilty.

Terrorists ARE the "spawn of the devil".

Cracking reply Matt...... The first man WAS found with 4kg in his possession (Enough to kill 2000+ according to BBC, CNN etc).

I have to say i have a lot of sympathy for the first guy. From what has been reported, he thought he was going to launch a pop career, which if true, almost singularly points to there being something wrong with him ;) :oops: In seriousness though, i think it is quite unlikely for the Chinese to have awarded him a fair trial at any point. Although he was held in custody for 2 years, i just wonder what trials or assessments were carried out on him. I think his 'guilt' is probably unquestionable, but wether he was 'mentally stable' enough to have been incarcerated in our society is questionable. Imho, it is a shame that the Chinese do not have quite such a regard or concern for people with mental illness.

Could someone who wants to blow themselves up along with a plane load of aircraft passengers also be said to be mentally ill ?? :?:

PhilM2 wrote:Could someone who wants to blow themselves up along with a plane load of aircraft passengers also be said to be mentally ill ?? :?:

I think there is a very fine line, although it is not something i would like to argue as i would suggest would upset many people who would suggest that it is a 'lifestyle choice'.

I do think you make a very pertinent point. Where does the line get drawn? Surely most people who murder someone else, must have fairly series problems, which could be construed as mental illness.

jimbobjaw wrote:

PhilM2 wrote:Could someone who wants to blow themselves up along with a plane load of aircraft passengers also be said to be mentally ill ?? :?:

I think there is a very fine line, although it is not something i would like to argue as i would suggest would upset many people who would suggest that it is a 'lifestyle choice'.

I do think you make a very pertinent point. Where does the line get drawn? Surely most people who murder someone else, must have fairly series problems, which could be construed as mental illness.

Wonderful reply - Very insightful!

WE are taught NOT to kill, but some people feel they can condone it by having a cause! That isn't mental illness but as you have stated - a lifestyle choice.

woody wrote:

mattreddan wrote:The FIRST man could have been innocent. He might not have been, but COULD have been. The SECOND man was found with explosive powder in his underwear.

The FIRST man claims he knew nothing about it. The SECOND man was CAUGHT trying to ignite his explosives.

The FIRST man did not kill, or even attempt to kill. If he was innocent, an innocent man has been executed, more than likely without a fair trial. The SECOND man tried to end the lives of 300 innocent people by blowing up an aircraft. He will get a fair trial, and will more than likely not be put to death, even though he is 150% guilty.

Terrorists ARE the "spawn of the devil".

Cracking reply Matt...... The first man WAS found with 4kg in his possession (Enough to kill 2000+ according to BBC, CNN etc).

Yes he had it in his possesion, but he claims he knew nothing about it. Lets just say if he was genuine, and didn't. An innocent man may have just been executed, regardless of whether he was mentally unstable.

According to "the media" everytime the UK asked for tests to be carried out, China wouldn't let them and would "change the subject" so to speak.

and I'd bet my socks he wasn't given a fair trial.

mattreddan wrote:

woody wrote:

mattreddan wrote:The FIRST man could have been innocent. He might not have been, but COULD have been. The SECOND man was found with explosive powder in his underwear.

The FIRST man claims he knew nothing about it. The SECOND man was CAUGHT trying to ignite his explosives.

The FIRST man did not kill, or even attempt to kill. If he was innocent, an innocent man has been executed, more than likely without a fair trial. The SECOND man tried to end the lives of 300 innocent people by blowing up an aircraft. He will get a fair trial, and will more than likely not be put to death, even though he is 150% guilty.

Terrorists ARE the "spawn of the devil".

Cracking reply Matt...... The first man WAS found with 4kg in his possession (Enough to kill 2000+ according to BBC, CNN etc).

Yes he had it in his possesion, but he claims he knew nothing about it. Lets just say if he was genuine, and didn't. An innocent man may have just been executed, regardless of whether he was mentally unstable.

According to "the media" everytime the UK asked for tests to be carried out, China wouldn't let them and would "change the subject" so to speak.

and I'd bet my socks he wasn't given a fair trial.[/quote]

The 'trial' lasted 30 minutes:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-p ... 433300.stm

http://www.economicvoice.com/akmal-shai ... z0bECid6OS