Execution

Death in any form brings sadness to family or friends however it occurs. Accident, enemy action and execution are among the sudden brutal endings of life which give rise to especially high emotions of those left to grieve.

I did not follow the case of the unfortunate man executed by China today, so I cannot comment with any coherence on it in specific terms, save to say this. Some countries continue to have the death penalty as do some of the American states. Those who commit crimes in the places that have capital punishment must realise that if their crime falls within its remit and they are caught, their life will be forfeit. Sanctimonious cries by human rights activists (as opposed to the pleadings of a naturally distraught family) are not only futile but probably counter productive.

If there ever was any chance that the Chinese authorities would reprieve the sentence in this case and I am not sure there ever was, that was certainly dashed by the pleadings and strictures uttered by our own increasingly enfeebled Government to their counterparts in China. China does not back down under pressure, as any fool can tell. To subtler and covert persuasion much more attention is paid. Witness modern China and compare it with the country Nixon, showing great political courage, flew to visit all those years ago.