Seminar to Examine Death Penalty in Asia

A specialized seminar titled “The Death Penalty in Asia” will be held by the Indonesia Centre for Law, Islam and Society and the Asian Law Centre at Melbourne Law School.

The death penalty remains one of the most controversial issues of our time, provoking intense debate among policymakers, legal practitioners, religious leaders, human rights advocates, and scholars. At its core, capital punishment involves the taking of human life as a form of state-sanctioned violence—one that, if applied in error, is irreversible and beyond remedy.

This seminar will feature contributors to a special issue of the Australian Journal of Asian Law on the death penalty in Asia. Participants will present analyses of relevant legal frameworks and judicial decisions, alongside discussions on arguments for and against the retention of capital punishment. The program will also examine advocacy campaigns by both proponents and opponents, public attitudes, and case studies involving death row prisoners across the region.

Program Schedule

Opening Remarks – Helen Pausacker
2:00–2:10 pm (AEST)

Session 1 (Chair: Tim Lindsey)

• Analysis of successful anti-death penalty campaigns in the Philippines: strategies, tactics, and framing (2:10–2:20 pm AEST) 
• Myanmar case study on capital punishment: turbulence in Southeast Asia (2:20–2:30 pm AEDT) 
• The death penalty in Bangladesh: an expert review (2:30–2:40 pm AEDT) 
• Restricting capital punishment in Vietnam’s criminal law: application in recent cases (2:30–2:40 pm AEDT) 
• Q&A (2:50–2:55 pm AEDT) 

Break
2:55–3:05 pm (AEDT)

Session 2 (Chair: Helen Pausacker)

• Abolition of the death penalty in Bhutan, Nepal, Cambodia, and Timor-Leste: a comparative study (3:05–3:15 pm AEDT) 
• Why public opinion on the death penalty does not matter in China (3:15–3:25 pm AEDT) 
• Public support for capital punishment in Japan: the “impenetrability” model and symbolic power of the legal regime (3:25–3:35 pm AEDT) 
• Indonesia’s new revised criminal code and the death penalty (3:35–3:45 pm AEDT) 
• Capital punishment and criminal injustice in Indonesia (3:45–3:55 pm AEDT) 
• Q&A (3:55–4:00 pm AEDT) 

Closing Remarks – Tim Lindsey
4:00–4:05 pm (AEDT)

International Schedule

December 7, 2023

• Melbourne, Australia (AEDT): 2:00–4:00 pm 
• Jakarta, Indonesia (WIB): 10:00 am–12:00 pm 
• Singapore: 11:00 am–1:00 pm 

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