Sri Lanka to resume death penalty for drug convicts

Colombo, Feb 7 (IANS) Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena may sanction death penalty for convicted drug traffickers within two months after he vowed to free the country from the drug menace by 2020, the media reported on Thursday.Sirisena informed Parliament on Wednesday he was determined to impose capital punishment on convicted drug criminals as part of the anti-narcotics drive, according to Xinhua news agency.Sri Lanka's Justice Minister Thalatha Atukorale told Parliament earlier this week her ministry had complied with the President's request to revive capital punishment and names of five drug convicts had been sent to Sirisena between October 12 and the end of January this year.However, Sirisena is yet to sign the warrants and set execution dates. Although capital punishment is a legal penalty in Sri Lanka, there have been no executions since 1976.
--IANS soni/ab/pcj