China will execute 374 people during Olympics, Amnesty estimates

Chinese police display a group of prisoners at a sentencing rally in the east Chinese city of Wenzhou. Eleven prisoners were later executed. Photograph: AFP/Getty Images

An estimated 374 people will be executed in China during this summer’s Olympic games in Beijing, Amnesty International has claimed.

A new league table of the world’s most frequent executioners showed China officially used capital punishment 470 times last year. But some campaigners believe the true figure may be 8,000.

The human rights group called on Olympic athletes and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to press for greater openness about executions by the host country.

Amnesty’s UK director Kate Allen said: “As the world’s biggest executioner, China gets the ‘gold medal’ for global executions.

“According to reliable estimates, on average China secretly executes around 22 prisoners every day – that’s 374 people during the Olympic games.

“Everyone involved in this year’s Olympics, especially the IOC, should be pressing China to reveal the extent of its use of the death penalty, to reduce the 60-plus crimes for which it can be imposed and to move toward abolition.”

Chinese criminal law professor Liu Renwen estimated that 8,000 executions took place during 2006 in China, which hosts the 29th Olympiad from August 8 to 24. The US-based Dui Hua foundation estimated that 7,500 to 8,000 executions took place in the same year.

Nearly 70 crimes can carry the death penalty in China, including tax fraud, stealing VAT receipts, damaging electric power facilities, selling counterfeit medicine, embezzlement, accepting bribes and drugs offences.

In total, today’s league table showed there were 1,250 people executed worldwide last year, down from 1,591 over the previous 12 months.

There was a large rise in the number of executions in Iran – at least 317 people, up from 177 – and Saudi Arabia, where the total rose from 39 to at least 143.

Cases in Iran included the stoning to death of a man for adultery, and the execution of three teenagers who were aged between 13 and 16 at the time of their arrests.

In Saudi Arabia, a child offender aged 15 or 16 at the time of his detention was among those executed, and a man was beheaded for “sorcery” and adultery.

Last year Albania, Rwanda and the Cook Islands abolished the death penalty, bringing the total number of countries to have done so to 135.

Executions in the United States, usually among the world’s most frequent users of the death penalty, dropped to 42 in 2007, the lowest

Christians Promote Holy, Hot Sex in Marriage

More evangelical couples — once embarrassed and prudish about sex — are now leaving their Christian inhibitions at the bedroom door.

Pastors and counselors are offering sex advice to Christians once riddled with guilt. A holy roll in the hay is now encouraged for stronger marital bonds.

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For this growing group of younger, more progressive Christians, guilt is out and pleasure is in.

“We discovered that God’s word is holy and hot … filled with invaluable wisdom for our sexual relationship,” says intimateissues.com, one of the most popular Christian Web sites. It is based on a 1999 book by the same name.

The Christian wife has come a long way, baby, as a variety of sex advice books with titles like “Intimacy Ignited,” “Gift-Wrapped by God” and “Satisfy My Thirsty Soul” are emphasizing the earthly as well as the heavenly side of love.

Pastors are sermonizing and sexologists are offering conferences to help couples overcome their guilt about a once-touchy subject. And, they offer new translations of scripture to give biblical clout to their message.

“People carry a lot of guilt from parents who said sex is bad,” said the Rev. Kerry Shook of the Woodlands Church outside Houston. “We help them to have a healthy sex life. One of the things we cover in scripture is how to meet each other’s needs in bed.”

‘Make Your Marriage Sizzle’

As pastor of the 15,600-member, nondenominational church — one of the largest in the nation — he recently delivered a popular sermon titled “How to Make Your Marriage Sizzle.”

Shook and his wife paired culinary tips with a sex talk “just to grab their attention,” he told ABCNEWS.com. “We were cooking beef burgundy with a reduction sauce with cameras from the top of the church. We had a real talk about intimacy and marriage and the problems that come between couples.”

Home pastors Paul and Lori Byerly of Salem, Ore., dispense more sex advice than Playboy magazine on their Web site, TheMarriageBed.com.

Created in 1997, the site covers topics like anal, oral and phone sex; masturbation and role-playing; fetishes; bonding; and spanking.

“We had a great marriage, but a terrible sex life,” Paul Byerly told ABCNEWS.com. The couple talks openly about their inability to enjoy sex because of Lori’s history of sex abuse and his involvement in pornography.

The couple, now happily married for 23 years, advises their readers to embrace anything that is consensual to achieve “intense physical pleasure … deep emotional interaction and connection … and a spiritual union.”

Sex has come slowly out of the Christian closet. One of the first books to address the issue was Marabel Morgan’s “The Total Woman,” which sold more than 10 million copies to women of all religious persuasions, making it the best-selling nonfiction book of 1974.

“The Act of Marriage” — a sex manual for evangelicals written by Tim and Beverly LaHaye in 1976 — was the first to promote the idea that sex can complement, not undermine, a marriage.

Ed Wheat’s 1977 “Intended for Pleasure” urged women to give to their husbands with a smile and included tips on achieving maximum pleasure.

Baker Books, the Christian publisher that still carries Wheat’s classic, also lists some new titles, including “The Spark: Igniting the Passion, Mystery and Romance in Your Marriage,” which has sold more than 6,500 copies since January.

“What I see and read in both my job and out is an increased maturity in looking at sex,” said Adam Ferguson, a Christian and publicist for Baker Books. “It is discussed with more realism and candor.”

‘Sex Is a Gift’

This new genre puts less emphasis on grin-and-bear-it submission and more on mutual pleasure. Evangelical ministers say the church should play a role in spreading the good word.

“Sex is a gift, a good thing,” said the Rev. Adam Hamilton, pastor of the 14,000-member United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kan.

“God allows you to have pleasure,” Hamilton told ABCNEWS.com. “That’s how he designed your body. Once you learn it’s a gift from God, you embrace it and lay aside the shame.”

After conducting an anonymous survey of 2,400 of his parishioners, Hamilton wrote “Making Love Last a Lifetime,” concluding that marriage suffers when couples lack sexual intimacy.

“We are such an overly sexualized society with everything you watch on TV,” said Hamilton. “Somebody’s got to talk about it.”

The pastor announces these talks in advance so parents who are squeamish can send their kids to Sunday school. Still, Hamilton says even the children can benefit from a good sex talk.

 

Love, Christian-Style

“Do you want all of their learning to come from the playground or shaped by what the scripture says in the context of the church where we talk about love and fidelity and mutuality and justice?” he asked.

The scripture is exactly where more Christians are turning to spark discussion about the subject. Old Testament stories involving Adam and Eve and Sarah and Abraham are bringing life to sexual discussions. Hamilton said a new translation of the Hebrew word “paradise” suggests more earthly than heavenly overtones.

Though many churches still consider sex “prurient and fleshly and not to be discussed,” Hamilton said a more open discussion is actually strengthening marriages.

“Folks who are married and people of faith tend to have more sex, more often than people who are swingers.”

That message seems to be catching on, largely with women. About 800 of the 2,000 Sunday-going regulars signed up for an October conference at Wisconsin’s Appleton Alliance Church.

 

“Sex is something we should be talking about in the Christian community,” said Judy Episcopo, director of the Appleton women’s ministry. “Except for the negatives — don’t do this and don’t do that — the Bible has a lot of good things to say about sex and God wants us to have a passionate, successful sex life. This conference can help inspire it.”

The program is based on the books of Linda Dillow and Lorraine Pintus — “Intimate Issues” and “Intimacy Ignited” — who celebrate the Bible’s “Song of Solomon,” which reinforces the message that sex is not just for procreation.

In some retranslations of the passage, the word “embrace” might mean “fondle,” according to the authors. They even suggest the line, “let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits,” is a veiled reference to oral sex.

“Sex is such an important part of what we believe,” said Episcopo. “There’s a lot of guilt and pain and complacency about sexual relationships and a lot of ignorance about exactly what the Bible says about sex.”

 

Bible as Sex Guide

Episcopo first thought about such a conference after reading the book in 1999, but concluded “my women weren’t ready for a weekend on sex.” But this year — with the average age of her church-going females at 40 — she decided the time was right.

Using the Bible as their guide, women answer, among other things: “How can I be both sensual and godly?” “What does the Bible have to say about sex?” “Is it possible to get beyond the pain of sexual abuse?” “How do I get over my guilt?” “How do I make sex go from boring to sizzling?” and “Does the Bible have any suggestions?”

Interestingly, some of her participants are single. “We try to give them a vision for sex but to remain pure,” she said. “Sexual relations are sacred and it’s important to keep for marriage.”

That and some other subjects — adultery, homosexuality, bestiality, prostitution and incest — are still taboo, even in ministries that talk about sexual relations.

But, according to Melanie Wells, a Dallas psychotherapist and Christian, that is because God says wielding power over another is wrong — even in a marriage.

“I try to deal with marriage as citizenship, as a democracy with one man and one vote,” she said. “You have to register, know the issues and vote your conscience. If you don’t do that, you abdicate the power and responsibility and that’s a cop out.”

Too often, according to Wells, Christian attitudes toward sex have “squeezed the life out of people, and it happens sexually, too.”

In her practice, Wells tries to change the conversation about sex from physical obligation to emotional intimacy. Some couples still struggle.

“It’s a real hard shift for people mentally to go from an entirely prohibited activity to do it all the time,” she said.

Wells is also critical of Christian attitudes toward premarital sex, which she argues encourages teens to marry young out of guilt. She also veers from the standard position on homosexuality.

“I don’t generally get involved in correcting people’s behavior or orientation,” Wells said. “They have heard all of that before they get to me. They don’t need another lecture and it’s not any of my business.”

Truth and openness in one’s sexuality is important, she argues. “Christ can certainly handle that.”

Masturbation ‘cuts cancer risk’

Researchers were assessing prostate cancer risk Men could reduce their risk of developing prostate cancer through regular masturbation, researchers suggest.They say cancer-causing chemicals could build up in the prostate if men do not ejaculate regularly. And they say sexual intercourse may not have the same protective effect because of the possibility of contracting a sexually transmitted infection, which could increase men’s cancer risk. Australian researchers questioned over 1,000 men who had developed prostate cancer and 1,250 who had not about their sexual habits. This is a plausible theory Dr Chris Hiley, Prostate Cancer Charity They found those who had ejaculated the most between the ages of 20 and 50 were the least likely to develop the cancer. The protective effect was greatest while the men were in their 20s. Men who ejaculated more than five times a week were a third less likely to develop prostate cancer later in life. Fluid Previous research has suggested that a high number of sexual partners or a high level of sexual activity increased a man’s risk of developing prostate cancer by up to 40%. But the Australian researchers who carried out this study suggest the early work missed the protective effect of ejaculation because it focussed on sexual intercourse, with its associated risk of STIs. Graham Giles, of the Cancer Council Victoria in Melbourne, who led the research team, told New Scientist: “Had we been able to remove ejaculations associated with sexual intercourse, there should have been an even stronger protective effect of ejaculations.” The researchers suggest that ejaculating may prevent carcinogens accumulating in the prostate gland. The prostate provides a fluid into semen during ejaculation that activates sperm and prevents them sticking together. The fluid has high concentrations of substances including potassium, zinc, fructose and citric acid, which are drawn from the bloodstream. But animal studies have shown carcinogens such as 3-methylchloranthrene, found in cigarette smoke, are also concentrated in the prostate. ‘Flushing out’ Dr Giles said fewer ejaculations may mean the carcinogens build up. “It’s a prostatic stagnation hypothesis. The more you flush the ducts out, the less there is to hang around and damage the cells that line them.” A similar connection has been found between breast cancer and breastfeeding, where lactating appeared to “flush out” carcinogens, reduce a woman’s risk of the disease, New Scientist reports. Another theory put forward by the researchers is that ejaculation may induce prostate glands to mature fully, making them less susceptible to carcinogens. Dr Chris Hiley, head of policy and research at the UK’s Prostate Cancer Charity, told BBC News Online: “This is a plausible theory.” She added: “In the same way the human papillomavirus has been linked to cervical cancer, there is a suggestion that bits of prostate cancer may be related to a sexually transmitted infection earlier in life.” Anthony Smith, deputy director of the Australian Research Centre in Sex, Health and Society at La Trobe University in Melbourne, said the research could affect the kind of lifestyle advice doctors give to patients. “Masturbation is part of people’s sexual repertoire. “If these findings hold up, then it’s perfectly reasonable that men should be encouraged to masturbate,” he said.

Report: China led world executions in 2007

LONDON, England (AP) — China reduced the number of executions it carried out last year but still executed more people than any other country in the world, Amnesty International said Tuesday in its annual report on the death penalty worldwide.

Iran remains the country with the second-highest number of executions, with 377 killings that included a man stoned for adultery, the human rights group said.

The number of American executions fell to its lowest level in about 15 years, putting it fifth in the world with 42, Amnesty officials said.

Amnesty analysts said that early in 2007 China reformed the way capital cases are handled, leading to a substantial reduction in executions. They said at least 470 people were put to death, from 1,010 in 2006. But they cautioned that the actual number is undoubtedly higher, and warned that any drop may be temporary.

Piers Bannister, a death penalty researcher at Amnesty, said the group fears that the slowdown is only a “logjam” that will lead to a rise in executions once a review by China’s top court of all capital cases is concluded.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry in Beijing did not respond to requests for comment on the findings in the Amnesty report. The ministry has said in the past that Amnesty is “biased and hostile toward China.”

More than 60 offenses in China are punishable by the death penalty, including drug trafficking and embezzlement, Bannister said.

Amnesty reported that three countries — Iran, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia — put people under the age of 18 to death, the youngest a 13-year-old executed in Iran in April.

Amnesty’s report cited research by other groups claiming the number of people put to death in China was much higher, with some research indicating that as many as 6,000 people may have been executed in 2007. Death penalty figures are treated as a state secret in China.

In all, at least 3,347 people were sentenced to death in 51 countries, and as many as 27,500 people are estimated to be on death row, Amnesty said.

Man Survives 1,500-Ft. Drop Down Mt. St. Helens

An experienced snowmobiler, John Slemp, 52, of Damascus, Ore., miraculously survived a 1,500-foot plummet into the crater of Mt. St. Helens. He is the first person ever to fall into the crater.

After dropping into the crater of Mount St. Helens, John Slemp miraculously survived with minor injuries.

(ABC News)

On Saturday, Slemp, his son Jared and a family friend took their snowmobiles up to the crater’s rim, where John and Jared parked their vehicles, then crawled on their bellies to peer over the cornice — a dangerous overhanging shelf of snow at the crest of a mountain — into the crater itself.

The cornice broke loose and Slemp dropped about 150 feet. His son began to slide down with him until their friend grabbed him and pulled him back to safety. The elder Slemp landed on a snow bank, but when he stood to climb back up the crater, the shelf of snow crumbled beneath him and he tumbled about 1,300 feet further down the crater, riding a tidal wave of avalanche debris on his hands and knees.

At 5:20 p.m. PT, the sheriff’s office received a phone call that a man had fallen off the crater rim but was up and moving around.

“I’m not surprised,” Undersheriff Dave Cox said. “There was an avalanche warning in effect and the weather conditions were such that, for that elevation, the snow was unstable. There were high temperatures, which means the snow was starting to melt … [Slemp] just happened to be the impetus that caused that cornice to give way.”

The coordinator of the rescue, Chief Tom McDowell, director of North Country emergency medical service, said Slemp first made a vertical drop of about 100 to 200 feet, then hit a snow bank and tumbled until the crater leveled out.

“We’ve always anticipated anyone falls off the crater rim is not gonna survive,” McDowell said.

But Slemp was wearing a heavy snowmobile suit as well as a helmet and heavy boots, and he happened to fall in an area without craggy crevices or boulders which could have killed him.

“[He] picked a great place to do this,” Gary Kapezynski, the training coordinator for the volcano rescue team, said. “This was one of two places at the crater which were snow covered and there were very few cliffs … if he’d have gone off in other places, I don’t think he would have made it.”

The two men at the top of the crater did not call rescuers themselves. Stuck there without a cell phone, they were equipped with only a family radio service walkie-talkie, which is usually only supposed to work within a range of a couple miles. According to McDowell, the walkie-talkie managed to randomly pick up the signal of a family of campers in Mossy Rock, a city about 20 miles away.

“[The camper] was the one who called the sheriff’s office. He maintained contact with the people left on the crater rim, and he would relay information back and forth with me,” McDowell said, “‘Fortuitous’ would be a good word to describe this.”

By communicating through the camper, the rescuers knew that Slemp was fully conscious and even walking around.

McDowell dispatched a helicopter with two rescuers and equipment, and as the helicopter flew over the crater, the rescuers saw Slemp standing up and waving.

The helicopter descended about 1,500 feet into the crater, where the pilot performed what is called a one-skid landing — which is not actually a full landing but a tricky hover involving only a single part of the helicopter touching down.

“You hover with one skid pointed in the snow with very little clearance and [the pilot] was able to do that, let Will get out and get to the patient,” Kapezynski said.

To pick up the rescuer and Slemp, the pilot “then [did] the same thing to go back in.”

Slemp was pretty banged up but he was healthy enough to scramble down and get into the helicopter. His leg was splinted and the rescuers checked him out as the helicopter flew back.

The rescue effort was swift and wrapped up in 2.5 hours, by about 7:30 p.m. PT.

Cox said that injuries on Mt. St. Helens are fairly common. “We have injuries on the mountain just about yearly from people trying to climb … you get people who are ‘day hikers’ who think it’s just a stroll up to the crater rim, but it’s still a fairly technical mountain to climb.”

As Slemp left the crater in the rescue helicopter, his son and friend left the crater rim to return home in the car they drove in. Slemp appeared to have one more thing on his mind, and he made a request of his rescuers.

“Did you tell those guys that the car keys are in the snowmobile, parked at the top of Mt. St. Helens?” he asked.

Slemp was taken to Yacolt, Wash., for medical care, and transferred to Legacy Emanuel Hospital in Portland, Ore. The hospital did not return calls inquiring about Slemp’s condition, but Slemp’s brother-in-law Randy Fairley told ABC News that, to his knowledge, Slemp was recovering.