Urumqi (China): Relatives of a British man
with possible mental problems who faces execution on Tuesday in
China are making a last-minute visit to plead for mercy.
Fifty-three-year-old Akmal Shaikh is scheduled to die for
drug trafficking. He will be the first citizen of a European
country to be executed in China in half a century.
Two of Shaikh's cousins say they visited him Monday and
told him that he will be executed. China had not told him.
One of the cousins said Shaikh was "obviously very
upset."
British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has asked China to
spare Shaikh, echoing concerns that he has mental problems.
China says Shaikh's case has been handled according to
law. It rarely grants last-minute reprieves.
PTI
First Published: Monday, December 28, 2009, 16:09