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Sri Lanka shortlists 47 potential executioners as President Maithripala Sirisena launches Duterte-inspired war on drugs
- Two months after President Sirisena announced Sri Lanka would end a 43-year moratorium on executions, the country is looking to hire hangmen
- As there are no professionals in the country, the preferred candidates would have to be trained offshore, said an official
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Sri Lanka on Wednesday began interviewing 47 applicants for two positions as hangmen, two months after President Maithripala Sirisena announced the country would end a 43-year moratorium on executions in a Philippines-inspired war on drugs.
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An official said 47 male applicants would be interviewed on Wednesday and Thursday, after the government advertised the vacancies in February.
The official noted that as there were no professionals in the country, the preferred candidates would have to be trained offshore.
“Since there is no living person in Sri Lanka who has carried out an execution, we need to send the new recruits abroad for training,” said the official, who asked to remain anonymous, adding that Colombo was also yet to identify a country to provide training.
Sri Lanka looks to hire executioners for US$200 a month as it resumes hanging for drug trafficking
“The rope (used for hangings) has not been used at all since it was imported (in 2015), it will have to be tested and certified,” the official said.
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