Family relives horror of sister's execution

JANICE Bronwyn Linden went to her death not knowing that her mom had died in October. Instead, the 36-year-old from Austerville in Durban was actually looking forward to celebrating Christmas in China's notorious Guangdong Prison.

Instead, the 36-year-old from Austerville in Durban was actually looking forward to celebrating Christmas in China's notorious Guangdong Prison.

On Monday morning, just 90 minutes before her execution, she assumed her appearance before three judges in Guangdong High Court was just a formality for her appeal against her death sentence.

But she was hastily removed from the court and executed by lethal injection in an isolated room on the prison grounds.

This week SA's ambassador to China, Bheki Langa, revealed details of Linden's final day. "At 9am on Monday, she was still not informed that her execution would be carried out that day. By 10.30am, she was executed," said Langa.

Linden had left SA to work in a hotel in the UK. She was sentenced in July 2009 following her conviction for smuggling 3kg of crystal methamphetamine (tik) into Baiyun International Airport in Guangzhou, southern China, in November 2008. She always maintained her innocence, saying the drugs had been planted in her luggage.

Both the Guangdong High Court and the Supreme Court in Beijing rejected her appeal. Under Article 347 of China's Criminal Law, anyone found guilty of smuggling or trafficking more than 50g of heroin or other drugs will be put to death. Said Langa: "Linden did not appear distressed but looked puzzled [in court] ... it appeared she did not quite understand the purpose of the court appearance. She was unaware she was going to be executed that very same day."

He said the reason given by authorities for this was that "they would [then] have to put death row prisoners on suicide watch. But everything happened very fast. It's quite a stressful matter," he said.

Langa said another difficult moment was when Linden's sisters - Priscilla Mthalane and Nomalwazi Mhlope - arrived in China on Friday last week. The two were escorted by the consul general in Shanghai, Tembi Tambo.

"The consul general, who was only made aware of Linden's execution date on November 26, took care of the sisters from the moment they arrived in China until they departed on Sunday night," he said.

On Sunday two diplomats accompanied Linden's sisters to prison.

Some of the conditions of the 30-minute visit were they were not allowed to tell Linden about the execution or that their mother, Virginia, had died in October. When the sisters saw each other, they all cried "tears of joy". On Thursday, at the family's home in Austerville, Mthalane said: "We weren't allowed to say much to her. It was so difficult for us."

They were refused permission to take a photograph with her or to sprinkle holy water on her, as they are Catholics, and were instructed to only communicate in English, she said. Mthalane said Linden burst into tears at the end of the visit.

"She told us they were tears of joy. She said she wouldn't eat that afternoon because she was filled with joy and would have a good Christmas and New Year."

As the tearful sisters prepared to leave, she asked them to visit her again soon.