In Japan, 87-year-old Iwao Hakamada, who was sentenced to death more than 50 years ago for killing his boss, his wife and their two children, is now awaiting trial.

This was reported by BBC News with reference to Amnesty International.

In 1968, Khakamada was sentenced to death for the murder he allegedly committed in 1966.

55 years ago, he was accused of robbing and killing an employer and his family at a soybean processing plant in the city of Shizuoka, west of Tokyo.

Their bodies were found butchered after the fire.

The verdict was handed down after the suspect confessed.

"The former professional boxer confessed to the crime after 20 days of interrogation, during which he said he was beaten. He later recanted his confession in court," the source said.

Human rights groups have criticized Japanese authorities over the convictions, which rely on confessions they say are often coerced by police.

"During the retrial, judges will decide whether DNA from bloodstains on clothing believed to belong to the killer matches Hakamada's DNA. His lawyers argued that the evidence was fabricated," Amnesty International said.

In 2014, Hakamada was released from prison and his case was remanded to a district court, which found that investigators may have planted evidence.

The decision was later overturned by the Tokyo High Court.

But on appeal, Supreme Court judges ordered the high court to review the case, leading to a retrial order.

"I have been waiting for this day for 57 years, and it has come," said Hideko's 90-year-old sister.

For a long time, she did not stop campaigning in favor of her brother.

"Finally, this burden fell off my shoulders," she added.

Ivao Hakamada's family complains that his mental health has deteriorated after decades in prison.

"Hakamada's conviction was based on a coerced 'confession,' and there are serious doubts about the other evidence used against him," said the rights group's Japan director Hideaki Nakagawa.

However, if a special appeal is filed, the retrial process can take years, and lawyers protest the system.

Lawyers also welcomed the decision, but called on prosecutors to "quickly start a re-examination of the case, without filing an appeal to the Supreme Court."

"We cannot afford any further delay for Mr. Hakamada, who is already 87 years old and suffering from mental and physical illnesses after 47 years of physical limitations," said Motoji Kobayashi, chairman of the Japan Bar Federation.

The day before, the dictator of the Republic of Belarus Oleksandr Lukashenko signed a law on the death penalty for officials and military personnel for treason.

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