Actually Saddams death at this time was
appropriate. The possibility of transforming Iraq in a viable modern nation, if it ever existed, died when Saddam fell for the American trap that led to the second gulf war in 1990-91. It is only fitting that the iraqi ruler that tried earnestly (poor Iraq!) to create a modern nation out of the post-colonial patchwork that was Iraq should die at a time when even the scant little he achieved unravels.
It says a lot about how ridiculous the idea of preserving a iraqi state is, that Saddam tried all standard techniques from the cookbook of nation building - forge a national identity by wiping out traditional society (the swamp arabs, the kurds, turcomans, etc.), forcing cultural normalization of the country (around his own set of ideas, typical tyrant) , importing ideologies (arab nationalism mixed with Marxism or capitalism whenever convenient) , creating the idea of external enemies menacing the nation (Iran), embarking on expansionist wars (Kuwait), etc and failed utterly. He was incompetent as a leader (besides the bloodthirsty tyrant thing, but he did managed to keep himself in power that way for a long time), but he probably was also attempting the impossible.
As for the trial and execution
the irony of convicting someone for violation of human rights, while violating human rights to do so! Namely, No one shall be held guilty of any penal offence on account of any act or omission which did not constitute a penal offence, under national or international law, at the time when it was committed. of course, this is the 1948 version, modified from the 1789 original with the introduction of the convenient term international law, necessary to justify, ex post facto, the Nuremberg trials. The current Iraqi government could have spared the mock trial and just killed him because he was inconvenient and revenge was in order. Everybody would understands the motives anyway.