International Commission Against the Death Penalty

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The International Commission against the Death Penalty (ICDP) was founded in Madrid in October 2010, [1] [2] as a result of a Spanish initiative. [3] ICDP is an independent body composed of Commissioners of high standing who have experience in international law and human rights, and are committed to achieving the universal abolition of capital punishment. Their experience, background, geographical representation and personal involvement in abolishing the death penalty enables them to engage with senior officials from different countries.

Contents

Support Group

The Commission is supported by a diverse group of countries representing all regions of the world. They are united in opposing capital punishment in all circumstances, and urge for the immediate establishment of a universal moratorium [3] on executions as a step towards total abolition of the death penalty.

ICDP Commissioners

Work and country missions

The work of ICDP is varied: letters and statements [8] about specific cases are issued urging states not to carry out executions and condemning executions carried out. [9] [10] ICDP organizes and attends meetings and events to promote the abolition of the death penalty. [8] [11]

ICDP conducts country missions (California and Delaware in the US, Japan, Suriname, Tajikistan, Tunisia and Lebanon, among others) and engage dialogue with different stakeholders [11] [12] working on the abolition, such as NGOs, government representatives, and members of parliament. For example, Commissioner Ruth Dreifuss visited Tajikistan in 2011 and 2013 "to advocate for full abolition of the death penalty in the national law". [13] [14] Several reports and opinion pieces have been published by ICDP, including a report on how States abolish the death penalty "which reviews the processes towards abolition of capital punishment" in a wide range of countries. [15]

Related Research Articles

Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is a state-sanctioned practice of killing a person as a punishment for a crime. The sentence ordering that an offender is to be punished in such a manner is known as a death sentence, and the act of carrying out the sentence is known as an execution. A prisoner who has been sentenced to death and awaits execution is condemned and is commonly referred to as being "on death row".

Capital punishment by country Overview of the use of capital punishment in several countries

The following is a summary of the use of capital punishment by country. Globally, of the 195 independent states that are UN members or have UN observer status, 109 countries have completely abolished it de jure for all crimes, 7 have abolished it for ordinary crimes and 24 are abolitionist in practice, while 55 countries retain capital punishment.

Capital punishment in Belarus Overview of the use of capital punishment in Belarus

Capital punishment is a legal penalty in Belarus. At least four executions were carried out in the country in 2018.

Capital punishment in France is banned by Article 66-1 of the Constitution of the French Republic, voted as a constitutional amendment by the Congress of the French Parliament on 19 February 2007 and simply stating "No one can be sentenced to the death penalty". The death penalty was already declared illegal on 9 October 1981 when President François Mitterrand signed a law prohibiting the judicial system from using it and commuting the sentences of the seven people on death row to life imprisonment. The last execution took place by guillotine, being the main legal method since the French Revolution; Hamida Djandoubi, a Tunisian citizen convicted of torture and murder on French soil, who was put to death in September 1977 in Marseille.

Capital punishment in Europe

Capital punishment has been completely abolished in all European countries except for Belarus and Russia, the latter of which has a moratorium and has not conducted an execution since September 1996. The complete ban on capital punishment is enshrined in both the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (EU) and two widely adopted protocols of the European Convention on Human Rights of the Council of Europe, and is thus considered a central value. Of all modern European countries, San Marino, Portugal, and the Netherlands were the first to abolish capital punishment, whereas only Belarus still practises capital punishment in some form or another. In 2012, Latvia became the last EU member state to abolish capital punishment in wartime.

Capital punishment in the Philippines The Philippines has a long and varied history with capital punishment, existing throughout its entire history from Pre-Hispanic period until its formal independence in 1946 but it was most recently suspended in the year 2006 and replaced with the Reclusión perpetua for crimes that falls under the Revised Penal Code and Life Imprisonment provided by other special laws for crimes not included in the former.

Capital punishment is a legal penalty in Pakistan. Although there have been numerous amendments to the Constitution, there is yet to be a provision prohibiting the death penalty as a punitive remedy.

Source protection, sometimes also referred to as source confidentiality or in the U.S. as the reporter's privilege, is a right accorded to journalists under the laws of many countries, as well as under international law. It prohibits authorities, including the courts, from compelling a journalist to reveal the identity of an anonymous source for a story. The right is based on a recognition that without a strong guarantee of anonymity, many would be deterred from coming forward and sharing information of public interests with journalists.

United Nations moratorium on the death penalty United Nations General Assembly resolution adopted in 2007

At Italy's instigation, the UN moratorium on the death penalty resolution was presented by the EU in partnership with eight co-author member States to the General Assembly of the United Nations, calling for general suspension of capital punishment throughout the world. It was twice affirmed: first, on 15 November 2007 by the Third Committee, and then subsequently reaffirmed on 18 December by the United Nations General Assembly resolution 62/149. New Zealand played a central role facilitating agreement between the co-author group and other supporters.

Capital punishment in Tajikistan is allowed by Article 18 of the 1999 Constitution of Tajikistan, which provides:

"Every person has the right to life. No person may be deprived of life except by the verdict of a court for a very serious crime."

Capital punishment in Nepal

Capital punishment in Nepal has been abolished.

Capital punishment in Peru was last used in 1979. In the same year, the death penalty was abolished for ordinary crimes. Peru is one of seven countries that has abolished capital punishment for "ordinary crimes only." Peru voted in favor of the United Nations moratorium on the death penalty in 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, and 2020. Peru is not a member state to the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Capital punishment is a legal penalty in Guatemala, and is carried out by lethal injection and, to a lesser extent, the firing squad. It is only in military codes of justice, and was abolished for civilian offences in October 2017.

The Global Commission on Drug Policy (GCDP) is a panel of world leaders and intellectuals, with a Secretariat based in Geneva, Switzerland.

Capital punishment in Lithuania

Capital punishment in Lithuania was ruled unconstitutional and abolished for all crimes in 9 December 1998. Lithuania is a member of the Council of Europe and has signed and ratified Protocol 13 of the European Convention on Human Rights on complete abolition of death penalty. From March 1990 to December 1998, Lithuania executed seven people, all men. The last execution in the country occurred in July 1995, when Lithuanian mafia boss Boris Dekanidze was executed.

Amina Bouayach Moroccan human rights activist

Amina Bouayach is a Moroccan human rights activist. Since December 2018, Bouayach has served as the president of the Moroccan National Human Rights Council. In this role, she affirmed in 2019 that there are no "political prisoners in Morocco."

Capital punishment remains a legal penalty for multiple crimes in The Gambia. However, the country has taken recent steps towards abolishing the death penalty.

Capital punishment is a legal penalty in South Sudan. It is covered under the Penal Code Act of South Sudan and allows for executions of individuals to occur in the event of convictions for numerous crimes including murder and terrorism. The sentences can be imposed by either civilian courts or the military. Between 2011 and 2018, at least 140 people have been put to death in South Sudan with hundreds more awaiting their sentence on death row, though due to a lack of reporting within the country exact numbers remain unknown. The country has faced criticism from international rights groups and multinational organizations for its use of capital punishment on juveniles. Not a party to the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, South Sudan remains one of sub-Saharan Africa's largest users of the death penalty.

Capital punishment has been abolished in Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone abolished capital punishment in July 2021 following a decision by the nation's Parliament.

Capital punishment is no longer a legal punishment in Rwanda. The death penalty was abolished in Rwanda in 2007.

References

  1. ↑ "Queda constituida la Comisión Internacional contra Pena de Muerte". Archived from the original on 2014-03-15. Retrieved 2014-05-18.
  2. ↑ "Abolition of the Death Penalty – New 'De Facto' Millennium Goal | Inter Press Service". Ipsnews.net. 2010-10-07. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  3. 1 2 "The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area: Background Paper 2011". OSCE. 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  4. ↑ "Louise Arbour Extended Biography". Archived from the original on March 28, 2014. Retrieved May 18, 2014.
  5. ↑ "Calls for end to death penalty". Ohchr.org. 2012-07-03. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  6. ↑ "Ex-N.M. Gov. Richardson pushes death penalty repeal in Del". Delaware Newszap. 2014-04-06. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  7. ↑ "State House delays vote on Markell tax increases". Delaware Newszap. 2014-03-25. Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  8. 1 2 "The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area: Background Paper 2012". OSCE. 2012-09-26. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  9. ↑ "Outrage Across Ideological Spectrum in Europe over Flawed Lethal Injection in US". The New York Times . Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  10. ↑ "Edgar Tamayo Arias News: International Commission Against The Death Penalty Condemns Planned Execution". Latintimes.com. 19 January 2014. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  11. 1 2 "Where global solutions are shaped for you | News & Media | HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL HOLDS HIGH-LEVEL PANEL DISCUSSION ON THE QUESTION OF THE DEATH PENALTY". Unog.ch. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  12. ↑ "Working Group on Death Penalty and Extra-Judicial, Summary or Arbitrary killings in Africa / Intersession Activity Reports / 50th Ordinary Session / ACHPR". Achpr.org. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  13. ↑ "The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area: Background Paper 2013". OSCE. 2013-10-02. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  14. ↑ "Meeting with member of the International Commission against the Death Penalty Ruth Dreifuss » "Khovar" - National Information Agency of Tajikistan". Khovar.tj. 2010-03-22. Archived from the original on 2014-05-18. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
  15. ↑ "Human Rights Documents". Ap.ohchr.org. Retrieved 2015-03-06.
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