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Death Penalty in America,
Legal Studies 485, Spring 2003 |
Status of Death Penalty Worldwide
Number of executions worldwide
During 2001, at least 3,048 prisoners were executed in 31 countries and 5,265 people were sentenced to death in 69 countries. These figures include only cases known to Amnesty International; the true figures are certainly higher.
In 2001, 90 per cent of all known executions took place in China, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the USA. In China, the limited and incomplete records available to Amnesty International at the end of the year indicated that at least 2,468 people were executed, but the true figure was believed to be much higher. At least 139 executions were carried out in Iran. In Saudi Arabia, 79 executions were reported, but the total may have been much higher. Sixty-six people were executed in the USA.
Use of the Death Penalty Against Child Offenders
International human rights treaties prohibit anyone under 18 years old at the time of the crime being sentenced to death. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the American Convention on Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child all have provisions to this effect. More than 110 countries whose laws still provide for the death penalty for at least some offences have laws specifically excluding the execution of child offenders or may be presumed to exclude such executions by being parties to one or another of the above treaties. A small number of countries, however, continue to execute child offenders.
Seven countries since 1990 are known to have executed prisoners who were under 18 years old at the time of the crime - Congo (Democratic Republic), Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, USA and Yemen. The country which carried out the greatest number of known executions of child offenders was the USA (15 since 1990).
Amnesty International recorded three executions of child offenders in 2001: one in Iran, one in Pakistan and one in the USA.
Abolitionist and Retentionist Countries
More than half the countries in the world have now abolished the death penalty in law or practice. The numbers are as follows:
Abolitionist for all crimes: 74
Abolitionist for ordinary crimes only: 15
Abolitionist in practice: 22
Total abolitionist in law or practice: 111
Retentionist: 84
Countries which have abolished the death penalty since 1995
1996: BELGIUM abolished the death penalty for all crimes.
1997: GEORGIA, NEPAL, POLAND and SOUTH AFRICA abolished the death penalty for all crimes. BOLIVIA and BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes.
1998: AZERBAIJAN, BULGARIA, CANADA, ESTONIA, LITHUANIA and the UNITED KINGDOM abolished the death penalty for all crimes.
1999: EAST TIMOR, TURKMENISTAN and UKRAINE abolished the death penalty for all crimes. LATVIA (5) abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes.
2000 : COTE D'IVOIRE and MALTA abolished the death penalty for all crimes. ALBANIA (6) abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes.
2001: CHILE abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes.
International Treaties to Abolish the Death Penalty
Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948)
. . .
Article 3. Everyone has the right to life, liberty and the security of person.
Article 5. No one shall be subject to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (Signed 1966, In force 1976)
. . .
Article 6.
1. Every human being has the inherent right to life. This right shall be protected by law. No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his life.
2. In countries which have not abolished the death penalty, sentence of death may be imposed only for the most serious crimes in accordance with the law in force at the time of the commission of the crimes . . .
4. Anyone sentenced to death shall have the right to seek pardon or commutation of the sentence. Amnesty, pardon or commutation of the sentence of death may be granted in all cases.
5. Sentence of death shall not be imposed for crimes committed by persons below eighteen years of age and shall not be carried out on pregnant women.
6. Nothing in this article shall be invoked to delay or to prevent the abolition of capital punishment by any State Party to the present Covenant.
Article 7.
No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. . .
The community of nations has adopted three international treaties providing
for the abolition of the death penalty. One is of worldwide scope; the other
two are regional.
Second Optional
Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
The Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1989, is of worldwide scope. It provides for the total abolition of the death penalty but allows states parties to retain the death penalty in time of war if they make a reservation to that effect at the time of ratifying or acceding to the Protocol. Any state which is a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights can become a party to the Protocol.
States parties: AUSTRALIA, AUSTRIA, AZERBAIJAN, BELGIUM, BOSNIA- HERZEGOVINA, BULGARIA, CAPE VERDE, COLOMBIA, COSTA RICA, CROATIA, CYPRUS, DENMARK, ECUADOR, FINLAND, GEORGIA, GERMANY, GREECE, HUNGARY, ICELAND, IRELAND, ITALY, LIECHTENSTEIN, LUXEMBOURG, MACEDONIA, MALTA, MONACO, MOZAMBIQUE, NAMIBIA, NEPAL, NETHERLANDS, NEW ZEALAND, NORWAY, PANAMA, PORTUGAL, ROMANIA,
SEYCHELLES, SLOVAK REPUBLIC, SLOVENIA, SPAIN, SWEDEN, SWITZERLAND,
TURKMENISTAN, UNITED KINGDOM, URUGUAY, VENEZUELA, YUGOSLAVIA
(total: 46)
Signed but not ratified: CHILE, GUINEA-BISSAU, HONDURAS, LITHUANIA, NICARAGUA, POLAND, SAO TOMÉ AND PRINCIPE
(total: 7)
Protocol to the
American Convention on Human Rights
The Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights to Abolish the Death Penalty, adopted by the General Assembly of the Organization of American States in 1990, provides for the total abolition of the death penalty but allows states parties to retain the death penalty in wartime if they make a reservation to that effect at the time of ratifying or acceding to the Protocol. Any state party to the American Convention on Human Rights can become a party to the Protocol.
States parties: BRAZIL, COSTA RICA, ECUADOR, NICARAGUA, PANAMA, PARAGUAY, URUGUAY, VENEZUELA
(total: 8)
Signed but not ratified: CHILE
((total: 1)
Protocol No. 6 to
the European Convention on Human Rights
Protocol No. 6 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms ["European Convention on Human Rights"] concerning the abolition of the death penalty, adopted by the Council of Europe in 1982, provides for the abolition of the death penalty in peacetime; states parties may retain the death penalty for crimes "in time of war or of imminent threat of war". Any state party to the European Convention on Human Rights can become a party to the Protocol.
States parties: ALBANIA, ANDORRA, AUSTRIA, BELGIUM, BULGARIA, CROATIA, CYPRUS, CZECH REPUBLIC, DENMARK, ESTONIA, FINLAND, FRANCE, GEORGIA, GERMANY, GREECE, HUNGARY, ICELAND, IRELAND, ITALY, LATVIA, LIECHTENSTEIN, LITHUANIA, LUXEMBOURG, MACEDONIA, MALTA, MOLDOVA, NETHERLANDS, NORWAY, POLAND, PORTUGAL, ROMANIA, SAN MARINO, SLOVAK REPUBLIC, SLOVENIA, SPAIN, SWEDEN, SWITZERLAND, UKRAINE,
UNITED KINGDOM
(total: 39)
Signed but not ratified: ARMENIA, AZERBAIJAN, RUSSIAN FEDERATION
(total: 3)
Protocol No. 13
to the European Convention on Human Rights
Protocol No. 13 to the Convention for the Protection of
Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms [European Convention on Human Rights]
concerning the abolition of the death penalty in all circumstances, adopted by
the council of Europe in 2002, provides for the abolition of the death penalty
in all circumstances, including time of war or of imminent threat of war. It
will be opened for signature on 3 May 2002.