The Special Rapporteur’s Thematic Report on the Death Penalty Read the Special Rapporteur’s Report on the Death Penalty and the Prohibition of Torture here! You can also watch webcasts of the SRT delivering his report before the UN General Assembly and delivering a press conference following the presentation of the report. The official… Continue Reading
Center for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law
Latest News on Death Penalty!
Using the death penalty to fight drug crimes violates international law, UN rights experts warn World Day Against the Death Penalty
October 10, 2015 – Today, on World Day Against the Death Penalty, United Nations Special Rapporteurs on torture, Juan E. Méndez, and on summary executions, Christof Heyns, remind Governments that “executions for drug crimes amount to a violation of international law and are unlawful killings.” It is estimated that drug-related sentences could account for around 1,000 executions a year worldwide. The two Special Rapporteurs reaffirmed that the death penalty has no role to play in the 21st century, and even less so in the case of drug-related offences. “We are looking forward to the time when it will no longer be necessary to have a special day on the death penalty; a time when all states have left this form of punishment behind them.” To read the press release in full, please visit the OHCHR website.
Special Rapporteur on Torture Urges Saudi Arabia to Halt Execution of Children
22 September 2015- On September 22, Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan E. Méndez, Special Rapporteur on Summary Executions Christof Heyns, and Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of Child Benyam Mezmur urged the Government of Saudi Arabia to halt the imminent execution of Ali Mohammed al-Nimr, who was convicted of a crime reportedly committed when he was a child. During his arrest and detention Mr. Al-Namir was reportedly subjected to torture and ill treatment by the General Investigation Directorate, which coerced him to confess the charges against him. “Confessions obtained under torture are unacceptable and cannot be used as evidence before court,” the experts stressed. Saudi Arabia is a State party to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, which carries with it international obligations. “Any judgment imposing the death penalty upon persons who were children at the time of the offence, and their execution, are incompatible with Saudi Arabia’s international obligations,” said the experts. The experts “urged the Saudi authorities to establish a moratorium on the use of the death penalty, halt executions of persons convicted who were children at the time of the offence, and ensure a prompt and impartial investigation into all alleged acts of torture.”
To read the full press release, please click here
