OSCE report confirms trend towards abolition of death penalty

WARSAW, 10 September 2002 - The OSCE's 2002 death penalty report confirms the ongoing trend towards the abolition of capital punishment in the OSCE region. The report was released today by the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) on the margins of the OSCE's annual human rights conference in Warsaw.

"In view of the irreversible character of the death penalty we call on all countries retaining capital punishment to do their utmost to ensure that all relevant safeguards for the protection of the rights of defendants facing the death penalty are strictly applied", said Ambassador Gérard Stoudmann, Director of the ODIHR.

With the recent complete abolition of the death penalty in Cyprus and Montenegro (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia), the number of completely abolitionist countries within the 55-nation OSCE reached 43 by the end of the reporting period (30 June 2002). The OSCE comprises all countries of Europe as well as North America and Central Asia.

Of the remaining 12 countries, four retain capital punishment only for wartime offences, including Turkey which abolished the death penalty for all peacetime crimes last month. Three other countries have instituted a moratorium on executions and can therefore also be considered de facto abolitionist.

According to the study, only five OSCE countries actively use the death penalty and carry out executions for crimes committed during peacetime. These are Belarus, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, the United States of America and Uzbekistan.

While the use of the death penalty is not prohibited by OSCE commitments, participating States are obliged to apply capital punishment only for the most serious crimes in accordance with the law in force at the time of the commission of the crime and not contrary to their international commitments. They have also committed themselves to make information on the use of the death penalty available to the public.