death penalty iraq

This page was last changed on 24 May 2021, at 21:26. The gas chamber was found unconstitutional in the United States (that is: against the United States constitution not allowing "cruel and unusual punishments") and is no longer used. The death penalty v. human rights: Why abolish the death penalty? It was a message that saved his life. Their aim? At Amnesty International, we firmly believe that no one – including any government – has the right to take away someone else’s life. Most of the countries that have a death penalty use it on murderers, and for other serious crimes such as rape or terrorism. The U.S. ranked eighth internationally, behind China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Pakistan, Egypt and Somalia. Amnesty International recorded at least 483 executions in 18 countries in 2020, down by 26% from 2019 (at least 657 executions). Death penalty refers to the sentence of death imposed by a court of law on an offender who has committed a capital offense. Many people say the death penalty is reasonable because it scares people away from doing things that are illegal, however many others say there is a potential of executing an innocent man; one says justice, retribution, and punishment; the other side says that execution is murder. “It was such an incredible achievement – and it showed the importance of people power. Last year, they did the same in the military court, too,” said Souleymane. Hafez, who was accused of a crime he insists he didn’t commit, first faced a firing squad in 2005. The death penalty is in the headlines as US President Donald Trump presses ahead with authorisation for a series of executions before he leaves office. Others have been executed despite serious doubts about their guilt. Several of these countries have changed their laws to exclude the practice. According to the European Convention on Human Rights, specifically its 13th amendment (2002), no one must be executed. Excluding China, 88% of all reported executions took place in just four countries – Iran, Egypt, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Another 28 can be considered abolitionist in practice.   |   The death penalty is a symptom of a culture of violence, not a solution to it.   |   In 2020, most known executions took place in China, Iran, Egypt, Iraq and Saudi Arabia – in that order. The Council of Europe has abolished all death penalty by 13th amendment of the European Convention on Human Rights. More than two-thirds are abolitionist in law or practice. What is the death penalty? We publish a report annually, reporting figures and analysing trends for each country. This figure represents the lowest number of executions that Amnesty International has recorded in at least a decade. This map shows the status of the death penalty around the world. “My colleagues and I lobbied against the death penalty every day for five months. The message sparked an international campaign, persuading the President to stop the execution for a second time. When Amnesty started its work in 1977, only 16 countries had totally abolished the death penalty. Death penalty, also called capital punishment, is when a government or state executes (kills) someone, usually but not always because they have committed a serious crime. Overall, there were at least 993 executions in 23 nations in 2017, down slightly from 1,032 in 2016. We've taken a … A total of 557 people were executed in the United States between 1977, when the death penalty was reintroduced after a 10-year break, and 2000. Amnesty opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception - regardless of who is accused, the nature or circumstances of the crime, guilt or innocence or method of execution. © Amnesty International/McCann Erickson Berlin, The nightmare of Uyghur families separated by repression, Yemen: Detainees tortured and arbitrarily detained for years then forced into exile upon release, Russia/Ukraine: Crimean Tatar human rights defender’s sentence upheld in mockery of international law, France: Convictions against peaceful protesters who marched against xenophobic group must be quashed, We publish a report annually, reporting figures and analysing trends for each country, Death sentences and executions (reports from all available years), The death penalty - your questions answered. We also support actions and work by the abolitionist movement, at national, regional and global level. Here are the states with the most executions during this time: *The Russian Soviet Socialist Republic, as part of the Soviet Union, reinstated capital punishment during the time of the Soviet Union. Although international law says that the use of the death penalty must be restricted to the the most serious crimes, meaning intentional killing, Amnesty believes that the death penalty is never the answer. It is irreversible and mistakes happen.   |   Along with 34 NGOs, they finally achieved their goal last year. Iran has executed more than twice as many people who were below the age of 18 at the time of the crime as the other nine countries combined. Thanks to Amnesty’s campaigning efforts, the execution of Hafez Ibrahim, from Yemen, was stopped not once, but twice. Death Penalty News (DPN) opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception, regardless of who is accused, the nature or circumstances of the crime, guilt or innocence or method of execution. As it is an important topic, each country has very strong feelings. Amnesty’s work to abolish the death penalty is also bolstered by its incredible activists, who take it upon themselves to campaign against this abhorrent practice. 6 to the European Convention on Human Rights, concerning the abolition of the death penalty, and Protocol No. Retentionist countries have carried out at least one execution in the past ten years.De facto abolitionist countries have not carried out any executions in over ten years, but retain the death penalty in law. This includes having limited access to legal representation, for example, or being at greater disadvantage in their experience of the criminal justice system. Execution is the ultimate, irrevocable punishment: the risk of executing an innocent person can never be eliminated. Canada, Australia, Mexico and all members of Council of Europe are examples of countries that have abolished the death penalty. In 2007, Hafez was about to be executed again when he sent a mobile text message to Amnesty. Some methods like crucifixion and flaying are no longer used by governments, because people think that these methods of killing are too cruel. About one third of the countries in the world have laws that allow the death penalty. The weight of the death penalty is disproportionally carried by those with less advantaged socio-economic backgrounds or belonging to a racial, ethnic or religious minority. Wrongly convicted, innocent people have received death penalty sentences, and tragically, were killed by the state. This claim has been repeatedly discredited, and there is no evidence that the death penalty is any more effective in reducing crime than life imprisonment. You can use this tool to change your cookie settings. Amnesty International recorded at least 1,477 death sentences in 54 countries in 2020, a decrease of 36% from the total of 2,307 reported in 2019. Refunds of donations. There is a lot of different opinions on the topic of capital punishment. The unprecedented challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic were not enough to deter 18 countries from carrying out executions in 2020, Amnesty International said today in its annual global review of the death penalty. We’re working to end the use of the death penalty around the world, and won’t stop until every country in the world has abolished it. Amnesty International holds that the death penalty breaches human rights, in particular the right to life and the right to live free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Just before he was about to be shot, he was taken back to his cell, with no explanation. People can spend years on death row, not knowing when their time is up, or whether they will see their families one last time. Death sentences by race and gender The death penalty continues to be imposed disproportionately on people of color. For 40 years, Amnesty has been campaigning to abolish the death penalty around the world. Amnesty estimates that thousands of people would have been executed in … On that date all remaining references to the death penalty were removed from the National Defence Act – the only section of law that since 1976 still provided for execution under the law. To promote the importance of human rights, educate people on these issues and abolish the death penalty. Death penalty abolitionists rallied on January 12, 2021 to protest the then-pending execution of Lisa Montgomery, and two others, at a federal prison in Terre Haute, Indiana. Most of all, it inspired us to continue campaigning.”, countries had completely abolished the death penalty by the end of 2020, people were executed in 2020 (excluding China) – down 26% from 2019, of people were likely executed in China, but the numbers remain classified. Despite that, that last executions in Canada were made under the Criminal Code, in 1962 when Ronald Turpin and China remains the world’s top executioner – but the true extent of the use of the death penalty in China is unknown as this data is classified as a state secret; the global figure of at least 483 recorded in 2020 excludes the thousands of executions believed to have been carried out in China. “I owe my life to Amnesty. 109 countries have gotten rid of the capital punishment for all crimes. Although unconfirmed, Amnesty International also received reports of many hundreds of executions in Iraq. It is used as a political tool. He was taken to a small yard in a Yemeni prison and brought before a row of officers with rifles in hand. (Photo: Jeremy Hogan/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) Calling capital punishment "an abhorrent practice" that "serves no deterrent value and cannot be reconciled with the right to life," a group of United … Other countries especially ones with Authoritarian or Totalitarian governments, however, also use it for smaller crimes like theft, drugs, or for saying bad things about the government. If you are talented and passionate about human rights then Amnesty International wants to hear from you. I later learned that Amnesty International had called on the Yemeni President to stop my execution and the message was heard,” Hafez said. China (4000+) data not officially released. At the time of writing Iran has executed at least 102 of them since 1990. The death penalty is used disproportionately against the poor, who cannot afford expensive legal counsel, as well as against racial, ethnic, and religious minorities. The use of the death penalty for crimes committed by people younger than 18 is prohibited under international human rights law, yet some countries still sentence to death and execute juvenile defendants. The death penalty is applied arbitrarily and inconsistently. The following forms of execution are in use today: Beheading: Japanese behead a Chinese (Photo from 1901), The Lapidation (Stoning) of St. Stephen is a painting by Rembrandt(1625), And It can't be helped, a painting by Goya, showing a firing squad. It is often used within skewed justice systems. “I was lost, I did not understand what was happening. Permissions Canada has been a fully abolitionist country since the 10th of December 1998. The organisation's work to oppose the death penalty takes many forms, including targeted, advocacy and campaign based projects in the Africa, Asia-Pacific, Americas and Europe and Central Asia region; strengthening national and international standards against its use, including by supporting the successful adoption of resolutions on a moratorium on the use of the death penalty by the UN General Assembly; and applying pressure on cases that face imminent execution. Prosecutors took the death penalty off the table in nearly a dozen other capital cases in 2019, as well. It does not deter crime. Souleymane Sow, has been volunteering with Amnesty International since he was a student in France. Countries who execute commonly cite the death penalty as a way to deter people from committing crime. Every day, people are executed and sentenced to death by the state as punishment for a variety of crimes – sometimes for acts that should not be criminalized. Capital punishment for homosexuality has been implemented by a number of countries in their history. Executions in most countries have become rarer in recent centuries. It is discriminatory. Your choice regarding cookies on this site Some countries execute people who were under 18 years old when the crime was committed, others use the death penalty against people with mental and intellectual disabilities and several others apply the death penalty after unfair trials – in clear violation of international law and standards. Most people know the threat of crime to their lives, but the question lies in the methods and action that should be used to deal with it. Some of these are: During war time, the following crimes are punished by death: According to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights that became valid in 1976, people that were not at least eighteen years old at the time they committed the crime may not be executed. Otherwise, we'll assume you're OK to continue. People said they were happy with our work and they could see that change is possible. In many cases recorded by Amnesty International, people were executed after being convicted in grossly unfair trials, on the basis of torture-tainted evidence and with inadequate legal representation. Amnesty's latest report, Death Sentences and Executions 2020, was released in April 2021. Amnesty International oppose all death penalty on ground of the right to life and prohibition of all tortures or any cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment insisted by Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Since 1990 Amnesty International has documented at least 152 executions of people who were below the age of 18 at the time of the crime in 10 countries: China, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iran, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Sudan, Sudan, the USA and Yemen. During this period, 20 states did not carry out any executions. While there was an overall … In some countries death sentences are imposed as the mandatory punishment for certain offences, meaning that judges are not able to consider the circumstances of the crime or of the defendant before sentencing. DPN holds that the death penalty breaches human rights, in particular the right to life and the right to live free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. The death penalty is sometimes referred to as the capital punishment. Now Hafez is a lawyer helping juveniles who languish on death row corridors across Yemen. Inspired to make a difference, he returned to Guinea, set up a local group of Amnesty International volunteers and got to work. Privacy Policy In some countries, it can be for drug-related offences, in others it is reserved for terrorism-related acts and murder. In 2016, Guinea’s National Assembly voted in favour of a new criminal code which removed the death sentence from the list of applicable penalties. [1] The United States, the People's Republic of China, Japan, Indonesia and Iran are examples of countries that have a death penalty. It was the first time so many NGOs had come together to campaign on an issue. “They are about to execute us,” Hafez said. Both rights are protected under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the UN in 1948.Over time, the international community has adopted several instruments that ban the use of the death penalty, including the following:• The Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty.• Protocol No. Even though the words death penalty and capital punishment are used interchangeably in many contexts, some people believe that there exists a difference in the meaning of the two phrases. Throughout human history, governments and rulers have used many death penalty methods to execute people, such as crucifixion, flaying, and hanging. International standards on the death penalty, Human rights v. the death penalty: Abolition and restriction in law and practice, The exclusion of child offenders from the death penalty under general international law, Constitutional prohibitions of the death penalty, Death penalty: Ratification of international treaties. The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment, and yet it is still being used to execute and issue death sentences around the world. Now I dedicate that life to campaigning against the death penalty.”. China, Iran, Egypt, Iraq and Saudi Arabia are the countries that use the death penalty the most. Today, that number has risen to 108 - more than half the world's countries. 13 to the European Convention on Human Rights, concerning the abolition of the death penalty in all circumstances.• The Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights to Abolish the Death Penalty. A crime that can be punished with the death penalty is called a capital crime or a capital offense.. Executions in most countries have become rarer in recent centuries. However, their significance goes beyond their number and calls into question the commitment of the executing states to respect international law. A study by Amnesty International found that the following countries did the most executions in 2012: [2]. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha . He thought that moment would be his last. The authorities in some countries, for example Iran and Sudan, use the death penalty to punish political opponents. 21 April 2021. Find out what Amnesty is doing to abolish the death penalty everywhere. We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. Death penalty, also called capital punishment, is when a government or state executes (kills) someone, usually but not always because they have committed a serious crime. It currently remains a legal punishment in several countries and regions, all of which is in accordance to the sharia-based criminal laws.Gay people also face extrajudicial killings by state and non-state actors, as in Chechnya in 2019. • Beheading• Electrocution• Hanging• Lethal injection• Shooting. At least 28,567 people were known to be under sentence of death globally at the end of 2020. It is common to have people executed for crimes including murder, manslaughter and attempted murder, but there are also other crimes that carry the death penalty. Since 1973, for example, more than 184 prisoners sent to death row in the USA have later been exonerated or released from death row on grounds of innocence. The international total includes only cases Amnesty was able to confirm – the report notes that some countries intentionally conceal death penalty proceedings. If they retain the death penalty in law but have not carried out any executions for the past 10 years or more. Such executions are few compared to the total number of executions recorded by Amnesty International each year. A crime that can be punished with the death penalty is called a capital crime or a capital offense. Amnesty monitors its use by all states to expose and hold to account governments that continue to use the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. The death penalty is a disputed and controversial topic. Death penalty 2020: Despite Covid-19, some countries ruthlessly pursued death sentences and executions. The death penalty is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. Cookie Statement (around 1810), Hanging of the four people convicted for murdering Abraham Lincoln (1865), From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, First countries to abolish capital punishment, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, https://www.amnesty.org/en/library/asset/ACT50/001/2013/en/bbfea0d6-39b2-4e5f-a1ad-885a8eb5c607/act500012013en.pdf, https://simple.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Death_penalty&oldid=7546434, Articles needing a sentence or phrase to be explained, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License. Over the last five years, 70% of death sentences have been imposed on people of color in Texas.

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