Blog 5: Stepping Back From Capital Pinushment

In December the United Nations General Assembly majority voted for the temporary prohibition of capital punishment. One hundred and eleven nations supported this vote which was the first time in five years that so many nations have supported the same movement. Even though majority of the nations voted to end capital punishment in just the first month of 2013 Saudi Arabia beheaded none people. Yemen has sentenced a minor to execution, and Iran has reportedly begun sentencing its citizens to death for petty crimes such as robbery. Indonesia sentenced a British grandmother to death for trafficking, and after years of searching Zimbabwe has hired a hangman to execute the 76 people sentenced to death row, some have been waiting over 14years since they last hangman retired. Although the United States death sentences and executions are decreasing in just 2012 there were 43 executions and 77 death sentences. The International Commission is against all death penalty for all reason. The feel like the world is a place where executions will soon no longer be tolerated. The United Nations assembly to end capital punishment was supported by the fact that 105 countries have repealed capital punishment in their laws or just no longer performs executions in previous years. They feel that that is proof of the growing understanding that in today’s modern society there is no place for capital punishment. The reason why they are so against capital punishment according to them because it does harm and no good”. It allows the potential risk of executing innocent people, and it’s ineffective at deterring violent crime. Statistics have even proven that states that have abolished capital punishment have lower murder rates than those who still have it. Being a handful of states are still willing to risk international outrage, controversy, and isolation by continuing capital punishment there is still much work that needs to be done. Aside from the few places I mentioned earlier  China, Iraq, North Korea and our good old’ United States are in the global spotlight for bring the world’s most prolific executioners year on year. As more countries understand that the only place for capital punishment is in the “history books” the shrinking group of executing states will become even more isolate until they basically have no other choice but to suspend the use of the death penalty.

3/2/13 2:35am

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/21/opinion/global/stepping-back-from-capital-punishment.html?_r=0