NCJ Number
210519
Date Published
March 2005
Length
55 pages
Annotation
In accordance with a 1973 resolution of the United Nations (U.N.) Economic and Social Council that requests the U.N. Secretary-General to report to the Council every 5 years on the status of capital punishment in countries throughout the world, this 2005 report to the Council focuses on the implementation of the safeguards that guarantee the protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty.
Abstract
This report is based on information collected in the seventh survey on capital punishment, which was sent to U.N. member states, intergovernmental organizations, and U.N. specialized agencies and nongovernmental organizations. It covers the period 1999-2003 and reviews developments in the use of capital punishment worldwide, both in law and in practice. At the beginning of 1999, 70 countries had already abolished the death penalty for all crimes, a significantly higher number than at the beginning of the previous 5 years, when there were 55 abolitionist countries. A total of 113 countries had retained the death penalty for ordinary crimes and usually other offenses. The indication is that the rate at which countries have abolished capital punishment has proceeded at a steady pace. The response rate for the survey was low for countries that retain capital punishment, so information on safeguards for those facing the death penalty was minimal; however, there is apparently some progress in abolishing the mandatory imposition of the death penalty in several countries and in further restricting it to those offenders who were 18 years old or older at the time of the offense. There has also been progress in preventing the execution of mentally retarded or mentally ill offenders. This report expresses concern about the conditions under which persons are confined while under a death sentence or a moratorium. 5 tables, 155 notes, and appended list of safeguards for those facing the death penalty