NGOs call for universal abolition of death penalty

NGOs call for universal abolition of death penalty

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- Several non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Taiwan called on the government and the rest of the world Saturday to take measures to abolish the death penalty, as they marked World and European Day against the Death Penalty, which also falls on Taiwan's National Day.


The Taiwan Alliance to End the Death Penalty (TAEDP), Human Rights Education Curriculum and Instruction Team, Humanistic Education Foundation, Taiwan Association for Human Rights, Chang Fo-chuan Human Rights Study Center of Soochow University and the European Economic and Trade Office (EETO) in Taipei made the appeal at a joint press conference.

The groups called on the public to support a global “Appeal for the End of Execution of Children in the World” initiated by World Coalition Against the Death Penalty.

A series of four workshops on the theme “See the Color of Life: Understanding the Death Penalty” was being launched the same day to train a seed group of social workers to raise awareness and widen debate on the issue, the NGOs said.

“Support for abolition of the death penalty remains an individual decision. That is why a better understanding of the issue is required in order to form an opinion, “ said Nicolas Baudouin, policy officer of the EETO's Political and Economic Affairs, at the press conference.

Lin Chia-fang, deputy convener of TAEDP, said that although abolition of the death penalty is a very controversial issue, every human being, including prisoners sentenced to death, has a right to human dignity, which is the most basic concept of human rights.

Feng Chiao-lan,executive director of Humanistic Education Foundation, said that the death penalty is a tool used by governments to rule through fear.

“When we take someone's life, we also trade our humanity,” she added.

As of the June 2009, 139 countries had joined the campaign against the death penalty, 55 of which have abolished capital punishment since 1990.

A “de facto moratorium” on the death penalty has been in effect in Taiwan since 2005 when the last execution was carried out.

On May 14 this year, President Ma Ying Jeou signed the ratification of International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Baudouin said these recent developments in Taiwan are positive, as they provide a solid framework for the promotion of human rights and for further progress toward abolishing the death penalty.

World Day Against the Death Penalty annually gathers international non governmental organizations, bar associations, unions and local governments from all over the world to lobby for the abolition of the death penalty.

It was launched on Oct. 10, 2003 by the World coalition Against the Death Penalty.

In 2008, at least 2,390 people were executed in 25 countries, while more than 8,800 people were sentenced to death in 52 countries, the press release said, adding that 93 percent of all known executions took place in five countries — China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the U.S. and Pakistan.

source: http://www.chinapost.com.tw/taiwan/national/national-news/2009/10/11/228...