press release by Amnesty International v. 02.10.2007:
true in December at the UN General Assembly on a worldwide moratorium on executions. According
Amnesty International (AI) is a historic opportunity for human rights. The states that have abolished the death penalty in law or in practice, had the votes for the necessary majority. Nevertheless ai fears that this majority because of political agreements not concluded.
On the eve of International Day against the Death Penalty (10 October) ai calls so with a public campaign in Berlin, the UN member states for a "Yes" for the moratorium on executions.
"At UN decisions play political alliances and dependencies, a not insignificant role. The states with death penalty will try to look to other countries to their side, a moratorium on executions prevent ", Oliver Hendrich, AI expert said the death penalty.
" ai will work with the EU and other countries for an end to state killing. "
For years observed ai the trend towards a world without death penalty. Some two thirds of all countries apply the death penalty any more. But most of the world's population continues to live in countries that have the death penalty.
sit Worldwide more than 20,000 people on death row. 2006, at least 1591 people were executed and at least 3861 sentenced to death .
world maps and background material on the death penalty, see http://www.amnesty-todesstrafe.de/
