Abolition of the death penalty in the Central African Republic

Statement

By ECPM, World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, the International Federation of ACAT (FIACAT) and Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture in the Central African Republic (ACAT CAR), on 2 August 2021

Together Against the Death Penalty, the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, the International Federation of ACAT (FIACAT) and Action by Christians for the Abolition of Torture in the Central African Republic (ACAT CAR) welcome this interactive dialogue and wish to draw the attention of the Independent Expert on the application of the death penalty in Central African Republic.

Since 2012, the Central African Republic has been committed to the path of abolition by consistently voting in favor of the UN Resolution for a Universal Moratorium on the Use of the Death Penalty, and accepting the 20 recommendations for abolition at the third round of the Universal Periodic Review in 2018.

We welcomed President Touadera’s renewed commitment in his inaugural speech on March 30, 2021, to pursue efforts to abolish the death penalty echoing the various public pronouncements, both nationally and internationally, by Central African political leaders. ECPM and the co-signatories are concerned, however, by the unannounced postponement to April 15, 2021, of the consideration of the abolition bill, introduced on March 26, 2018, by Mr. Betangai, chairman of the Law Commission.

In light of these elements and in line with the abolitionist trend on the African continent, we call on the Central African authorities to continue the efforts already undertaken in this regard and to reinstate the bill abolishing the death penalty on the agenda of the National Assembly.

Thank you.