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Human Rights Watch highlights a dramatic increase in unlawful executions in Iraq in 2024. At least 50 men were executed in September, often without fair trials or prior notice to families. Reports reveal torture, inhumane detention conditions, and arbitrary practices. The organization calls for an immediate moratorium on the death penalty and urgent reforms to Iraq’s judicial and prison systems.

• Document type NGO report
• Countries list Iraq

The Death Penalty Policy Project has published a comprehensive study analyzing over three decades of FBI homicide data. The findings reveal that U.S. states without the death penalty or with moratoria on executions are safer for both the public and police. By contrast, states actively carrying out executions rank among the least safe in the U.S. The study challenges long-held deterrence arguments and underscores the death penalty’s ineffectiveness as a public safety policy.

• Document type Arguments against the death penalty
• Countries list United States

The “Resolution on the United Nations General Assembly Biannual Vote Calling for a Moratorium on the Use of the Death Penalty” (ACHPR/Res.614 (LXXXI) 2024) was adopted by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights during its 81st Ordinary Session in November 2024. The resolution emphasizes the importance of promoting human rights in Africa, particularly the right to life and dignity, as outlined in the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights.

The resolution recalls past efforts to encourage African states to impose moratoriums on the death penalty, urging them to vote in favor of the UN General Assembly’s resolution calling for a universal moratorium. It highlights the significant support for these resolutions by African Union Member States, with increasing numbers of countries voting in favor over the years.

The Commission urges African countries that still have the death penalty to consider adopting moratoriums, reduce the number of crimes punishable by death, and ensure fair legal processes for those sentenced to death, including the right to seek pardon or commutation. It also calls for the possibility of abolishing the death penalty entirely in some states.

In summary, the resolution encourages African countries to align with global trends towards abolition, promote respect for human dignity, and consider the long-term benefits of a moratorium on the death penalty.

• Document type International law - Regional body
• Themes list Moratorium / Trend Towards Abolition
• Available languages RESOLUTION SUR LE VOTE BIANNUEL DE L'ASSEMBLEE GENERALE DES NATIONS UNIES APPELANT A UN MORATOIRE SUR L'APPLICATION DE LA PEINE DE MORT. CADHP/Res.614 (LXXXI) 2024

FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) for the Open Call for proposals for Financial Support to Third Parties of the Global Consortium for Death Penalty Abolition

• Document type Array
• Available languages FAQ Appel à propositions FSTP

As we commemorate the World Day Against the Death Penalty, Justice Project Pakistan presents the third edition of its annual statistics report, Death Penalty in Pakistan: Data Mapping Capital Punishment. This report offers a thoroughly updated and comprehensive analysis of the implementation of the death penalty in Pakistan.

Over the past decade, significant developments have shaped the landscape of capital punishment in Pakistan. This report delves into the data and provides an insightful overview of a period marked by a profound re-evaluation of the death penalty. Its aim is to highlight these developments through detailed statistical analysis and contextual insights.

Since the lifting of the moratorium on executions in December 2014, the administration of death sentences has undergone substantial changes. The statistics reflect a complex interplay of legal processes, judicial decisions, and evolving societal attitudes that influence the application of capital punishment. This edition captures these shifts and provides key findings on trends, patterns, and the underlying drivers.

• Document type NGO report
• Countries list Pakistan

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

On February 9, 2024, the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) lifted the moratorium on executions that had been in place since 2003. This decision comes amid a deteriorating security situation in the eastern part of the country and increasing restrictions on civic space. Since the moratorium was lifted, human rights defenders who publicly oppose this decision have faced heightened repression from Congolese authorities. This note documents the violations suffered by these defenders in several provinces of the country, including:

– death threats and acts of physical violence;
– arbitrary arrests and detentions;
– baseless accusations and fabricated judicial proceedings;
– violations of property rights and freedom of movement;
– harassment targeting their relatives and collaborators.

These violations are mainly perpetrated by agents of the National Intelligence Agency (ANR), the Military Detection of Unpatriotic Activities (Démiap), and security forces. The impunity enjoyed by the perpetrators allows this repression to continue.

This note also highlights the considerable impact that the criminalization of defenders has on their living conditions and those of their families, including:

– the inability to continue their activities due to fear of reprisals;
– economic and social consequences (loss of employment, marginalization);
– disruption of family life (forced relocations, separations);
– forced exile for some particularly threatened defenders.

The growing phenomenon of repression described in this note is part of a broader context of civic space restrictions in the DRC, exacerbated by the state of siege in place in some eastern provinces. This repression risks having a significant deterrent effect on the entire abolitionist movement and, more broadly, on any form of opposition to the government.

• Document type NGO report
• Countries list Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Themes list Moratorium
• Available languages Rapport sur la situation des défenseur.es abolitionnistes en République Démocratique du Congo