[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Sept. 28


NIGERIA:

NGOs coalition asks N'Assembly to pass death penalty bill into law


A coalition of local and international non governmental organisations
(NGOs), yesterday called on the National Assembly to immediately pass into
law the draft Death Penalty Moratorium Bill, submitted to it by the Human
Rights Law Service in order to stop executions, pending abolition of the
death penalty.

President of Amnesty International, Senegal, Dr Louis Mendy, who spoke at
a briefing in Lagos on 'Death Penalty Moratorium and Abolition in
Nigeria', also called for the review of all cases of death row prisoners
and examine the cases of those who are older than 70 and those above 60
who have been on death row for more than ten years to see if they will be
suitable for release, as promised by the Obasanjos administration on May
16, 2007".

The coalition also called for the immediately abolition of the mandatory
death sentence, including under Shari'a penal laws, noting that mandatory
death sentences appear to especially target women. The coalition is made
up of Access to Justice, Amnesty International, Civil Liberties
Organisation, Cleen Foundation, Hurilaw, Human Rights Watch, Legal
Resource Consortium, National Coalition for Death Penalty Abolition,
Prisoners Rehabilitation and Welfare Action, Project Alert and West
African Network for Peace Building Nigeria.

Nigeria's commitment to the internationally recognized and constitutional
right to life that all people in Nigeria should enjoy. On the occasion of
the Independence Day celebrations, we urge President Yar'Adua to bring
Nigeria into line with the global trend towards abolition of the death
penalty."

"Indeed, a momentum is gathering to end capital punishment in all
countries. 131 countries, from all regions of the world, have abolished
the death penalty in law or in practice and only 25 countries carried out
executions in 2006. Already in 1999, the African Commission on Human and
Peoples' Rights, in its resolution adopted at the 26th Ordinary session in
Kigali (Rwanda), called upon all States that still maintain the death
penalty to consider establishing a moratorium on executions."

"We call on the Nigerian government to join this trend by declaring a
moratorium - pending abolition of the death penalty for all offences - and
by commuting all death sentences under Nigerian criminal law or Sharia
penal laws. A resolution calling for a global moratorium on executions
will be introduced at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) 62th
session which begins on 18 September 2007.

Supported by countries from all regions of the world, such a resolution
would be an important milestone towards the total abolition of the death
penalty in all countries," he added

(source: Vanguard)