A recent poll of 1,600 Russians found that only 52% sup­port the death penal­ty, a sharp decline from 2002, when 73% said they sup­port­ed it. Two years ago, 61% were in favor of cap­i­tal pun­ish­ment. Russia cur­rent­ly has a mora­to­ri­um on the death penal­ty that was put in place in 1996 by President Yeltsin, short­ly before Russia signed a rel­e­vant pro­to­col of the European Convention on Human Rights. Russia’s high court has ruled that even death sen­tences can­not be hand­ed down. Hundreds of those on death row had their sen­tences com­mut­ed to life.

(“Fewer Russian cit­i­zens sup­port death penal­ty — poll,” Interfax, in Russia Behind the Headlines, July 14, 2014). See International and Public Opinion.

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