Policy Issues
International
More than 70% of the world’s countries have abolished capital punishment in law or practice. The U.S. is an outlier among its close allies in its continued use of the death penalty.
Policy Issues
More than 70% of the world’s countries have abolished capital punishment in law or practice. The U.S. is an outlier among its close allies in its continued use of the death penalty.
Some of those on death row in the U.S. are citizens of other countries, raising human rights issues and issues of U.S. compliance with international treaties.
Maintained by the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide (Cornell Law School)
More than 70% of the world’s countries have abolished capital punishment in law or practice. However, the death penalty continues to exist in many parts of the world, especially in countries with large populations and those with authoritarian rule. In recent decades, there has been a clear trend away from capital punishment, as many countries have either abolished the death penalty or discontinued its use. The U.S. remains an outlier among its close allies and other democracies in its continued application of the death penalty.
While international law does not prohibit the death penalty, most countries consider it a violation of human rights. The use of the death penalty worldwide is relevant in evaluating U.S. standards of decency and what should be considered cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment. Some Justices of the Supreme Court have referred to international law as further affirmation of their own conclusions about the death penalty, particularly as it may apply to specific classes of defendants such as juvenile offenders.
There are a number of disagreements that may arise between countries that impose the death penalty and those that do not. Countries without the death penalty are particularly concerned when one of their citizens faces execution in the U.S. Some countries refuse to extradite individuals to the U.S., or even to provide incriminating evidence, if the defendant could face the death penalty. In addition, many countries and international bodies consider the death penalty to be a human rights issue and various U.S. death-penalty practices have been criticized as violating U.S. treaty obligations and international human rights law. The concern for human rights around the world has always been important in U.S. diplomacy, but the U.S. is often challenged because of its use of the death penalty and the protection that affords to other countries that use it in particularly abusive ways.
International research on the use of the death penalty owes particular gratitude to Amnesty International, which has regularly monitored and reported on capital punishment around the world. DPIC passes this information on with attribution through its website and makes an effort to highlight those areas where international norms and practices reflect on the death penalty in the U.S. DPIC has issued one report focusing on this topic and regularly highlights relevant research and developments that occur around the world.
May 17, 2023
According to an annual death penalty report by Amnesty International, 2022 saw the highest number of recorded executions since 2017, primarily due to increases in just a handful of countries in the Middle East and North Africa. The report al…
Read MoreHuman Rights
Sep 06, 2023
China On August 4, a South Korean national convic…
Human Rights
Sep 01, 2023
In the August 2023 episode of Discussions with DPIC, Anne Holsinger, Managing Director of DPIC, speaks with Dr. Roya Boroumand (pictured), Executive Director of the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights in Iran. A specialist in Iran’s post…
Human Rights
Aug 14, 2023
Human rights advocates are criticizing the Singapore government’s plan to execute more death-sentenced prisoners convicted of non-violent drug offenses. Singapore has so far hanged 16 people since resuming state executions in March last year, and …
Human Rights
Aug 02, 2023
GhanaOn July 25, 2023, Ghana’s parliament voted to abolish the death penalty, making Ghana the 124
Human Rights
Jul 05, 2023
Saudi Arabia A total of 68 executions have occurred in Saudi Arabia this year, with more than 20 executions relating to terrorism charges occurring since early May, according to Agence France-Presse. On July 3, five men, …
Human Rights
Jun 07, 2023
Zimbabwe On March 23, Zimbabwe’s parliament passed a new “Patriotic Bill” which carries the possibility of a death sentence for non-violent crimes in violation of the “most serious crimes” international legal standard. Th…
International
Jun 01, 2023
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni’s (pictured) decision to sign the Anti-Homosexuality Act 2023 on May 29 has drawn widespread international criticism. The new law prescribes that people convicted of “aggravated homosexuality” may now be punished …
Human Rights
May 24, 2023
Iran continues to use the death penalty in violation of international law, including death sentences for crimes failing to meet the “most serious” crime threshold, the use of torture, and performing public executions. According to Iran Human Right…
International
May 23, 2023
A May 20, 2023 editorial in a leading medical academic journal concludes that physician participation in executions “goes against the ethical foundation of the physician’s role” and argues that doctors and medical associations should oppose capita…
Human Rights
May 09, 2023
In an article for the University of Oxford Death Penalty Research Unit, Professor John Bessler discusses whether the use of the death penalty should be classified as torture under the norms of international law. Bessler argues that since psycholog…