Ulaanbaatar
Int’l organizations appreciate death penalty abolishment in Mongolia
PoliticsUlaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ Hailing Mongolia's recent abolition of the death penalty, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, commended on Friday the move as a "welcome step in the fight for the human rights of all."
This development is very encouraging and a clear example of positive progress in the fight for human rights for all including people convicted of terrible crimes, Zeid said in a statement, in which he added: We must not allow even the most atrocious acts to strip us of our fundamental humanity.
According to the High Commissioners Office (OHCHR), Mongolias passage of the law to end the death penalty, which is the result of strong and sustained leadership on the issue, has reaffirmed this essential truth.
Last week, Mongolia became the 105th country to abolish the death penalty in law. Another 60 States have moratoria, or have not carried out executions in the last 10 years, says OHCHR.
The same day, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR) Michael Georg Link welcomed the complete abolition of the death penalty in Mongolia.
Following a parliamentary vote on 4 December, in favor of a new criminal code that abolishes capital punishment for all crimes, Mongolia has become the 105th country worldwide and the 52nd OSCE participating State to abolish the death penalty in law.
“The elimination of executions in Mongolia is a very positive development and an encouraging example of progress made toward the respect for human dignity and integrity in the OSCE region,” said Director Link. “Most of our region now recognizes the inherently cruel, inhuman and degrading nature of the death penalty.”
By welcoming the increased number of abolitionist OSCE participating States, Link also called on those states in the OSCE region that still retain capital punishment in law or in practice to consider following Mongolia’s example. Participating States have committed to keeping the question of abolishing capital punishment under consideration and exchanging information on its use.
In its annual publication The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area: Background Paper, ODIHR provides an update on the status of the death penalty across the region.
