Capital punishment around the world is hard to describe accurately because a lot of countries do not provide us with reliable official information concerning their practices. However, this page hopes to inform individuals of the current state of capital punishment abroad and in the United States.

Green -- Abolitionist
Rose -- Abolitionist for ordinary crimes
Yellow -- Abolitionist in practice
Blue -- Have recently abolished the death penalty, applied moratoria or commutated death penalties in sentences for life
Red -- Retentionist
(courtesy of http://www.santegidio.org)

Many countries throughout the world have abolished the use of capital punishment. For a complete list of these countries, click here.

However, nearly as many countries still carry out executions.  Of these countries,  73 nations use firing squads to execute people, 58 countries use hanging, 6 countries use stoning, 5 countries use lethal injection, 3 countries use beheading, 1 country uses electrocution, and 1 country uses lethal gas. To view a list of these countries, click here.

                                         World Homicide Rates Vs. US Homicide Rates

(courtesy of http://www.publicagenda.org)

The United States homicide rate is among the highest in the world. In fact, only Mexico and Russia have higher rates. The U.S. has very high rates especially when compared to those of other Western and industrialized nations.

• "The EU is committed to opposing the death penalty. We call on all those States that still impose the death penalty to progressively restrict the offences for which it may be used and insists that it be carried out according to minimum standards. As a first step, a moratorium on executions should be established. The final aim must remain a complete abolition of the death penalty. The EU will actively pursue this matter in this session." --Excerpt from the Speech by Minister for Foreign Affairs Tarja Halonen at the 54th UN General Assembly, New York, September 21, 1999 (courtesy of http://www.eurunion.org)
• "The Commission on Human Rights confirms that international law concerning the imposition of the death penalty in relation to juveniles clearly establishes that the imposition of the death penalty on persons aged under 18 years at the time of the offence is in contravention of customary international law." --United Nations Economic and Social Council, August 17, 2000 (courtesy of http://www.unhchr.ch)
• The United States death penalty has come under international scrutiny. The United Nations released a scathing report that, among other things, denounced the capital punishment systems in this country as racist, economically prejudiced, and politically influenced. The report also noted that some applications of the death penalty are in violation of international law. (courtesy of http://www.slugwire.org)

• The United States is out of step with world opinion about the death penalty. The European Union will not admit nations to membership unless they ban executions, and Europeans tend to view U.S. policy as a "barbaric infatuation with the death penalty," as a recent New York Times editorial put it. (courtesy of http://www.disabilityworld.org)
• "The increasing use of the death penalty in the United States and in a number of other states is a matter of serious concern and runs counter to the international community's expressed desire for the abolition of the death penalty."  -Mary Robinson, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (courtesy of http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org)
• "Reservations of this nature [allowing executions of juvenile offenders] contribute to undermining the basis of international treaty law. All parties share a common interest in the respect for the object and purpose of the treaty to which they have chosen to become parties." -Sweden's Objection to U.S. Reservation to Art. 6, ICCPR (courtesy of http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org)
• "People in France admire the United States, and much of what passes for anti-Americanism is limited to the intellectual milieu of Paris. Not so in the case of the death penalty. I travel a lot. You hear opposition to the death penalty in Bordeaux, you hear it in Toulouse, everywhere. When I speak to audiences, the question always comes up. And I don't believe this is just a French phenomenon. I recently spoke to John Kornblum, our ambassador to Germany, and he told me the death penalty is the single most recurring question there." - Felix Rohatyn, the U.S. ambassador to France (courtesy of Newsweek 5/29/00)
• European Parliament official Alan Donnelly warned of possible economic consequences for U.S. states that continue use of the death penalty. In a letter to Texas Governor George Bush, Mr. Donnelly pointed to the European Parliament's condemnation of the death penalty and stated that "Many companies, under pressure from shareholders and public opinion to apply ethical business practices, are beginning to consider the possibility of restricting the investment in the U.S. to states that do not apply the death penalty." (courtesy of Catholics Against Capital Punishment News Notes/ July 20, 1998).
• "I renew the appeal I made most recently at Christmas for a consensus to end the death penalty, which is both cruel and unnecessary." - Pope John Paul II, addressing the United States in March, 1999. (courtesy of http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org)

 

        According to the New York Times, the United States falls behind only China and Saudi Arabia in executions.  These countries when combined with Iraq account for 90% of the world's executions.  There have been 744 executions in the United States since 1976. The following graph shows the number of executions per year since then:

(courtesy of http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org)

In addition to this, there are currently 3,717 inmates on death row in the United States, a number which continues to increase. (courtesy of http://www.courttv.com)

To view a list of executions in individual states since 1976, click here.

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                                                     US Vs Western Nations

    When compared to other western nations, the United States has the highest execution rate per capita.  There are many reasons for this.   A lot of Americans feel the need for vengeance and the need to get back at the criminal.  The publicity brought to the media because of executions keeps the media supporting the death penalty, thus more people caught up in the media will support the death penalty as well.

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For more information, click here for a list of helpful links.

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