UNITED NATIONS, Nov 17: A committee of the United Nations General Assembly voted on Friday to back a resolution calling for a global moratorium on executions to abolishing the death penalty.

The assembly’s third committee, which deals with human rights issues, voted 99 to 52, with 33 abstentions, in favour of the resolution, which states “that there is no conclusive evidence of the death penalty’s deterrent value and that any miscarriage or failure of justice in the death penalty’s implementation is irreversible and irreparable”.

The resolution will now go before the full 192-member assembly for a vote next month. All assembly resolutions are non-binding.

The resolution welcomes “the decisions taken by an increasing number of states to apply a moratorium on executions, followed in many cases by the abolition of the death penalty”, and expresses deep concern that the death penalty continues to be applied in some countries.

It calls on nations that impose the death penalty to ensure meeting internationally agreed minimum standards on the safeguards for those facing execution, and to provide the United Nations secretary-general with information about their use of capital punishment and observation of the safeguards.

Opinion

Editorial

A hasty retreat
Updated 28 Nov, 2024

A hasty retreat

Govt should not extend its campaign of violence against PTI and its leaders, thinking it now has the upper hand. Enough is enough.
Lebanon truce
28 Nov, 2024

Lebanon truce

WILL it hold? That is the question many in the Middle East and beyond will be asking after a 60-day ceasefire ...
MDR anomaly removed
28 Nov, 2024

MDR anomaly removed

THE State Bank’s decision to remove its minimum deposit rate requirement for conventional banks on deposits from...
Islamabad march
Updated 27 Nov, 2024

Islamabad march

WITH emotions running high, chaos closes in. As these words were being written, rumours and speculation were all...
Policing the internet
27 Nov, 2024

Policing the internet

IT is chilling to witness how Pakistan — a nation that embraced the freedoms of modern democracy, and the tech ...
Correcting sports priorities
27 Nov, 2024

Correcting sports priorities

IT has been a lingering battle that has cast a shadow over sports in Pakistan: who are the national sports...