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Introduction

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 December 2022

John Bessler
Affiliation:
University of Baltimore
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Summary

The Introduction gives a snapshot of the current status of capital punishment around the globe. It gives current statistics from Amnesty International and describes Amnesty International's anti-death penalty campaign in the 1970s that led to the Declaration of Stockholm, which expressed "total and unconditional opposition to the death penalty." The Introduction describes the divide between retentionist and abolitionist countries, highlighting countries that have outlawed capital punishment in their constitutions or through judicial rulings. After detailing how the death penalty was traditionally seen as something other than torture, the Introduction discusses the law's evolving nature--and how the death penalty is increasingly seen as a torturous and cruel punishment that violates human dignity and fundamental human rights. Noting that death sentences are no longer treated as a "lawful sanction" in many locales, the Introduction describes how the U.N. General Assembly has voted on multiple occasions for a global moratorium on executions. The Introduction summarizes the current state of international law as regards capital punishment and previews the book's content.

Type
Chapter
Information
The Death Penalty's Denial of Fundamental Human Rights
International Law, State Practice, and the Emerging Abolitionist Norm
, pp. 1 - 30
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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  • Introduction
  • John Bessler, University of Baltimore
  • Book: The Death Penalty's Denial of Fundamental Human Rights
  • Online publication: 01 December 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108980159.002
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To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Dropbox.

  • Introduction
  • John Bessler, University of Baltimore
  • Book: The Death Penalty's Denial of Fundamental Human Rights
  • Online publication: 01 December 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108980159.002
Available formats
×

Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Introduction
  • John Bessler, University of Baltimore
  • Book: The Death Penalty's Denial of Fundamental Human Rights
  • Online publication: 01 December 2022
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108980159.002
Available formats
×