Working Group on Death Penalty, Extra-Judicial, Summary or Arbitrary Killings and Enforced Disappearances in Africa - 44OS

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ACTIVITIES UNDER SPECIAL MECHANISM – AS CHAIRPERSON OF THE WORKING GROUP ON DEATH PENALTY

8. From 8 to 9 November 2008, on the sidelines of the 44th session of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights, we had a meeting with the working group on death penalty ; the Chairman of the Working Group and two resource persons were in attendance :Professor Carlson Anyangwe, Professor Iya Philip, members of the working group.

9. The work done has been incorporated in the Working Group report in the annexe (editor's note: not available). The main issues examined by the Working Group were as following issues :

  • The concept paper on death penalty in Africa will be presented to the Commission prior to the next ordinary session before it is finalized ;
  • The draft resolution urging member States to comply with the Moratorium on death penalty which is being forwarded to the Commission for adoption ( is in the annex). The working group is of the view that it is high time to renew the appeal contained in Resolution ACHPR/Res 42 (XXVI) urging member States to deploy all efforts for the the abolition of the death penalty.
  • Since the adoption of this Resolution in 1999, the number of countries that apply the death penalty has reduced considerably and one should take advantage of the position of the international community on the issue of death penalty contained in the United Nations Resolution adopted in 2007 inviting the member States to look at the Moratorium on the application of the death penalty
  • The concept paper of the International conference on death penalty scheduled for Kigali in September 2009
  • The activities proposed by the Working Group for 2009 are as follows :...