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Reasons are ripe for discussing possibility of abolishing death penalty, lawmaker says

Both “objective and subjective reasons are ripe” for discussing the possibility of abolishing the death penalty, Mikalay Samaseyka, chairman of the House of Representatives’ standing Committee on Legislation and Judicial and Legal Matters, told reporters in Minsk on Wednesday.

He noted that 80 percent of Belarusians voted against the abolition of the death penalty in a national referendum in 1996. “However, events that have happened in the 13 years [since the referendum] have drastically influenced public opinion,” he said. “Legislative and legal circumstances have changed. In particular, the Criminal Code has been amended to declare that the use of the death penalty is of a temporary nature. The number of death sentences decreased from 47 in 1998 to two in 2008 and in 2009.”

All factors, including “political will,” international agreements and public opinion, should be taken into consideration when a decision is made, Mr. Samaseyka noted. “The opinion of the European Union will be taken into account, but it will not be a determining factor,” he added.

Mr. Samaseyka said that a new national referendum might be held on the issue. “The abolition of the death penalty is only possible by changing the constitution through a referendum,” he said. “But I believe that it is now necessary to consider the possibility of introducing a moratorium. A moratorium can be introduced by the president or parliament.”

The National Assembly currently has a working group that studies the issue of the death penalty, Mr. Samaseyka noted, adding that the group’s work was expected to last until the summer and might end with a parliamentary hearing, at which recommendations would be adopted.

In addition, the possibility of holding a round-table conference on the death penalty together with the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly is under consideration, Mr. Samaseyka said.

Belarus is the only country in Europe and the post-Soviet region where the death sentence remains a sentencing option and prisoners are executed. The death penalty was abolished thrice in Belarus since 1912 but was always restored.

As many as 80.44 percent of those who took part in the 1996 referendum reportedly voted against abolishing the death penalty and 17.93 percent voted for abolishing it, with 84.14 percent of all eligible voters casting their ballots in the referendum.

In 2006, the government enacted an amendment to the Criminal Code, which indicated the temporary nature of the use of the death penalty in Belarus.

Executions in Belarus are carried out by a gunshot to the back of the head. Neither the condemned nor relatives are told of the scheduled date of the execution, and the relatives are not informed of where the body is buried.// BelaPAN