a global moratorium of the death penalty isn't just an idea of a few countries...

a global moratorium of the death penalty isn't just an idea of a few countries, according to a representative of the Sant'Egidio Community, but the wish of a large part of society. Mario Marazziti said this as he led a delegation to the United Nations to deliver a petition signed by 5 million people from 154 countries calling for an end to capital punishment. The delegation, led by the Community of Sant'Egidio and the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty, delivered the petition to Srgjan Kerim, president of the U.N. General Assembly. Also leading the delegation was Sister Helen Prejean, the author of "Dead Man Walking." The human rights committee of the General Assembly was presented with a draft resolution on the issue by the countries of Angola, Albania, Brazil, Croatia, Gabon, Mexico, the Philippines, Portugal (representing the European Union), and New Zealand. The text was presented as a cross-regional initiative with more than 70 nations signing on as co-sponsors. Stopping short of calling for an all-out abolition of the practice, the resolution calls for a "moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty." Asked about the experience of having collected so many signatures, Marazziti told ZENIT that it was the fruit of nine years of work. He added, "To have and collect five million signatures you need to talk to about 50 million people in the world, in 154 countries."