AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL CRITICISES SLOTA'S DEATH PENALTY STANCE

Amnesty International Slovakia (AIS) welcomed the disapproving stance of Prime Minister Robert Fico towards Slovak National Party (SNS) chairman Jan Slota's statements calling for an intensification of discussions on capital punishment in Europe. "The death penalty is an irreversible and inhumane punishment,often misused by its advocates for creating the illusion of tough action against violence. It has never been proven that it has higher preventive effect than life imprisonment," reads a statement issued by AIS director Branislav Tichy. According to him, many cases of judicial errors and politically-motivated judgements have appeared in the past. "Money spent on executions could be used more effectively: on systematic prevention, investigation and punishment.