BRUSSELS. EUROPEAN PARLIAMENTARIANS BACK UN MORATORIUM

a group of European Parliamentarians sent a letter to the European Council and to EU Ministers asking they support a moratorium on executions at the UN General Assembly. “We would like to express our support for the initiative taken up by Italy’s Government and Parliament … for the presentation of a resolution for a moratorium on capital executions at the ongoing United Nations General Assembly.” The letter was sent to Javier Solana (EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy), Erkki Tuomioja (President of the Council of the EU) and to all Foreign Ministers of EU member states and was signed by Graham Watson (President of ALDE Group), Hélène
Flautre (President of the Sub-Committee on Human Rights), Jean-Marie Cavada
(President of the Commission for Civil Rights, Justice and Home Affairs) and Luisa Morgantini (President of the Development Committee). The letter stated that over 100 countries had abolished the death penalty or put into place a moratorium on executions, thus making it possible for a universal moratorium on capital executions to be passed at the UN General Assembly.