On January 6, the Latvian Parliament moved a step closer...

On January 6, the Latvian Parliament moved a step closer to abolishing capital punishment, just as the Supreme Court upheld the death sentence imposed on a convicted murderer. An official of the Supreme Court said that it had refused an appeal by 44-year-old Ilmars Purmalis against his sentence of death imposed after his third murder conviction, but Parliament said in a statement that its Human Rights Committee approved for a full parliamentary vote Protocol No. 6 to the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, which calls for the abolition of the death penalty. The bill needed to be submitted to three votes in the assembly before it can become law. If the Human Rights Committee's recommendation is approved, the Criminal Code will be amended.