SOUTH KOREA: AMNESTY URGES SEOUL AGAINST RESUMPTION OF DEATH PENALTY

the chief of Amnesty International (AI) asked South Korean President Lee Myung-bak not to resume the use of the death penalty, AI's branch office in Seoul said, according to Yonhap News Agency. AI Secretary General Irene Khan sent a letter to Lee expressing her concern about South Korean politicians' move to resume the execution of death penalty as part of their efforts to significantly toughen punishment for convicted brutal criminals such as serial killers, said the office. In the letter, Khan noted that the abolition of death penalty is an international trend, due to the possibility of capital punishment resulting in violation of human life and rights.