South Korea: more than half of citizens support keeping death penalty on books

With World Day Against the Death Penalty just days away on Oct. 10, a new survey has found that more than half of Koreans say the country should retain capital punishment and carry it out when necessary.

The findings suggest that while most people are aware of the domestic and international trend toward effectively abolishing the death penalty, many continue to view capital punishment primarily through the lens of punishing heinous crimes rather than human rights. 

The results underscore the need for broader public debate that takes into account public attitudes as well as alternatives to the death penalty, researchers said.

According to the survey, released by Amnesty International Korea on Oct. 5, 2026, 52.9% of 1,000 respondents said Korea should retain the death penalty and execute those sentenced to death when necessary. 

Another 34.3% said the country should maintain the current system, in which capital punishment remains on the books but is not carried out.

Only 8.5% said the death penalty should be abolished entirely.

The survey was conducted by Korea Research in September as part of a broader poll examining public awareness of six human rights issues: freedom of peaceful assembly, gender justice, corporate accountability, responses to conflict zones, the death penalty and human rights in North Korea.

Despite the strong support for retaining capital punishment, most respondents were aware of the international trend toward abolition or non-enforcement. Some 70.9% said they were aware that most countries around the world have either abolished the death penalty or stopped carrying out executions.

Korea has not carried out an execution since 1997 and is therefore considered a country that has abolished the death penalty in practice, although capital punishment remains legal.

Amnesty said the findings demonstrate the need for a broader social discussion that combines greater understanding of international human rights standards, including the right to life, with concerns that the public considers important, such as the risk of wrongful convictions, the rights of victims and their families, and public safety.

When asked what factor they considered most important in forming their position on the death penalty, respondents most frequently cited the need to punish heinous crimes, at 26.6%.

Similarly, when asked what should be considered first if Korea were to discuss abolishing the death penalty, respondents ranked measures to prevent violent crime and ensure public safety highest, at 18.3%, followed by alternative punishments such as life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, at 16.9%.

The relatively small shares of respondents who cited the treatment of death-row inmates and the issue of long-term incarceration, at 8.2%, or international human rights standards and overseas cases, at 6.9%, suggest that many people approach the issue more from the perspectives of crime prevention, victim protection and alternative punishment than human rights, Amnesty said.

The survey also found that 72.3% of respondents agreed that the death penalty is a socially divisive and contentious issue, while 67.4% said it is an issue that deserves greater public attention. Another 67.8% said it was a topic they were generally familiar with.

But only 32.6% said the issue was personally relevant to them, with an average score of 3.01 on a five-point scale. Amnesty said the results indicate a clear sense of distance: People recognize the social importance of the issue but do not necessarily see it as directly connected to their own lives.

Just over half, 52.7%, said they would be willing to participate in related campaigns or sign petitions, a relatively low level that suggests a challenge in turning awareness and sympathy into concrete action, the organization said.