The Council of Europe, established in 1949, describes...

The Council of Europe, established in 1949, describes itself as "the guardian of democratic security, founded on human rights, democracy and the rule of law."
The Council of Europe, comprised of 43 member countries from the European continent and 5 observer countries, is the first organization to have drawn up a legal text on the abolition of the death penalty, which allows no exception. No executions have taken place in member countries since March 1997.
While 40 members of the council have abolished the death penalty, 3 -- Armenia, the Russian Federation and Turkey -- have established moratoria on its use. They have been "invited to speed up moves toward abolition," according to a council statement.
Countries holding council observer status are: USA, Canada, Japan, Mexico and the Vatican. The latest initiative, adding a protocol, called Protocol 13, to the European Convention on Human Rights, was promoted by Sweden in 2000.