Ukraine had promised to abolish the death penalty when...

Ukraine had promised to abolish the death penalty when it joined the Council of Europe in 1995, and the government was sharply criticized for its failure to fully abolish it. A de facto moratorium on executions was introduced in March 1997, but courts continued to pass death sentences. At the end of December 1999, 400 prisoners were reportedly under sentence of death in the Ukraine, though the last execution was carried out in March 1997. Those on death row included serial killer Anatoly Onoprienko, convicted of murdering 52 people. Many Ukrainians favoured retaining the death penalty as crime rates soared after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.