Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa quashed the death...

Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa quashed the death sentences imposed on 44 soldiers convicted of treason in 1999.
Mwanawasa told a news conference that the death penalty was "inhuman" and should not be maintained on Zambian statutes, signaling that his government would formally ask parliament to repeal the penalty to the delight of human rights groups.
"The death penalty is against my beliefs and principles and I definitely want it abolished," Mwanawasa told reporters.
Human rights groups cheered Mwanawasa's decision.
"The president has done the first stage and now new legislation must be introduced to ban capital punishment because it is...against the universal declaration on human rights," said Ngande Mwanajiti of leading Lusaka advocacy group Afronet.
The soldiers, whose sentences Mwanawasa commuted to jail terms of between 10 and 20 years, were found guilty in 1999 of involvement in a 1997 failed coup against ex-President Frederick Chiluba, whom they accused of corruption and inefficiency.
Last year the 44 men lost a final appeal against their sentence in the Supreme Court, Zambia's highest. They then made a direct appeal for clemency to the president as provided for in the southern African country's constitution.
"I have quashed death sentences passed on all the soldiers and replaced them with jail terms," the president said.
Mwanawasa handed coup leader Stephen Lungu, alias Captain Solo, 20 years in jail, saying Lungu was unrepentant.
Mwanawasa said the soldiers committed a serious crime by attempting to remove a government using unconstitutional means, but added he saw no need for revenge by hanging them.
"You cannot be slaughtering people like chickens and I will not sign any death warrant for as long as I remain president. I do not want to be the chief hanger," said Mwanawasa, who succeeded Chiluba after 2001 presidential elections.
Mwanawasa said he had ordered a review of all cases on death row with a view to commuting the sentences.