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19/12/2000 |
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With one of America's most ardent death penalty advocates about to enter the White House, international opponents of capital punishment presented apetition to the United Nations yesterday signed by more than 3 million people to demand an immediate worldwide moratorium on executions. The petition, whose signatories include the Dalai Lama and which is supported by the European Union and the Vatican, was theoretically aimed at all 31 countries still conducting executions. But supporters made clear that America, the only Western democracy on the blacklist, was their main target � particularly now that George W Bush is to be the next president. The election of Mr Bush, who, as Texas Governor, encouraged executions at a pace unprecedented in any other American state, has come as a severe setback to death penalty opponents when doubts about the safety and fairness of capital convictions are on the increase around the world. The Philippines, a country hardly famous for its human rights record, has decided to stop executions. In America, Illinois recently declared a moratorium because of compelling evidence that innocent people were being sentenced to death. President Bill Clinton, meanwhile, has stayed the execution of Juan Raul Garza, the first federal prisoner to face the death chamber in 37 years, after a flurry of evidence suggesting capital punishment was unfairly skewed towards ethnic minorities and the poor. Texas, however, has just executed its 40th prisoner of the year, making 2000 a record year and putting Mr Bush's total at 151 executions in six years in office. With more than 80 per cent of Texans supporting capital punishment, Mr Bush's approach might seem to be the perfect example of the "bipartisanship" he is constantly touting. But capital punishment also appears to be something of a personal crusade. Although the Governor's powers to stop executions are relatively limited, Mr Bush has gone out of his way to encourage an accelerated pace. In 1995 he signed legislation removing many of the appeals processes that in other states can delay executions for years. Although the death penalty is administered largely at state level, one of Mr Bush's first decisions will be whether to uphold or revoke Garza's stay of execution. Human rights activists do not believe he is likely to show clemency, but they are also prepared to bombard him with protests if Garza dies.
Andrew Gumbel
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