The Howard Journal Yo! 28 No 2. May 89 ISSN 0265,5527

RESEARCH NOTE

The Death Penalty: An International View

DENNIS WIECHMAN, JERRY KENDALL and RONALD BAE

Dennis Wiechman and J e r y Kendal l are at the University of Evansville; Ronald B a e i s at Troy State University

Abstract: This research explores the use and non-use of capital punishment in various regions of the world. This is a descriptive analysis of the ultimate penal policy that any nation can give in its operation and administration of justice. In 1965 Patrick published his research on the death penalty. He found 66.6% of the nations he studied retained the death penalty. Amnesty International found 84.6% f o r 1985. The two figures are very close even though t h y are over 20 years apart. The research briefly explores the increases in the death row population in the United States (over 2,000 since 1967). Great Britain tried to reinstate the death penalty to solve its ‘terrorist problem’ in 1987. Spain executes by a karrote’. The Soviet Union and some other Soviet aligned nations retain the penalty f o r the economic crimes of: counterfeiting, speculation in currency, stealing state property, and taking bribes by an official. France abolished the death penalty and the guillotine in 1971. They tried to reinstate the penalty in 1976 to deal with ‘major drug crimes’. Australia eliminated the penalty in 1985 when its Western region finally abolished i t , South Africa did execute an average of 111 peryear f o r theyears 1980 to 1985. Japan retains the penalty f o r 17 crimes. Malaysia has recently executed several people f o r drug offences and arms violations. In Lotin America, one-half of the nations retain the penalty. The article concludes with recent events surrounding World War I1 N a z i Criminals recently sentenced to death in Israel and Russia.

The purpose of this research is to review the use of capital punishment on a global basis. The subject matter is for informational purposes on the prevalence of capital punishment in various regions of the world. The research does not try to answer the deterrence question surrounding the death penalty. The research is descriptive in nature. The issue of capital punishment has been debated for many years. Scholars, theologians, and politicians have never reached a complete agreement on the merits of the death penalty, nor has the world community agreed on this most controversial punishment. This article will not explore the issue of the death penalty, but rather it will attempt to describe the use and non-ure o f the most serious punishment any nation can give and to give the reader an updated view on this penal policy.

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Amnesty International listed 149 nations in the world (84.6%) in its 1985 data as retaining some form of capital punishment. The same study al$o shows 27 nations (15.4%) who have abolished capital punishment entirely. One area of the world that has shifted towards abolition is Latin America. Patrick (1965) in his early study showed 86.6% of the nations with some form of the death penalty, and 16.4% who had no penalty. A cursory examination of Patrick’s study of 1965 and the Amnesty International study of 1985 shows no major shift toward abolition or the re-establishment of the death penalty. The percentages have remained relatively constant over the 23 years (1962: 86.6%, 1985: 84.6%). Based upon these figures, i t can be concluded that there is no worldwide trend toward abolition.

North America

The United States of America has executed numerous individuals in its short 200 year history. Bowers (1984, p.54) documents 11,978 executions from 1890 to 1960. Since 1960 there have been over 65 executions pushing the total well over 12,000. The majority of executions have taken place in the southern part of the U.S.A. Executions in the U.S.A. ground to a halt during the moratorium of 1967 to 1976, while the U S . Supreme Court decided on the constitutionality of the U.S. procedures for executions. A recent development in the U.S. has been increased usage of ‘Lethal Injection’ as a method of execution.

Canada is a country that has not used the death penalty in years. In 1865, murder, rape, and treason were punishable by death. Before Canada abolished it in 1973, hanging was the method used. In the 1930s, 75% of the murderers were executed. That dropped to 13% in the early 1960s (Chandler 1976). Unlike the U.S., Canada had a national death penalty law. No one was executed in the late 1960s (defacto abolition) and in 1967 the law was restricted to the killing of a police officer or prison official. In 1973, the Solicitor General of Canada introduced legislation for a partial ban on the death penalty, which later resulted in complete abolition.

Despite its opposition to capital punishment, Canada has for the first time agreed to extradite an ‘American to the U.S. to face the death penalty. Attorney General John Crosbie, an opponent of the death penalty, said he decided to extradite convicted murderer Joseph John Kindler to prevent other American fugitives from seeking haven in Canada. Kindler escaped from jail in September 1985 just before a judge was to impose the death sentence specified by the jury.

Europe Great Britain used the death penalty extensively in the 1800s. In 1808 Samuel Romily introduced legislation to eliminate the penalty for shoplifting cases under five shillings. The abolition of shoplifting as a capital offence was finally passed in 1832. The Royal Commission on

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Capital Punishment studied the issue from 1949 to 1953. They voted a five-year temporary suspension of capital punishment in 1965 by a vote of 200 supporting abolition to 68 who wanted to retain the death penalty. The final law was passed in 1969. Bedau (1982, p.27) lists 1964 as the last execution for Britain. Patrick (1965, p.400) showed an average of five executions per year from 1958 to 1962. In the 1800s England had over 200 capital crimes including stealing turnips, being disguised in a forest, pickpocketing, cutting a tree down, and stealing bread if you were a juvenile.

The House of Commons took up the issue of capital punishment again in 1987, 18 years after they had abolished the penalty. The media predicted passage of a new penalty which Prime Minister Thatcher supported, but the British Parliament overwhelmingly defeated the measure by a vote of 342 to 230. This is the seventh time that Parliament has voted down the measure since 1969. The primary motivating factor for the 1987 debate focussed upon terrorist related activities and the possible solution of ‘how to solve’ that problem. The British public has grown very irritated and frustrated with trying to solve a terrorist problem, and using the death penalty as an appropriate penal policy.

Greece has retained the death penalty and utilises the firing squad as the method of execution. Bedau (1982, p.27) lists 1972 as the last year for an execution in Greece. The Federal Rebublic of Germany abolished the death penalty in 1949. The German Democratic Republic retained capital punish- ment until 1987, and Bedau (1982, p.27) listed 1976 as the year for the last execution. The G.D.R. statute specifies 15 types of crime for which death could have been imposed. An ancient German penal code punished counterfeiters by ‘stewing them in a pot’. In July 1987, East Germany became the first Soviet bloc country to abolish the death penalty. This reform came along with many other reforms which granted amnesty for thousands of political and other prisoners. The state-run news agency reported that the amnesty was granted to mark the 38th anniversary of the founding of East Germany. The amnesty does not apply to the crimes of murder, espionage, or war crimes. Hungary is a retentionist nation and Bedau (1982, p.27) lists 1977 as the last year for an execution. Hungary has over 25 offences that are capital in nature. Turkey is listed by Amnesty International as a retentionist nation. In 1981 two terrorists were hung in Turkey, thus ending a previous suspension of capital punishment.

The Netherlands abolished the death penalty in 1870, but reinstated it again in 1943 for war crimes only. Patrick (1965) listed Norway as a retentionist nation in 1962 for war crimes only. The Amnesty International Study of 1979 (Amnesty International 1979) lists Norway as ‘Abolitionist by law for all crimes’. Spain abolished the death penalty in 1930, but reinstated it later for military crimes. Patrick (1965, p.403) reported an average of 4.5 executions per year from 1958 to 1962. Bedau (1982, p.27) states that the last reported execution in Spain occurred in 1975. Strangulation with a garrote is the method of execution used in Spain.

The Soviet Union is a retentionist nation. Lopez-Rey (1979, p.20) reported 24 capital crimes for the Soviet Union. Amnesty International

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(McCuen and Baumgart 1985, p.117) reports 18 capital crimes for the Soviet Union in peacetime for the following offences:

(a) Political Crimes * treason (Article 64); * espionage (Article 65); * terrorist acts, if a public official (Article 66) is killed; * terrorist acts, if a representative of a foreign state (Article 67) is

* sabotage (Article 68); * organizational activities directed to commit one of the crimes listed

* the commission of one of the above-listed crimes directed against

* banditry (Article 73); * action disrupting the work of prison camps (Article 77-1, introduced

killed;

supra (Article 72);

another working people’s state (Article 73);

in 1962);

(b) Economic Crimes * counterfeiting of money or securities as a form of business (Article 87,

* speculation in currency, speculation as a form of business or on a

* stealing of state property on an especially large scale (Article 93-1,

* taking of bribes by an official under certain circumstances (Article

introduced in 1962) ;

large scale or by a recidivist (Article 88, introduced in 1962);

introduced in 1962);

173, introduced in 1962);

(c) Crimes Against the Person * intentional homicide under aggravating circumstances (Article 102); * rape under certain circumstances (Article 117, introduced in 1962,

* infringing the life of a policeman or people’s guard (Article 191-2,

* hijacking of aircraft with grave consequences (Article 21 3-2, intro-

mitigated in 1980);

introduced in 1962);

duced in 1973);

(d) Military Crimes * resisting of a superior by persons subject to military service, in

conjunction with intentional homicide (Article 240).

Soviet civilians are tried in a civilian court with cases of espionage being the only exception with these being handled by military tribunals. The Soviets use shooting as their method of execution. In an opinion poll of 10,000 factory workers in Tashkent, 89.6% of the workers favoured the retention of the death penalty (McCuen and Baumgart 1985, p.121). Another poll of Soviet judges, procurators, and investigators indicates that

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90% favoured the death penalty. In 1965 the Soviet Government studied the effectiveness of the death penalty from 1961 to 1965 and recommended the elimination of the death penalty for ‘economic crimes’. Those proposals were rejected. A. F. Gorkin, Chairman of the U.S.S.R. Supreme Court, urged in 197 1 that the previous recommendations on economic crimes be adopted.

In Soviet Studies, Ger P. van der Berg (1983) placed the number of ‘official executions’ (as reported by the Western Press) at 30 per year. A recent Soviet emigre lawyer, Konstantin Simis, estimates the number of death sentences to be between 2,500 and 3,0OO\annually (McCuen and Baumgart 1985, p.116). The official Tass news agency reported the execution of Adolf Tolkachyou in 1986. He was accused of selling secrets to the United States about aviation design and Soviet aviation technology.

Poland has retained the death penalty, but has severely restricted its use. In 1932 Poland adopted capital punishment. The early code contained only five crimes. After World War I1 they began to add other crimes and Patrick (1965, p. 405) listed ten for 1962. By 1969, ‘the total number of violations which involved the death sentence rose to 64’. The legislative body of Poland debated the issue in 1969, barely passing a new capital punishment measure by a 6:5 ratio. The new code lists ten capital crimes ‘in time of peace’. Grzeskowiak and Sliwowski (1978) conclude: ‘In the new penal code, Polish legislators are opting for progressive elimination of this penalty’ (p. 2). Since the adoption of the new code in 1969, Grzeskowisk and Sliwowski report no executions for 1970 to 1975. Bedau (1982, p. 27) lists 1977 as the last year for an execution in Poland.

The new Polish code affirms the concept that the penalty of death is extreme and should be used only in exceptional cases. The new code prohibits the execution ofjuveniles aged less than 18. It also prohibits the execution of a pregnant woman. It calls for a temporary stay for insanity. The new code does retain ‘Economic Crimes’ as a capital offence if the crime creates a great danger to the national economy, which is determined to be in excess of 200,000 zloty.

France is a country that has been divided on the use of the death penalty. The French penal code of 1810 had 36 capital crimes. The Revolution of 1848 abolished the scaffold for political offences and banished the convict to a colonial fortress. By 1924 there were only twelve capital offences. The General Assembly tried to adopt the death penalty in 1971 for ‘major drug crimes’, but it was defeated. A law was proposed in 1976 to increase the term of prison to 24 years before murderers could be released on probation.

There was considerable debate and discussion in France in the late 1970s. Since there were few actual executions during this period, there was a strong move to abolish capital punishment entirely. In the 1977 debate before the General Assembly of the General Society of Prisons and Criminal Legislation, Mr M. Savey-Casard (1978, p.15) gave a stirring speech in favour of abolition and substituting alternative punishments. A Mr Cannart replied with ‘perhaps one step forward would be to replace the guillotine with the firing squad in order to lend a certain dignity to

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execution’. A 1978 France study recommended an extension for ten more years. The use of the guillotine was abolished in 1981.

Italy abolished the death penalty in 1889 and substituted solitary confinement as an option. Known as the ‘ergastolo’, the person served six years in solitary and then life under forced labour with no talking privileges. Italy re-adopted the punishment but repealed it again in 1944. Yugoslavia retains the death penalty. Bedau (1982, p. 27) reports the last execution was in 1975. Yugoslavia sentenced Andrija Artukovic to death by the firing squad for his part in the slaughter of thousands during World War 11. Portugal has abolished both the death penalty and life imprison- ment. Portugal substitutes a maximum sentence of 20 to 24 years, with eligibility for probation when half the term has been served.

Australia/New Zealand

Australia was a nation with divided jurisdiction. The western region maintained the punishment of execution until 1985 while other parts of the nation have abolished it earlier. This is not unique since Mexico and the United States are nations with a divided policy on the death penalty. Treason and wilful murder were capital crimes in Australia. However, there have been very few executions in the country (1 14 since 191 1). Ronald Ryan was the last to be executed in 1967. New Zealand has only one capital crime which is ‘treason’

Africa

All African nations have maintained capital punishment (Lopez-Rey 1979). A number of these nations retain the penalty, although there have been no executions for years. Other African nations have led the world in executions (South Africa).

In Kenya, Nigeria, and Zambia the death penalty is mandatory for cases of armed robbery. The average number of executions in the 1960s was 22 per year for Kenya, and 51 per year for Nigeria (Bowers 1984, p. 148). Ghana imposes the death penalty often through the military courts, but there have been more open trials recently (Lopez-Rey 1979, p. 119).

South Africa has used the death penalty extensively in the past. Patrick (1965, p, 403), in his early study, found an average of 100 executions per year from 1958 to 1962. Lopez-Rey (1979), in his article, cited official government statistics for 1978 at 132 hangings. In a 1984 study of 123 countries, Amnesty International cited South Africa as the number one ‘executor’ in the world with 114 executions for 1984. South Africa uses the death penalty as punishment for burglary, rape, sabotage, robbery, and treason.

Asia

In spite of the low crime rates, Japan has retained the death penalty. Patrick ( 1965, p. 400) cited an average of 20 executions per year from 1958

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to 1962. In a position paper released by the Japanese government for publication in McCuen and Baumgart’s (1985, p. 113) book, the Japanese reported the execution of 13 persons from 1974 to 1978, an average of 2.6 per year. There has been a sharp decrease in executions in Japan.

Japan has 17 offences that are capital in nature, ten of which involve threats to human life, that is, trainwrecking, homicide, etc. Life in prison is available for all crimes except ‘inducement of foreign aggression’. Juveniles cannot be executed if aged under 18; rather, they must have their sentences reduced to life in prison (Juvenile Law, Article 51). Individuals who are declared insane and women who are pregnant are also given stays of execution.

In a prepared statement on Japan’s policy and reasoning, the government feels:

Japan . . . retains the death penalty at the same time that it manifests decreasing crime rates . . . I t is widely accepted among Japanese citizens that the safe, secure environment in which they live is very much a product of the deterrent effect wrought by the retention of capital punishment. (McCuen and Baumgart 1985, p. 1 1 1 )

In a 1974 study by the Japanese Legislative Council for the Minister of Justice, the Council recommended retaining the death penalty, but also recommended that the number of crimes be limited to six rather than 17. The Council also recommended the ‘life in prison option’ for ‘inducement of foreign aggression’.

Chino is another nation which relies on the death penalty with shooting as the method of execution. After 1951 Mao’s influence on the number of executions dropped ‘to the minimum required by revolutionary aims’ (Lopez-Rey 1979, p. 26). Patrick (1965, p. 401) listed China as having 18 capital crimes in 1962. Crime in China reached new proportions during the early 1980s, which resulted in China’s announcement of a ‘get tough’ approach to crime.

In 1983 over 5,000 Chinese offenders faced execution. During this period the number of capital crimes rose to 29. Some of China’s capital crimes are spying, embezzlement, gang fighting, hooliganism, pimping, arms theft, crimes against the state, murder, rape, robbery, and arson. In an attempt to deal with the theft problem, theft of over 1,800 yuan ($315) was added as a capital crime. Despite the attempt to reduce crime, the crime rate still increased 26.8% during the first nine months of 1985.

Amnesty International documented over 600 executions in China in the fall of 1983 (McCuen and Baumgart 1985, p. 108). In China groups of 15 to 40 prisoners have been executed at a time, after being displayed publicly through the streets. A court in Northern China recently tried, convicted and executed 17 persons in the city of Liaoning. Recently 31 persons were executed in Peking in one day. U p to 2,000 witnesses watch the mass executions. McCuen and Baumgart say that the majority of persons executed during the 1970s were 18-40 years old and unemployed. I t is customary in China for the executions to be carried out immediately

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after sentencing. This is done by shooting to the back of the head. A government worker was executed in China in 1986 for ‘leaking important state secrets’. In 1987 China executed three thieves for raids around Shanghai. They also executed a ‘con-man’ and a former school teacher who stole from a bank. The Guong Dong Province enacted a 1981 law which allows the death penalty for ‘promotion of prostitution’ in serious cases.

Iran is a nation that practises capital punishment. There has been a great deal of controversy surrounding the use of this practice. Executions took place in Iran before the Shah was overthrown. Since the overthrow of the Shah, the level of executions picked up dramatically. In the first few months of the new regime, there were over 200 persons executed by the revolutionary courts (Lopez-Rey 1979, p. 19).

Many executions take place almost immediately after sentencing by an Islamic Revolutionary Court, thus preventing the opportunity for appeals. In comparison to Western standards, trials are concluded in a relatively short period of time. Amnesty International ( 1982) documented, in its 1982 study of Iran, the trial of one defendant in March 1979:

The informant was one of 180 defendants in a trial which took place in a barn. The presiding judge was Ayatolah Khalkhal, and at the end of the trial, which lasted 2 and 5’2 hours, he sentenced 27 of the 180 defendants to death. They were executed very shortly afterwards. . . (McCuen and Baumgart 1985, p.125)

Iranian executions took place in 1980/81 for adultery, sexual and drug offences, plots against the government, support for Kurdish Party, murder, and robbery. Since the 1979 revolution, over 100 Bahais have been executed (McCuen and Baumgart 1985, p. 126). Many supporters of the Shah were executed as were a number of Jewish persons for the crime of espionage.

Amnesty International reports a total of 2,616 executions in 1981, with 2,444 occurring after 20 June 1981, which also marked the departure of President Bani-Sadr and resulted in political turmoil. There are few cases that document a trial during that period.

In their book, At War With Humanity, the Peoples Mujahideen Organization of Iran list the names of twelve pregnant women they say were executed. They also list 42 juveniles aged under 18 who were executed. In August 1982, Amnesty International (1982) estimated the total number of executions after the revolution to be 4,568.

The International Federation of Human Rights asserted Iran was executing condemned political prisoners by draining their blood for the purpose of treating wounded soldiers. The report said that a ‘medical team will secretly empty the blood of those individuals who have been condemned to death’ (Evansville Sunday Courier and Press, 10 December 1983, pp. 8-9).

The Paris-based Mojahedin Khalq Organization report 168 political executions in Tehran and three other cities in two months (January and February 1986). The same group reports over 700 political executions

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since August of 1985. They also report that 126 of these executions took place in Evin prison in late January (UPI, 3 March 1986).

In Malaysia, the government has developed a new ‘get tough’ attitude toward drugs and drug dealers. In 1983 Malaysia enacted the death penalty for drug sales of more than 0.53 ounces of heroin or 7.1 ounces of marijuana. The first two foreigners executed were Australians who were hung simultaneously at the Purdu jail, Kuala Lumpur. One Malaysian judge recently sentenced a 44 year old mother to death for drug smuggling. The judge reduced the sentence of her 2 1 year old son to life in prison and six lashes with a cane. A 69 year old Malasian woman was sentenced to death for dealing in raw opium. The latest reports show over 120 people awaiting hanging for drug offences. Of those 120 people, 18 are foreigners. Malaysia also executed two persons for violation of the 1975 law which requires a licence for firearms, ammunition or explosives.

Pakistan is a nation that has a high number of executions. Patrick (1965, p. 402) listed seven capital crimes for Pakistan. The number of executions have been very high during the 1970s. Lopez-Rey (1979, p. 20) wrote that ‘. . . no less than 400 persons have been executed in the last year and a half. In 1986 a female was sentenced to death by stoning for adultery.

Jordan has few actual executions. Patrick (1965) lists only one per year from 1958 to 1962. Jordan uses hanging as its method of execution, and the individual must be aged 18 or over. Lopez-Rey (1979, p. 22) cites over 30 capital crimes for Jordan, including homicide, espionage, and sale of property to Israel. Iraq retains the death penalty for 23 capital crimes. The judicial system is mostly military and spends most of its energies in preventing revolution and aggression. Shooting and hanging are the methods of execution used in Iraq. Syria uses public executions that are attended by government officials. Some of the 25 capital offences require a mandatory death penalty.

Israel retains the death penalty for genocide, crimes against mankind, as well as crimes against the Jewish people (crimes in World War 11). The number of capital crimes in ancient Israel were many. The Old Testament is replete with many crimes which were punished by death (bestiality, Exodus 22: 19; sex offences and kidnapping a man, Exodus 21:15). In 1954, the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset, abolished the Mosaic Law which stated ‘an eye for an eye, a life for a life’, and adopted a more pragmatic view (Sellin 1982, p. 113). Israel has sentenced only one person to death (Adolf Eichman).

Latin America

Latin America is one region that is sharply divided on the death penalty. According to de la Torre, in his 1975 article, ten nations have abolished the death penalty, nine nations have retained, and in Mexico some states use it and others do not. The ten nations that had abolished the death penalty in 1975 were Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Columbia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Panama, Uruguay, and Venezuela. The ten nations that still retain some form of capital punishment are Cuba,

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Chile, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras, some Mexican states, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, and El Salvador (de la Torre 1978, p. 20).

In most Latin American countries that do execute, an automatic delay is granted for mental illness, pregnant defendants, or a national holiday. Some Latin countries exclude women altogether as candidates for capital punishment. In an article by de la Torre (1978, p. 23) he cites 22 as the minimum age for retentionist Latin American nations. Patrick (1965, p. 406) listed the age of 14 for his 1962 data on Haiti.

Argentina abolished the death penalty in 1921 but reinstated it 50 years later in 1971. The constitution forbids the use of the death penalty for political crimes. Bolivia abolished the death penalty in 1962. The most severe penalty is up to 30 years. Brazil, in its constitution of 1967, permits the death penalty. Brazil lifted the penalty in 1979, and the maximum punishment is ‘30 years to life’. Chile uses shooting as its method of execution. Executions are public and are held only 72 hours from the sentence of death to the execution. Columbia abolished the penalty in 1910. The constitution forbids use of the penalty, and the maximum punishment is 24 years. Costa Rica abolished the punishment in 1870, which is prohibited by their constitution. The maximum punishment is 25 years.

Cuba eliminated the death penalty in its 1940 constitution (except for war crimes). The death penalty was illegal through the Batista era. The 1959 ‘Laws of Revolution’ reinstated the death penalty. Cuba allows 24 hours between sentence and execution (de la Torre 1978, p.23).

The Dominican Republic abolished capital crimes in 1924. The constitution forbids the death penalty, and the maximum punishment is 25 years. Ecuador abolished the death penalty in 1907. The maximum punishment is only 16 years. Guatemala uses shooting as its method of execution. Patrick listed only three crimes: murder, treason, and espionage. Patrick ( 1965, p. 400) also lists 18 as the minimum age for Guatemala. Honduras repealed their law in 1957. de la Torre (1978, p. 22) lists Honduras as retentionist and lists them with two capital offences in 1975: assassination and parricide. Amnesty International ( 1979) lists Honduras as abolitionist in 1979.

Mexico is very unusual in its approach to this topic. Like the United States, jurisdiction is mixed. Some states retain the death penalty, while others have abolished it. Twenty-five of the 29 Mexican states, as well as the national government, have no death penalty. Mexico adopted the death penalty in 191 7. In the Mexican state ofAguascalinetes, punishment by death was abolished in December 1931, and adopted again in April 1932. This change occurred with the same governor and legislature. In the state of San Luis Potosi, the death penalty Mexican states, the maximum punishment is 40 years. de la Torre (1978, p. 20) cites the last Mexican execution occurring 20 years before his 1975 article.

Nicaragua is listed by Patrick (1965) as a retentionist nation in 1962. de la Torre (1978) listed the last execution in Nicaragua as 1892. Amnesty International (1979) lists them as ‘abolitionist’ in 1979, while McCuen (1980) lists them as ‘abolitionist’ in his article. Panama has never had a death penalty. The maximum penalty is 20 years.

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Paraguay is a retentionist nation. Their constitution forbids the punishment for political crimes. Paraguay specifies by law one specific place for executions. Peru in its 1924 penal code did not list a capital crime. They adopted the penalty 25 years later and they still retain the punishment today for treason and aggravated homicide. They abolished the punishment in 1980 for military crimes only.

El Salvador retains the death penalty. Public executions are used and the defendant is given only 48 hours between death sentence and execution (de la Torre 1978, p. 23). Uruguay abolished capital punishment in 1905. It is prohibited in their constitution and they give up to 30 years as the maximum punishment. Venezuela abolished the punishment in 1864 and also gives up to 30 years as the maximum penalty.

Trends and Conclusions

In the United States of America there are over 2,000 individuals awaiting the punishment of death. There have been over 100 executions in the U.S. since their 1977 resumption of capital punishment. Several major issues continue to be debated in the United States; Federal death penalty for ‘major’ drug dealers, juvenile executions, exclusion of mentally retarded individuals from the penalty, and the racial biases of the punishment.

In 1987 four countries abolished the death penalty; East Germany, Haiti, Liechtenstein and the Phillipines. The German Democratic Republic (East Germany) was the first Soviet bloc nation to abolish the punishment. This was related to amnesty for many other crimes, and other reforms which took place. Amnesty International for 1987 listed 110 nations in the world which retained some form of capital punishment. They also list 62 nations as abolitionists.

In comparing the use of the death penalty in a historical view, the following data shows consistent support for the death penalty.

Patrick Study Amnesty Wiechman Amnesty 1958-62 International et al. 1980-85 International

I979 1987

Nations Studied I28 I56 163 I72

Nations with

penalty a death 107 (86%) 136 (87%) 126 ( 7 7 % ) 110 (64%)

It should be noted that many nations throughout the world have a legal penalty of death, but few actually carry out executions. Wiechman et a f . (1987) found an average of 1.57 executions per year for the 163 nations in their research (1980-1985). They also found an average of 4.2 executions per year for the 22 nations who actually executed from 1980 to 1985.

One other recent trend has been the renewed activity in the area of World War I I Nazi criminals. Russia recently executed Fyodor Fedorenko

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who was stripped of his United States citizenship in 1984. He was 78 at the time of his execution and was shot by a firing squad. Fedorenko was convicted of war crimes by the Crimean regional court in June 1986. The Soviets have convicted and sentenced to death 19 former war criminals, but there has been no official confirmation by Tass, the oficial news agency. Andrija Artukovic was recently sentenced to death by Yugoslavia. He fought extradition from the United States for 36 years. The ‘Butcher of the Balkans’ was the interior minister for Croatia and was found guilty of four counts of mass slaughter.

Another former Nazi was sentenced to death by Israel in 1988. John Demjanjuk, known as ‘Ivan the Terrible’ was deported by the United States and extradicted to Israel. He was convicted of sentencing thousands to die in the occupied Polish concentration of Trehlinka. Israel has only tried one other person for war crimes, and that was Adolf Eichman. He was kidnapped by Israeli agents in 1960, convicted in 1961, and hanged in 1962. The United States cannot prosecute these former Nazi war criminals for war crimes. They have deported six former Nazi criminals for falsifying their application for immigration.

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Appendix

Fact sheet on capital punishment policies of other nations-1979 (Source: The Death Penalty, Amnesty International (1979) )

Abolitionist by L a w f o r all Crimes (20 countries) (Countries whose laws do not provide the death penalty for any crimes).

Austria, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Fiji, Finland, Federal Republic of Germany, Honduras, Iceland, Luxembourg, Nicaragua, Norway, Panama, Portugal, Sweden, Uruguay, Venezuela

Retentionist by L a w f o r “on-Ordinary Crimes’ (12 countries) (Countries whose laws retain the death penalty only under exceptional circumstances or for exceptional crimes such as military offences, crimes committed in time of war, national security offences including treason. These countries do not impose the death penalty for crimes such as murder, rape, theft, or drug traficking).

Canada, Israel, Italy, Malta, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, Seychelles, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Federated Countries with Divided Jurisdictions (3 countries) (Countries in which some states are abolitionist and other are reten- tionist).

Australia, Mexico, United States of America.

Retentionist (121 countries) (Countries and territories whose laws retain the death penalty for ordinary crimes. However, some of these countries have not in practice carried out executions in recent years).

Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua, Argentina, Bangladesh,

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Bahamas, Bahrain, Barbados, Belgium, Benin, Bermuda, Bolivia, Bhutan, Botswana, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Bulgaria, Burma, Burundi, Cameroun, Central African Empire, Chad, Chile, People’s Republic of China, Congo, Cuba, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Djibouti, Dominica, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, France, Gabon, Gambia, German Democratic Republic, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Ireland, Ivory Coast, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Kampuchea, Kenya, Republic of Korea, Kuwait, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Liechtenstein, Madagascar, Malaysia, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Muscat & Oman, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Pakistan, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Rwanda, Sao Tome, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, St. Vincent, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad & Tobago, Tunesia, Turkey, Uganda, Upper Volta, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, United Arab Emirates, Vietnam, Arab Republic of Yemen, People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen, Yugoslavia, Zaire, Zambia, Zimbabwe Rhodesia.

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