5 April 2001
Seminar on death penalty abolition held in Brest
The Pravovaya Initsiativa (Legal Initiative) association held an international seminar on the abolition of the death penalty in Brest on July 5 to encourage the discussion of the issue in society.
Speakers at the seminar included lawyers, human rights defenders, judges, representatives of the Penal Committee of the Belarusian Ministry of Internal Affairs, and Council of Europe experts.
Participants discussed reports on the application of the death penalty in Belarus, the abolition of capital punishment in Georgia and Ukraine, and problems that correctional systems face after the abolition. "Whatever crimes are discussed, the issue of the death penalty outstretched the borders of criminal legislation long ago and more and more people come to the realization that this is a human rights issue," said Valery Filipov,
coordinator of Legal Initiative programs. Tatiana Termacic, an official of the Council of Europe Human Rights Directorate, pointed out that Belarus is one of the last countries in Europe that still use the death
penalty. Belarus is not a member of the Council of Europe, but it
should be prepared to abolish capital punishment if it decides to join it in the future, she said.
http://brestonline.com/en/news/news1.html