UN report says death penalty amounts to torture

October 24, 2012 01:25

AP reports: The UN's anti-torture expert says that the death penalty should be considered cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment prohibited under international conventions banning torture.

UN Special Rapporteur on Torture Juan E Mendez presented the General Assembly with a report today that found a growing momentum toward abolition of the death penalty around the world, mainly fuelled by concerns over the legality of executions.

He said currently the death penalty is treated as an exception to the right to life provided for by international law.

The United States, Singapore and Egypt all took exception to his argument, rejecting the notion that there was an evolving international consensus toward the abolition of the death penalty, Mendez said.

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