EU welcomes abolition of death penalty

28/01/2000 (Agence Europe)

On 24 January, the Portuguese Presidency made the followng declaration on behalf of the EU:

"The European Union welcomes the decision taken by the authorities of Turkmenistan to abolish the death penalty. The EU considers that abolition of the death penalty contributes to the enhancement of human dignity and the progressive development of human rights and reaffirms its objective to work towards its universal abolition or at least the introduction of moratoria on executions as a first step towards that aim. In this sense, the EU considers that the decision of the Turkmen authorities is a fundamental step towards the promotion of human rights in that country and an important contribution to the universal abolition of the death penalty. The EU urges the Turkmen authorities to take further steps towards respect and promotion of human rights in Turkmenistan. The Central and Eastern European countries associated with the EU, the associated countries Cyprus and Malta, and the EFTA countries Iceland Liechtenstein and Norway, members of the European Economic Area align themselves with this declaration."