To the attention of Mr.Ioannis KASSOULIDIS

Minister of Foreign Affairs of Cyprus

Brussels, May 13, 1998

Dear Minister,

I first would like to thank you for the confirmation of Cyprus' commitment to the worldwide abolition of the death penalty during the vote of the Resolution of the UN Human Rights Commission last 3 of April in Geneva.

This second resolution of the Human Rights Commission represents a particularly relevant success because, as you already know, this year's resolution explicitly refers to the establishment of a worldwide moratorium.

If, on the one hand EU Member States have renewed their leadership role in this initiative, on the other hand the novelty is reflected by the geographical and numerical enlargement of the group of sponsoring countries.

Both my party and my abolitionist friends members of "Hands Off Cain" are convinced that the conditions now exist for UN General Assembly to pronounce itself in favour of the establishment of a worldwide moratorium.

With this aim in mind we are now mobilizing ourselves to establish a core of countries willing to promote, next August, the inscription of the moratorium in the agenda of the General Assembly.

Besides Italy, whose concern for this question is longstanding, other countries, like Ireland, are now fully engaged in favour of this goal.

Therefore, I allow myself to ask you if you consider that Cyprus could take part in this group of countries promoting the inscription of a resolution at the UN General Assembly this year.

I thank you very much once again and I keep myself at your disposal for any further information.

Best regards,

Olivier Dupuis

Secretary of the Radical Party

European Parliament

7H 252

1047 Brussels

tel 0032 2 284.71.98

fax 0032 2 284.91.98