To the attention of Mrs Benita Ferrero-Waldner

Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs

Strasburg, June 20, 1998

Madam Minister,

My friend and party colleague Emma Bonino told me that, in the framework of the initiatives of the Austrian Presidency of the European Union, you were very interested in promoting the campaign for the establishment of an universal moratorium on death penalty at the United Nations.

I'm very pleased to inform you that the European Parliament approved yesterday evening a resolution in which it asks the Council to give the Austrian Presidency the mandate to coordinate the initiatives of the members states on that issue during the next General Assembly of the United Nations.

I was also very pleased to know that the Austrian Presidency will present its programme next July 15, during the next session of our Parliament in Strasbourg.

I take also the opportunity of this letter to send you a brief study that my party made on the present situation of the death penalty in the world. As you can see, there are real possibilities to gather a majority of Member States in favour of the moratorium.

Thanking you for your attention and with the hope to see you in Strasbourg, next month, please accept, Madam Minister, my best regards,

Sincerely yours,

Olivier Dupuis

(Secretary of the Radical Party)