But the terms of the debate are changing. Now, campaigners are going global with a moral crusade, arguing that the death penalty violates a basic human right to life. And they're gaining converts. This month, Chile will join 108 other nations in the past decade that have struck capital punishment from their statutes, or declared a moratorium on executions. As in the US, public support fluctuates but in many countries polls show that the death penalty remains popular as the ultimate criminal deterrent.
China leads the way as a practitioner of capital punishment.
But outside of the US and China, political leaders are increasingly rejecting such punishment on ethical grounds. May. This week, the council's human rights committee recommended stripping the US and Japan of their observer status in the organization, unless both agree to cease executions and repeal the death penalty. The issue is a major bone of contention. Since 1990, more than 30 countries in the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe have abolished capital punishment for all crimes, according to the human rights watchdog Amnesty International. Eighty-seven countries retain the death penalty and use it.