The death penalty is an assault on human dignity and a violation of human rights. The United Nations states in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that every individual has a right to life and under no circumstances shall anyone be subject to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading punishment. I n regard the death penalty as a savage and immoral institution that undermines the moral and legal foundations of a society. I reject the notion that the death penalty has any essential deterrent effect on potential offenders. An evil deed is not redeemed by an evil deed of retaliation.
Justice is never advanced in the taking of a human life.
Morality is never upheld by legalized murder. While police and law enforcement officials are the strongest advocates of capital punishment, the evidence is overwhelming that police are no safer in communities that retain the sanction than in those that have abolished it. It also is evident that the burden of capital punishment falls upon the poor, the ignorant, and the underprivileged members of society. A recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1977, Amnesty International seeks the release of all prisoners of conscience, fair and prompt trials for all political prisoners, and an end to torture and executions. In more than 25 years' experience documenting human rights abuses, Amnesty International has seen that the death penalty does nothing to make society safer.