Last Tuesday, four men who stabbed to death an expatriate German family of four during a robbery in the eastern city of Nanjing were executed. There are almost 70 capital offences under Chinese law, ranging through homicide, theft and corruption to economic and political crimes. Over the past decade, China executed an estimated 18,000 felons. Public support for the death penalty remains strong, especially in relation to official corruption. Another is cost.
Lethal injection is used in only a handful of countries.
In 36 American states, injection is the sole or alternative method of execution. It has also been adopted in the Philippines, Guatemala and Taiwan. Under the supervision of the Supreme People's Court, the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences has researched the use of chemical methods of execution. Chinese scientists have reportedly conducted more than 1000 experiments on animals and executioners have tested their technique by injecting rabbits. The use of lethal injections has been permitted under Chinese law since 1996.