Tunisia – Tunisian Coalition calls for abolition of death penalty

Language: Arabic

Duration: 00:03:58

Voice: Natural

Source: A24 in Tunisia

Restrictions: A24 subscribers

Date: 10/10/2022

Storyline:

The Tunisian Coalition against the Death Penalty (CTCPM) held a press conference on World Day Against Death Penalty, calling on the authorities to abolish this ruling permanently in the courts. The number of inmates under sentence of death in Tunisian prisons reached 136, according to the coalition including three women, according to Duha Ayadi, the coordinator of the Tunisian coalition.

Hajar Al-Nasr, Secretary General of the CTCPM told A24 that the effective implementation of the penalty suspended in Tunisia since 1991, to join 23 other African countries; however the decision has not yet been implemented.

Ayadi called on the Tunisian authorities to assume responsibility and implement the decision to stop the punishment immediately.

The coalition also demanded the issuance of an official decision related to the revision of the penal code, and the abolition of the death penalty permanently. It also called for the abolition of the death penalty for crimes not considered “the most serious” under international law.

Shot list:

Soundbite (Hajar Al-Nasr – Secretary General of the Tunisian Coalition against the Death Penalty (CTCPM)):

“Since 1991, the execution of the death penalty has been suspended, which means that 31 years have passed since its suspension. However, the courts are still issuing death sentences. In 2021, there are 36 death sentences and in 2022 there are 46 sentences within 6 months, i.e. from January to July 2022. The number of such rulings is increasing and this is a dangerous indicator. We have made some recommendations to the Tunisian government before the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Universal Periodic Review. They included the ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to abolish the death penalty in all circumstances and to continue voting in favor of the UN resolution on the suspension of the global implementation of the death penalty. We also recommended the issuance of a formal resolution related to a moratorium on the implementation of the death penalty, a review of the Penal Code, the permanent abolition of the death penalty, and the abolition of the death penalty for crimes not considered to be the most serious under international law. In addition, we demanded transparency in publishing data related to the implementation of the death penalty, in terms of publishing statistical data on the number of people sentenced to death by age, sex, and place of detention and that the decision will include all detainees with no discrimination”.

Soundbite (Duha Ayadi, Program Coordinator for the Tunisian Coalition against the Death Penalty (CTCPM)):

“The coalition chose this month to be the month of abolition. We confirm that there are 136 people under sentence of death in Tunisian prisons, including 3 women. It is assumed that the penalty was abolished in 1991. For the month of abolition, there will be other cultural, educational, and academic demonstrations. There is also a training course for lawyers that will lead to the establishment of a network of lawyers against the death penalty.”