EU Policy On The Death Penalty
EMBASSY OF SWEDEN
WASHINGTON
Office of the Press Counselor
Tel: (202) 467-2655
Fax: (202) 467-2656
PRESS RELEASE
EU Action on the Death Penalty on 15 June, 2001
The European Union-troika (Sweden, Belgium and the
European Commission) made a demarche to the US Administration on 15 June,
2001 regarding the federal death penalty, calling on the US to commute the
sentence of Juan Raul Garza and to actively consider ways to ensure that
the long halt on federal executions continues to be the norm. For the full
text, see below.
1. The European Union (EU) is opposed to death penalty in
all cases. It is the strong view of the Union and its Member States that
the abolition of the death penalty would contribute to the enhancement of
human dignity and the progressive development of human rights.
2. The EU refers to its demarche
on the death penalty on 10 May and expresses deep regret that the
thirty-eight year de facto moratorium on federal executions was broken on
11 June.
3. The EU calls on the US administration to commute the
death sentence of Juan Garza, scheduled to be executed on 19 June, and to
actively consider ways to ensure that the long halt on federal executions
continues to be the norm, including a federal moratorium on federal
executions.
Embassy of Sweden,
1501 M Street, N.W.,
Washington DC 20005
tel: (202) 467-2600, fax: (202) 467-2699
Homepage: www.swedenemb.org
