EU Policy On The Death Penalty
Royal Danish Embassy
Washington, DC
EU Presidency
Governor Perry
State Capitol
Office of the Governor
PO Box 12428
Austin, Texas 78711-2428
File: 27.USA.1
23 July 2002
Dear Governor Perry,
The European Union has learnt that Mr. T. J. Jones is to be executed in the State of Texas on
August 8, 2002. On behalf of the European Union, Denmark, as current
President, together with Greece, the subsequent President, and the European
Commission would like to make an urgent humanitarian appeal to spare the
life of Mr. T. J. Jones.
As stated in the EU memorandum on the Death Penalty,
which has been shared with you on previous occasions (it can also be found
on the web page:
www.eurunion.org/legislat/deathpenalty/eumemorandum.htm), the European
Union opposes the death penalty in all cases and accordingly aims at its
universal abolition, seeking a global moratorium on the death penalty as a
first step.
Mr. Jones was 17 years old at the time of the crime,
for which he has been sentenced to death. The European Union considers that
in those countries, which have not yet abolished the death penalty, this
penalty should not be imposed on persons under the age of 18 at the time of
the crime.
The EU strongly believes that the execution of juvenile
offenders is contrary to widely accepted human rights norms and the minimum
standards of human rights set forth by the United Nations. A significant
number of treaties, including treaties signed and ratified by the United
States, prohibit such executions, specifically the
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR) and the
American Convention on Human Rights.
Article 6 of the ICCPR – to which the United States is a party – explicitly
forbids the execution of juvenile offenders.
We therefore respectfully urge you, Governor, to take
these factors into account and to exercise all the powers vested in your
office to grant Mr. T. J. Jones relief from the death penalty.
Sincerely,
| Ulrik Federspiel |
Vassilios Costis |
Gérard Depayre |
| Ambassador of Denmark |
Chargé d'affaires, a.i.
Embassy of Greece |
Chargé d'affaires, a.i.
Delegation of the European Commission |
Danish Presidency July 25, 2002 statement at
Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) Permanent
Council meeting.
oyal Danish Embassy
3200 Whitehaven Street, NW
Washington, DC 20008-3683
(202) 234-4300 Fax (202) 328-1470
E-mail: wasamb@um.dk
Website: http://www.denmarkemb.org/
