UNITED NATIONS: Over 100 death sentences were handed out last year by courts in India which also expanded the scope of capital punishment by enacting new laws against hijacking, human rights watchdog Amnesty International said.
In ‘The Death Sentences and Executions 2017’ report released here yesterday, Amnesty said it has recorded at least 993 executions in 23 countries in 2017, down by four per cent from 2016 (1,032 executions) and 39 per cent from 2015 (when the organisation recorded 1,634 executions, the highest number since 1989).
At least 2,591 death sentences in 53 countries were recorded in 2017, a significant decrease from the record-high of 3,117 recorded in 2016.
These figures do not include the thousands of death sentences and executions that Amnesty International believes were imposed and implemented in China, where figures remain classified as a state secret.
In India, 109 death sentences were recorded in 2017. However, there were zero executions in the country last year.
Amnesty International recorded commutations or pardons of death sentences in 21 countries: India, Bangladesh, Cameroon, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Mauritania, Morocco/Western Sahara, Nigeria, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Qatar, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Tunisia, the UAE, the US and Zimbabwe. (AGENCIES)
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