Amnesty International has released its compilation of global data on the use of capital punishment around the world, from sentencing to execution. Read the report, entitled “Death Penalty in 2019: Facts and Figures,” here.
Among the findings from Amnesty International are:
- during 2019, there were 657 executions in 20 countries;
- last year saw the fewest executions that Amnesty International has recorded in “at least a decade”;
- the top five countries carrying out executions in 2019 were ranked: China (1st), Iran (2nd), Saudi Arabia (3rd), Iraq (4th) and Egypt (5th); and
- four countries were responsible for 86% of all reported executions: Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Egypt.
Of course, China’s figures are not considered reliable, as the country considers its death penalty information to be a state secret. How many people died last year in China as a result of capital punishment is unknown.
For more on China’s history with the death penalty, read earlier discussions in:
- Amnesty International Death Penalty Report: China Secrecy Still a Problem
- China Death Vans at an End? China Announces Cut in Crimes Carrying Death Penalty
- In Depth Look at the Law: Secrecy in China; Successfully Hiding the Truth About Executions for Profit from the World
- In Depth Look at the Law: China Death Vans and China’s Widespread Corruption; There is No Fairness in China’s Criminal Justice System
- In Depth Look at the Law: China Death Vans and the Sale of Human Organs Harvested from Death Penalty Executions.