First European Day against the Death Penalty

11.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 10th Oct 2007

Largely as a result of lobbying by MEPs, today is not only World Day against the Death Penalty but also the first European Day against the Death Penalty, after the attempt by the Polish government to derail because of concerns about abortion was rebuffed.

Sarah with the recently released Bulgarian nurses, who had spent years on Libya's death row.

The Day was marked in the European Parliament by a visit from the Bulgarian doctors and nurses rescued by the EU from the death sentence imposed on them in Libya after a grossly unfair trial for contaminating children with HIV.

London Liberal Democrat MEP Baroness Sarah Ludford played an active role on the campaign to free the Bulgarians and went to Sofia in March to address a rally there. She commented from Brussels:

"I urge EU governments to actively promote in the United Nations General Assembly the resolution tabled there in June calling for a universal moratorium on the death penalty. The time is ripe, with countries like Rwanda newly added to the list of abolitionists."

"Even from America there is encouraging news. An increasing number of US states have stopped imposing the death penalty and also now there is an unofficial halt everywhere while the Supreme Court decides whether lethal injections which have led to at least 9 bungled executions really do offer the promised 'painless and humane' death."

"A moratorium is a first step to total abolition. While countries like Iran execute people for being gay and China for being dissidents there is a long way to go, but an active campaign has a real chance to make progress."