22 October 2007 :

Amnesty International condemned the executions of 15 people on Sunday, October 7, 2007 in Afghanistan. Amnesty International particularly regrets these executions at a time when there is a global momentum toward the abolition of the death penalty. Amnesty International considers the death penalty a violation of the right to life and the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. As the world continues to turn away from the use of the death penalty, the execution of these 15 men is an anomaly. Such state sanctioned killing is all the more unacceptable where, as in this case, there are serious doubts about the fairness of trials. The death penalty is often discriminatory in its application, used disproportionately against the poor and racial, ethnic and religious minorities. It is often imposed after unfair trials. The risk of executing the innocent has been persistently demonstrated. Further, executions have never been proved to have any unique deterrent effect against crime. Amnesty International believes that executions are brutalizing, dehumanizing those that carry it out and devaluing the worth that society places upon human life. Amnesty International again calls on the Afghan government to immediately impose an official moratorium on the use of the death penalty.