09 January 2008 :

Russia, currently observing a moratorium on capital punishment, does not plan on reinstating the death penalty according to Human Rights Commissioner Vladimir Lukin. "Russia supported a UN resolution on a moratorium on the death penalty. Almost 100 countries voted for it. This shows that we are not going to reinstate the death penalty," Lukin told Interfax. Lukin deems it important that the moratorium on the death penalty be preserved. "Considering that a majority in our country is against the total abolition of the death penalty, which is certainly the case, it is not bad to have such a moratorium," Lukin said. "What counts most is that the death penalty has not been applied in Russia for a long time. I think this is crucial. As to how this procedure is observed in legal terms, it is important but secondary," he said.