According to Lebanon’s UN representative Amal Mudallali, Lebanon for the first time in history has voted against the death penalty in a United Nations session.
On Wednesday, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution calling for a moratorium on capital punishment.
The resolution was presented by Switzerland and Mexico for the first time on behalf of an inter-regional task force made up of various countries, and it was adopted by 123 member states.
Four new countries voted against the death penalty for the first time, including Lebanon.
“For the first time. Lebanon took a step and voted in favor of a resolution that places a moratorium on the death penalty,” Mudallali shared the good news on her Twitter account, viewing this move as “making progress on human rights”.
Mudallali also took the time to thank the caretaker minister of foreign affairs Charbel Wehbi, who reportedly took the decision to shift Lebanon’s position.
Even though the death penalty is legal in Lebanon, there is an unofficial moratorium on the capital punishment and has not carried out an execution since 2004.
According to Human Rights Watch (HRW), Lebanon’s moratorium is a bright spot on its human rights record and is in line with a global trend to abolish the death penalty. Â
A resumption of the death penalty would result in a troubling setback for Lebanon, without enhancing the country’s safety conditions or deterring crime.
“Studies have consistently found there is no clear evidence that the death penalty deters crime. Capital punishment is unique in its cruelty and finality, and is plagued with arbitrariness, prejudice, and error,” HRW reported.
This positive development comes after Mudallali announced that Lebanon won a seat on the U.N. Peacebuilding Commission.
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