Parliamentary Assembly President Jean-Claude Mignon has today expressed his “consternation” at the execution of three prisoners by the authorities in Gaza.
“By this barbaric and ignoble act, the authorities in Gaza have deliberately chosen alienation from the values that the Council of Europe stands for,” he said. “Recourse to capital punishment anywhere is quite simply unjustifiable.
“By signing ‘Partner for Democracy’ status with PACE (Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe) on 4 October last year in Strasbourg, the Palestinian National Council expressed its aspiration to espouse the values of the Council of Europe and pledged action to abolish capital punishment and encourage the competent authorities to introduce a moratorium on executions.
“Our Assembly is closely following the Fatah-Hamas negotiations with a view to a political agreement announced a year ago and regrets that it has still not been implemented. Such an agreement should, among other things, allow the application of a speedy moratorium as a first step towards abolition throughout the Palestinian territories.
“Such an irreversible, cruel and inhuman punishment is utterly unacceptable in any civilised society.”
The Essential
News: Human rights boost for Palestine
