The European Union (EU) has commended Ghana for the strides it has made toward the total abolition of the death penalty as a form of capital punishment.
In a statement issued to mark this year’s World Day Against the Death Penalty, the EU Ambassador to Ghana, Mr Rune Skinnebach, lauded Parliament’s 2023 decision to abolish the death penalty for ordinary criminal offences, describing it as a significant milestone in Ghana’s human rights record.
He noted that although Ghana had not carried out any executions in over three decades, the legal framework still allowed capital punishment for high treason under the 1992 Constitution, making the abolition incomplete.
“The country has long refrained from executions, but the constitutional provision for capital punishment in high treason cases remains an obstacle to full abolition,” Mr Skinnebach said.
He observed that momentum was building globally against the death penalty, with 26 African countries having abolished it entirely. Kenya, he noted, recently established a task force to review its legislation on the matter.
Mr Skinnebach stressed that the death penalty was “irreversible, incompatible with the right to life, and a cruel and degrading punishment,” adding that it had not been shown to deter crime more effectively than other penalties.
He called on Ghana to take final steps toward full abolition by amending the Armed Forces Act, proposing constitutional reforms to remove the penalty for high treason, and signing the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Reaffirming the EU’s commitment to human rights, Mr Skinnebach said Ghana’s full abolition of the death penalty would strengthen its leadership role in promoting human dignity across Africa.
BY BENJAMIN ARCTON-TETTEY
