Accra, July 27, GNA – The POS Foundation, a human rights civil society organisation, has commended Ghana’s Parliament for abolishing the Death Penalty by passing the Criminal Offenses (Amendment) Bill, 2022.
Mr Jonathan Osei Owusu, Founder and Executive Director of POS Foundation, in a statement copied to the Ghana News Agency, said the Foundation hailed Parliament’s action as a great milestone.
The POS Foundation is the Convener of the United Nations Universal Periodic Review (UN UPR) Civil Society Organisations’ Platform in Ghana and member of the Coalition Against the Death Penalty.
The UN UPR was instituted in 2006 under Resolution 60/251 by the UN General Assembly.
It is a process, which enables all 193 UN Member States to peer-review their Human Rights records promote and protect same, as directed by the UN Human Rights Council (HRC).
The statement said over the years, CSOs, led by the POS Foundation, had submitted several shadow reports and proposed recommendations under different thematic areas to the UN HRC, which included the abolishment of the death penalty in Ghana.
It said Ghana’s human rights record had been reviewed in 2008, 2012, 2017 and 2023, under the UPR Mechanism.
In all four cycles, Ghana noted/rejected all recommendations received on the abolishment of the death penalty, as it was entrenched in the 1992 Constitution and needed a referendum to legally take it off the nation’s statutes.
On January 24, 2023, about 298 recommendations were received by Ghana from 111 countries/member states, out of which 36 were on the Abolishment of the Death Penalty by France, Austria, Togo, Sierra Leone, Switzerland, among other UN member states.
It said though Ghana noted/rejected those recommendations, through the efforts of CSOs and private member initiative, the Parliament of Ghana had voted for the passage of the Criminal Offenses (Amendment) Bill, 2022for abolishment of the death penalty in Ghana.
“Thedgreat milestone achieved towards the advancement of democracy, promotion and protection of human rights is worth commending considering the tactful and strategic approach adapted in getting this through as stakeholders of the State,” it said.
“We would like to extend our utmost acclamations to all lawyers, CSOs and individual partners who supported in brainstorming strategies for alternative approaches when the State could not hold a referendum due to financial constraints.”
“We also congratulate Ghanaians and the Parliament of Ghana for efforts towards the abolishment and replacement of death penalty with life imprisonment for criminal offenses except for high treason.”
It said the POS Foundation would like to make a clarion call on all UN Member States to emulate Ghana’s example by fostering strategies to enforce the abolishment of the death penalty in their countries even when it had been noted/rejected in the past.
It also encouraged all the member states to support the Global Campaign and help develop different strategies to abolish the death penalty worldwide.
The statement commended Mr Francis Xavier Sosu, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Member of Parliament (MP) for Madina, for championing the Parliamentary processes leading to the Amendment of the Criminal Offenses Act, 1960 (Act 29) and the abolishment of the death penalty in Ghana.
The Death Penalty, also known as Capital Punishment, dates to colonial times and was subject to the laws and practices of the British Colonial Administration.
The Criminal Code of 1960, now known as the Criminal Offenses and other Procedure Act, which was based on other colonial laws, continued to prescribe the death penalty for offenses like murder and treason.
The Foundation urged the President to assent to the Bill.
GNA