The Council emphasizes that the persons who commit offences when below the age of 18 are
not to be executed under the terms of the ICCPR and Convention on the Rights of the Child
(CROC)9.
The Council also considers that persons who at the time of the offence or subsequently lack
criminal capacity should not be subject to the death penalty.
The Council has difficulty understanding the rationale behind the approach adopted in the
American Convention on Human Rights in limiting the application of the death penalty to
persons below the age of 70 years. In the general interest of restricting the categories of
persons subject to the death penalty, however, the Council commends the approach adopted in
the American Convention as a further means of limiting the scope of the death penalty.
(viii)
whether international human rights law imposes any limitations on the duration
and conditions of incarceration of persons sentenced to death
The Council endorses the standards adopted in the Universal Declaration on Human Rights,
Article 7 of the ICCPR, and the Convention Against Torture and Other Forms of Cruel,
Inhuman and Degrading Punishment.
The Council considers that use of solitary confinement following final judgment should be
used only in limited instances. The Council also considers that the time between judgment and
execution should not be unduly prolonged, yet be sufficient to allow appropriate time required
for the adequate exercise of the rights and procedures of appeal and the possible commutation
of the sentence.
The Council considers that particularly during any period of detention, inhuman and
degrading treatment should be totally eliminated. It also condemns the denial and restriction
of education and adequate exercise for persons sentenced to death.
9
See Annexure 5.
9