Support For The Death Penalty In Europe – Brilliant Maps

The
map
above
gives
support
for
the
death
penalty
by
European
country
based
on
surveys
and
polls
done
between
2018
and
2021.
Belarus
remains
the
only
country
in
Europe
with
the
death
penalty
still
in
use.

Russia
is
an

interesting
case:

“Beginning
in
1996,
Russia
halted
all
executions,
rendering
the
death
penalty
a
dormant
provision
within
the
Russian
Criminal
Code.”

Here
is
the
support
by
country:

1. Estonia
   –
   70%
2. Hungary
   –
   65%
3. Romania
   –
   65%
4. Serbia
   –
   65%
5. Ukraine
   –
   65%
6. Kosovo
   –
   62%
7. Albania
   –
   60%
8. Belarus
   –
   60%
9. Bosnia
   and
   Herzegovina
   –
   60%
10. North
    Macedonia
    –
    60%
11. Russia
    –
    60%
12. Lithuania
    –
    59%
13. Bulgaria
    –
    58%
14. Slovakia
    –
    57%
15. Poland
    –
    56%
16. Latvia
    –
    55%
17. Moldova
    –
    55%
18. Montenegro
    –
    55%
19. Greece
    –
    52%
20. France
    –
    47%
21. Croatia
    –
    45%
22. Czech
    Republic
    –
    45%
23. United
    Kingdom
    –
    45%
24. Italy
    –
    42%
25. Cyprus
    –
    40%
26. Slovenia
    –
    40%
27. Germany
    –
    39%
28. Ireland
    –
    35%
29. Malta
    –
    35%
30. Spain
    –
    35%
31. Switzerland
    –
    35%
32. Austria
    –
    30%
33. Belgium
    –
    30%
34. Portugal
    –
    30%
35. Finland
    –
    28%
36. Luxembourg
    –
    25%
37. Netherlands
    –
    25%
38. Denmark
    –
    25%
39. Sweden
    –
    22%
40. Norway
    –
    20%
41. Iceland
    –
    15%

To
put
those
numbers
in
perspective,

US
support
for
the
death
penalty
is

just
53%.

Below
you
can
see
a

simplified
table
of
when
countries
in
Europe
abolished
the
death
penalty,
the
last
time
it
was
used
and
finally
the
methods
used
when
it
was
still
in
effect.

Why
have
almost
all
European
countries
abolished
the
death
penalty?

European
countries
have
largely
abolished
the
death
penalty
despite
high
public
support
in
some
areas
for
several
nuanced
reasons:

Human
Rights
and
Ethics:

• European
  values
  strongly
  emphasize
  human
  rights,
  dignity,
  and
  ethical
  governance.
• The
  death
  penalty
  is
  seen
  as
  incompatible
  with
  the
  right
  to
  life
  and
  protection
  against
  cruel
  or
  degrading
  punishment,
  values
  enshrined
  in
  documents
  like
  the
  
  
  European
  Convention
  on
  Human
  Rights
  (ECHR).

European
Integration
and
the
EU:

• Membership
  in
  the
  
  
  European
  Union
  and
  the
  
  
  Council
  of
  Europe
  explicitly
  requires
  the
  abolition
  of
  the
  death
  penalty.
• Countries
  aspiring
  to
  join
  or
  remain
  in
  these
  institutions
  must
  comply,
  leading
  to
  a
  widespread
  regional
  norm
  against
  capital
  punishment.

Legal
Obligations
and
International
Treaties:

• The
  ratification
  of
  
  Protocols
  No.
  6
  and
  13
  of
  the
  ECHR
  obliges
  signatories
  to
  abolish
  the
  death
  penalty
  entirely,
  both
  in
  peacetime
  and
  wartime.
• International
  law
  reinforces
  a
  strong
  legal
  framework
  against
  capital
  punishment
  across
  the
  continent.

Judicial
Mistakes
and
Irreversibility:

• Recognizing
  that
  wrongful
  convictions
  occur,
  European
  legal
  systems
  emphasize
  rehabilitative
  justice
  and
  human
  fallibility.
  The
  risk
  of
  executing
  an
  innocent
  person
  is
  viewed
  as
  morally
  unacceptable
  and
  irreversible.

Influence
of
Political
and
Social
Elites:

• Decision-making
  elites
  (judges,
  lawyers,
  policymakers,
  academics)
  across
  Europe
  largely
  oppose
  the
  death
  penalty,
  even
  if
  public
  opinion
  remains
  mixed.
• These
  groups
  have
  significant
  influence
  over
  policy
  and
  shape
  norms,
  often
  pushing
  for
  abolition
  despite
  popular
  sentiment.

Historical
Context
and
Experiences:

• Europe’s
  violent
  history—particularly
  with
  authoritarian
  regimes
  executing
  political
  opponents—created
  strong
  cultural
  resistance
  to
  state-sanctioned
  executions.

Effectiveness
and
Criminal
Deterrence:

• Studies
  and
  statistics
  often
  fail
  to
  convincingly
  demonstrate
  that
  the
  death
  penalty
  effectively
  deters
  crime
  more
  than
  long-term
  imprisonment.
• European
  policy
  prioritizes
  prevention,
  rehabilitation,
  and
  social
  reintegration
  rather
  than
  retribution.

Global
Diplomacy
and
Soft
Power:

• European
  nations
  advocate
  globally
  for
  human
  rights;
  abolition
  of
  capital
  punishment
  aligns
  with
  this
  diplomatic
  image,
  enhancing
  Europe’s
  moral
  authority
  internationally.

Therefore,
despite
lingering
support
in
public
opinion,
these
combined
legal,
ethical,
historical,
and
political
factors
have
solidified
the
abolition
of
the
death
penalty
as
a
core
European
principle,
unlikely
to
change
in
the
foreseeable
future.

What
do
you
think?

Go to Source
Author: Brilliant Maps