Cities for Life Day: No to the death penalty

Three hundred cities around the world declare their opposition to the death penalty today.

From Wikipedia: Today commemorates the first abolition of the death penalty by a European state, decreed by the elightened monarch, Peter Leopold Joseph of Habsburg-Lorraine in 1786 for his Grand Duchy of Tuscany.

On this day, participating cities enlighten their symbolic monument, such as the Atomium in Brussels, the Colosseum in Rome and the Plaza de Santa Ana in Madrid. Participating cities include 30 capitals worldwide, and 300 cities and towns around the world, such as Rome, Bruxelles, Madrid, Ottawa, Mexico City, Berlin, Barcelona, Florence, Venice, Buenos Aires, Austin, Dallas, Antwerpen, Vienna, Naples, Paris, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Reggio Emilia, Bogotà, Santiago de Chile.

By this symbolic action, these cities demand a stay of all executions worldwide. This initiative is promoted by the Community of Sant'Egidio and supported by the main international human rights organizations, gathered in the World Coalition Against the Death Penalty ( Amnesty International, Ensemble contre la Peine de Mort, International Penal Reform, FIACAT).

In 2005, the Cities for Life Day also featured the 'Africa for Life' conference about the death penalty in Africa, in which 14 ministers of justice from as many African countries participated. The conference took place in Florence, Tuscany.

Cities for Life Day :: 2005 Africa for Life conference

Tagged: singapore, australia, execution, van+nguyen, capital+punishment, human+rights, death+penalty