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Very close to accomplish the goal of a UN universal moratorium on death penalty. Sign the appeal. The history of the campaign
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Rome, 15 June 2007
On 14 June, in a meeting at his office in Rome, Italian President of the Council of Ministers Romano Prodi informed Minister Emma Bonino, Marco Pannella, MEP, and Sergio D'Elia, MP of his "aboslute" determination to table, at the current session of the UN General Assembly, a Resolution on a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty with the necessary urgency informing the EU General Affaire Committee scheduled to meet on Monday 18 June in Brussels.
Such a decision is in full respect of the various mandates of the Italian and European Parliaments, and will be in line with the commitments announced last 2 January. The text will fully correspond, also literally, to the political declaration (proposed by the Italian Government) that has already received – thanks to Italy's efforts and paternity – the formal support of 93 UN Member States of the UN (of which only some 50 maintain in their national legislations, and practice, the death penalty).
As a result of that, the international campaign of the Nonviolent Radical Party and Hands Off Cain in support of the Italian Government has been intensified.
1) Minister Emma Bonino (Radical Party member) informed President Prodi and Foreign Affairs Minister Massimo D'Alema, that French Minister of Foreign Affairs Bernard Kouchner and his Spanish Colleague Miguel Angel Moratinos, had responded to her personal appeal in a positive way ensuring their full support to the initiative of the Italian Government and the one of the European Parliament, against any possible "postponement" of the tabling, and the subsequent vote, of the Resolution for a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty.
2) The international political parliamentary and nonviolent campaign of Hands Off Cain and the Transnational Radical Party continues: the dozens of activists that have been on a hunger strike since mid April have decided to continue until the objective is reached to support the Italian Government.
3) Over 50 Nobel Laureates such as the Dalai Lama, Michail Gorbachev and Lech Walensa have signed the appeal to President Prodi together with over 500 Parliamentarians and scores of politicians from all over the world and opinion makers like Barnardo Bertolucci, David Grossman and Fernando Savater.
To sign the appeal: www.radicalparty.org/moratoriumnow
That was the first accomplishment of the nonviolent initiative of Marco Pannella and the Radical Party.
On December 26th the leader of Italy's Non Violent Radical Party, Marco Pannella, began a thirst and hunger strike, refusing all nourishment, to block the lynching of Saddam and call for a Universal and International Moratorium of the Death Penalty. This 77-year-old Member of the European Parliament is no stranger to fasting as a form of non-violent protest. Pannella has gone on many hunger or thirst strikes over the years to bring attention to human rights issues ranging from world hunger to shrinking retirement pensions.
On January 1st 2007 Italy joined the United Nations Security Council as a non-permanent member. Pannella and the Italian abolition movement, led by the Italian government, look at this as a unique historic opportunity to learn a lesson from our collective violent history with the International cessation of the barbaric practice of capital punishment.
The alternative to our non-violent initiative is to accept yet another indefinite postponement, or a betrayal such as the one we received in 1999. We were recently reminded of this episode by Francesco Paolo Fulci, the influential Italian Ambassador to the UN at the time. The UN was given the order "from Brussels" to withdraw the resolution for the moratorium, a resolution that had already been submitted and had the certainty of being approved.
On the basis of the votes expressed on a Resolution on a Moratorium tabled at the UN Commission on Human Rights from 1997 to 2005, and taking into account the number of signatories of the political declaration on the Moratorium read out by the Finnish Presidency of the EU in December 2006 as well as the judicial evolution concerning the death penalty in various countries a Resolution on a Moratorium in view of the total abolition of capital executions would obtain a certain majority at the UNGA:
Between 105 and 108 countries would vote in favor, an absolute majority of the 192 Member States of the UN that will never be defeated by those against (61 to 68 countries). It must be noted that there will be also a group of abstentions from 16 to 19 and some 7 undecided.
See the Dossier by Hands Off Cain: www.handsoffcain.info/chisiamo/index.php?idtema=9319441
The International Appeal
We the undersigned: Aware since 1994, and acknowledging the leadership of the Italian Governments and the Italian Pro-Moratorium Movement in favor of the proclamation for a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty at the United Nations, believe that, after years of postponements and requests for the unnecessary nor needed consensus of the European Union as such, the time to act at UN Headquarters has finally arrived.
We therefore appeal to Italy's President of the Council of Ministers Romano Prodi in observance with the decisions of the Italian Parliament and following the invitations and support of the European Parliament along with a group of favorable countries covering all continents, to table in the coming hours, a resolution based on the Political Declaration presented last December and signed by 93 countries on a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty in order to put it to a vote before the end of the current session (61st) of the UN General Assembly.
On 14 June, in a meeting at his office in Rome, Italian President of the Council of Ministers Romano Prodi informed Minister Emma Bonino, Marco Pannella, MEP, and Sergio D'Elia, MP of his "aboslute" determination to table, at the current session of the UN General Assembly, a Resolution on a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty with the necessary urgency informing the EU General Affaire Committee scheduled to meet on Monday 18 June in Brussels.
Such a decision is in full respect of the various mandates of the Italian and European Parliaments, and will be in line with the commitments announced last 2 January. The text will fully correspond, also literally, to the political declaration (proposed by the Italian Government) that has already received – thanks to Italy's efforts and paternity – the formal support of 93 UN Member States of the UN (of which only some 50 maintain in their national legislations, and practice, the death penalty).
As a result of that, the international campaign of the Nonviolent Radical Party and Hands Off Cain in support of the Italian Government has been intensified.
1) Minister Emma Bonino (Radical Party member) informed President Prodi and Foreign Affairs Minister Massimo D'Alema, that French Minister of Foreign Affairs Bernard Kouchner and his Spanish Colleague Miguel Angel Moratinos, had responded to her personal appeal in a positive way ensuring their full support to the initiative of the Italian Government and the one of the European Parliament, against any possible "postponement" of the tabling, and the subsequent vote, of the Resolution for a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty.
2) The international political parliamentary and nonviolent campaign of Hands Off Cain and the Transnational Radical Party continues: the dozens of activists that have been on a hunger strike since mid April have decided to continue until the objective is reached to support the Italian Government.
3) Over 50 Nobel Laureates such as the Dalai Lama, Michail Gorbachev and Lech Walensa have signed the appeal to President Prodi together with over 500 Parliamentarians and scores of politicians from all over the world and opinion makers like Barnardo Bertolucci, David Grossman and Fernando Savater.
To sign the appeal: www.radicalparty.org/moratoriumnow
At midnight on April 16, Marco Pannella's non-violent initiative (that started on March 21) turned into an indefinite hunger strike. Sergio D'Elia, Valter Vecellio, Guido Biancardi, Lucio Bertè and Claudia Sterzi are also joining the fight in such an important phase. Our goal is to prevent the universal moratorium on the death penalty from being postponed to next year, as has happened for the past 13 years.
That was the first accomplishment of the nonviolent initiative of Marco Pannella and the Radical Party.
On December 26th the leader of Italy's Non Violent Radical Party, Marco Pannella, began a thirst and hunger strike, refusing all nourishment, to block the lynching of Saddam and call for a Universal and International Moratorium of the Death Penalty. This 77-year-old Member of the European Parliament is no stranger to fasting as a form of non-violent protest. Pannella has gone on many hunger or thirst strikes over the years to bring attention to human rights issues ranging from world hunger to shrinking retirement pensions.
On January 1st 2007 Italy joined the United Nations Security Council as a non-permanent member. Pannella and the Italian abolition movement, led by the Italian government, look at this as a unique historic opportunity to learn a lesson from our collective violent history with the International cessation of the barbaric practice of capital punishment.
The alternative to our non-violent initiative is to accept yet another indefinite postponement, or a betrayal such as the one we received in 1999. We were recently reminded of this episode by Francesco Paolo Fulci, the influential Italian Ambassador to the UN at the time. The UN was given the order "from Brussels" to withdraw the resolution for the moratorium, a resolution that had already been submitted and had the certainty of being approved.
On the basis of the votes expressed on a Resolution on a Moratorium tabled at the UN Commission on Human Rights from 1997 to 2005, and taking into account the number of signatories of the political declaration on the Moratorium read out by the Finnish Presidency of the EU in December 2006 as well as the judicial evolution concerning the death penalty in various countries a Resolution on a Moratorium in view of the total abolition of capital executions would obtain a certain majority at the UNGA:
Between 105 and 108 countries would vote in favor, an absolute majority of the 192 Member States of the UN that will never be defeated by those against (61 to 68 countries). It must be noted that there will be also a group of abstentions from 16 to 19 and some 7 undecided.
See the Dossier by Hands Off Cain: www.handsoffcain.info/chisiamo/index.php?idtema=9319441
The International Appeal
We the undersigned: Aware since 1994, and acknowledging the leadership of the Italian Governments and the Italian Pro-Moratorium Movement in favor of the proclamation for a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty at the United Nations, believe that, after years of postponements and requests for the unnecessary nor needed consensus of the European Union as such, the time to act at UN Headquarters has finally arrived.
We therefore appeal to Italy's President of the Council of Ministers Romano Prodi in observance with the decisions of the Italian Parliament and following the invitations and support of the European Parliament along with a group of favorable countries covering all continents, to table in the coming hours, a resolution based on the Political Declaration presented last December and signed by 93 countries on a Universal Moratorium on the Death Penalty in order to put it to a vote before the end of the current session (61st) of the UN General Assembly.
SIGN ONLINE HERE: www.radicalparty.org/moratoriumnow
