President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed amendments to the law on the abolition of the death penalty. Tengrinews.kz reports with reference to Akorda’s website.
«The head of state signed the Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan on Amendments and Additions to Certain Legislative Acts of the Republic of Kazakhstan on the Abolition of the Death Penalty,» the statement says.
A moratorium on the death penalty has been introduced in Kazakhstan since 2003; since then, not a single case has been registered in the country.
On January 2, 2021, the President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev signed the Law on Ratification of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aimed at abolishing the death penalty. Thus, Kazakhstan completely abandoned the death penalty.
The Mazhilis approved a bill to abolish the death penalty, but with some reservations. In accordance with them, Kazakhstan reserves the right to use the death penalty in wartime. However, the president condemned the norm and declared the need to pass the bill without reservations.
On December 23, senators adopted a law on the complete abolition of the death penalty in Kazakhstan.
«By adopting this law, Kazakhstan joins the group of countries where the death penalty is legally prohibited. In addition, our country proves that it supports the international movement aimed at the complete abolition of the death penalty,» the Senate Speaker Maulen Ashimbayev noted.
