On 18 November 2024, the UN General Assembly's Third Committee adopted the resolution on the moratorium against the death penalty with 131 votes in favour, 36 against, 21 abstentions and 5 absences. This is a historic result, as there were five more votes in favour than in 2022 and the number of absentees and abstentions decreased to a total of 26. Since the first vote in 2007 with 104 votes in favour and 54 against, the global consensus has increased significantly, thanks to a change of heart in many countries.
This year, Zambia, Kenya and Zimbabwe also voted in favour of the moratorium for the first time - an important sign of the growing momentum for abolition in sub-Saharan Africa, which remains a key driver of global change.
Although the resolution is non-binding, it has a strong symbolic message: it calls for a temporary moratorium on executions and is passed by an assembly in which all states in the world have a voice. One of the major highlights this year was the rejection of an amendment reaffirming the sovereign right of states to determine their own penal laws, including the death penalty. This rejection emphasises that the protection of human rights is becoming increasingly prioritised over the claim to sovereignty in criminal matters.
The next crucial date will be the vote in the General Assembly scheduled for December 2024, which could further consolidate the trend towards universal abolition. Prior to this, however, Rome will host the 14th International Congress of Justice Ministers, organised by the Community of Sant'Egidio from 28 to 29 November.
Since 2006, these congresses have been a reference point for dialogue on the abolition of the death penalty. They gather ministers, lawyers, activists and members of civil society from abolitionist and retentionist countries and provide a unique opportunity to share experiences, develop legislative strategies and build international networks. In a global context characterised by conflict and the devaluation of human life, these meetings put the issue in the spotlight and offer concrete support to countries that maintain the death penalty to introduce reforms and to abolitionist countries to help them resist possible pressure to reintroduce the death penalty.
