MINSK, 10 March (BelTA) - We cannot shrug off the public opinion on the matter of the death penalty in Belarus, Nikolai Samoseiko, a member of the House of Representatives, the chairman of the working group in the Belarusian Parliament to study the death penalty as a tool of punishment, said when speaking at the international conference, Death Penalty: Transcending the Divide, in Minsk on 10 March, BelTA has learned.
According to Nikolai Samoseiko, the debate on whether the referendum 1996 was needed or not is irrelevant today. “The referendum took place, and we cannot brush the public opinion aside,” he said, recalling that back then most Belarusians voted in favor of keeping the death penalty.
Another factor that influenced the public opinion was the terror attack in the Minsk metro in 2011. “The reaction of the death penalty supporters dramatically increased,” the MP noted.
He also drew attention to the fact that not all members of the Belarusian Parliament are in favor of the abolition of the death penalty in the country. “Today we can bring up the issue of the death penalty moratorium for discussion in the Parliament. But I am not sure it will pass,” he noted.
Nikolai Samoseiko explained that introducing the moratorium will require decisions by the President or Parliament, and a new referendum is needed for the complete abolishment of the capital punishment.
The lawmaker added that the views expressed at the international conference in Minsk should be widely disseminated and discussed in the media.
More about PoliticsBack to list
