Abstract

In October 2014, Ambassador and Head of the European Union Delegation to Zambia and the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), Mr. Gilles Hervio, authored an article entitled “Against the Death Penalty,” which was featured in various news media outlets, including Zambia Weekly. In the article, Mr. Hervio urged Zambians and the Zambian government to seriously consider the prospect of providing for the abolition of the death penalty in their country’s new Republican constitution.

The “death penalty” or “capital punishment” is a contentious issue worldwide. By definition, it is the lawful infliction of death by government authorities as a form of punishment for very serious crimes, such as murder, espionage, treason, economic sabotage, large-scale drug trafficking, aggravated robbery, and other serious felonies.

Over the years, there have been calls and a sustained and resolute effort by opponents of capital punishment to rid the world of such punishment because, according to Mr. Hervio (2014), it “represents an unacceptable denial of human dignity and integrity.”

This article is an attempt at making a contribution to the topical issue of capital punishment. The remainder of the article is, therefore, devoted to a survey of the following themes: (a) murder versus other crimes; (b) the arguments for and against the death penalty; (c) guidance on the subject of capital punishment from several religious denominations; (d) the issue of prison escapes; and (e) a few observations regarding the death penalty. The article also provides a summing up at the end.