Parliament, in a historic move, has voted to abolish the death penalty and adopt in its stead, a life imprisonment sentence for capital offenses.
This follows the passage of the Criminal Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2022 championed by the Member of Parliament for Madina, Francis-Xavier Sosu through a Private Member’s Bill.
The decision marks a significant step towards aligning the country’s legal framework with international human rights principles.
Deputy Majority Leader, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, commended Parliament for this milestone, stating the death penalty provision, which had been in Ghana’s statute books for over 50 years, has finally been repealed.
Afenyo-Markin emphasized the removal of the death penalty from the statute books does not mean encouragement of heinous crimes.
He said, “Instead, the focus is on valuing human life and ensuring that offenders are not allowed to repeat such acts by introducing life imprisonment as an alternative punishment.”
“The shift from the death penalty to life imprisonment represents a crucial step towards embracing international human rights positions.”
“Many human rights institutions around the world have deemed the death penalty as obsolete and incompatible with a progressive society. With this reform, Ghana joins the ranks of countries that seek to uphold human rights and provide an opportunity for rehabilitation rather than mere retribution,” he added.
The Deputy Majority Leader also highlighted the ongoing efforts to promote non-custodial sentencing, reflecting the country’s dedication to finding alternative ways to reform offenders without overcrowding prisons or denying citizens a chance at redemption.
Background
The Criminal Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2022 was laid in Parliament on 25th July, 2022 in accordance with Article 106 (1) of the 1992 Constitution.
The Bill was subsequently referred by the Rt Hon Speaker to the Committee on Constitutional, Legal, and Parliamentary Affairs for consideration and report pursuant to Article 106 (4) of the 1992 Constitution and Order 179 of the Standing Orders of Parliament.
The death penalty, also referred to as “capital punishment”, is the State-sanctioned execution of individuals convicted for specified offenses.
In Ghana, the death penalty is imposed after a conviction for murder; attempt to commit murder, genocide, or piracy, and smuggling of gold or diamond.
By section 304(3) of the Criminal and Other Offences (Procedure) Act, 1960 (Act 30), execution of the death penalty may either be by hanging or shooting by firing squad.
The imposition of the death penalty as punishment takes its root from the retributive theory of punishment. The theory is premised on the principle of an “eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth”; thus, if a person commits murder, the person must be punished in a manner proportionate to the crime of killing another person.
Presently, however, countries that believe that the death penalty can be defended within a retributive theory of punishment, have taken a position of procedural abolitionism.
They oppose capital punishment because of the impossibility of ensuring due process of law and the unacceptability of the inherent flaws in justice which could lead to miscarriages of justice.
Some human rights activists have also argued that the death penalty is too final and irreversible.
This position was canvassed by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on the review of the 1992 Constitution and recommended the replacement of the death penalty with imprisonment which was subsequently accepted in the Government White paper.
Uncertainties about the safety of the death penalty have brought about a global call in the last three decades to abolish the death penalty. The campaign led to the adoption of the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights by the UN General Assembly in 1989, proclaiming the total abolishing of the death penalty for State Parties and calling Parties to take all necessary measures to abolish the death penalty within its jurisdiction.
A total of 90 countries are today State Parties to the Second Optional Protocol.