African countries and the death penalty: A bad relationship they want to, but just can't, give up

Samantha Spooner

Mass rulings in Egypt and Nigeria increase death sentence rates worldwide

(Photo Justin Gurbisz)

EVEN though the last official execution in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is known to have taken place in 2003, the country continues to reject recommendations to abolish the death penalty.
This is indicative of trends across Africa which indicate that the continent is slowly turning its back on the death penalty and executions, but it still can’t quite let it go. This according to data obtained in the 2014 “Death Sentences and Executions” report by rights group, Amnesty International.

Compared to 2013, there was a total of 46 known executions in sub-Saharan Africa, compared to 64 in 2013, representing a drop of 28%. These executions were carried out in just three countries; Equatorial Guinea (9), Somalia (14) and Sudan (23).
There was also a reduction in the number of countries that imposed death sentences - from 19 in 2013, to 18 in 2014. However, there was a sharp increase in the number of death sentences recorded but this can be attributed to mass rulings in Egypt and Nigeria which vastly increased death sentence rates worldwide.
At least 2,466 people are known to have been sentenced to death in 2014 - 1,168 of which are attributed to Egypt (509) and Nigeria (659) alone. In Egypt the report put the high numbers down to death sentences after mass trials that were grossly unfair. These death sentences followed referrals made by the court to the Grand Mufti, Egypt’s highest religious official.