[opiniojuris] Roger Alford: Texas Governor Responds to EU's Request for Death Penalty Moratorium

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Posted by Roger Alford:
Texas Governor Responds to EU's Request for Death Penalty Moratorium
http://www.opiniojuris.org/posts/1188137666.shtml


   The European Union last week urged Texas to impose a moratorium on the
   death penalty. Here is [1]the statement in full:
   
     The European Union notes with great regret the upcoming execution
     in the State of Texas which would be the 400th since the
     reinstatement of the death penalty in 1976. Therefore, the European
     Union strongly urges Governor Rick Perry to exercise all powers
     vested in his office to halt all upcoming executions and to
     consider the introduction of a moratorium in the State of Texas.
     The European Union is unreservedly opposed to the use of capital
     punishment under all circumstances and has consistently called for
     the universal abolition of this punishment. We believe that
     elimination of the death penalty is fundamental to the protection
     of human dignity, and to the progressive development of human
     rights. We further consider this punishment to be cruel and
     inhumane. There is no evidence to suggest that the use of the death
     penalty serves as a deterrent against violent crime and the
     irreversibility of the punishment means that miscarriages of
     justice - which are inevitable in all legal systems â cannot be
     redressed. Consequently, the death penalty has been abolished
     throughout the European Union.
     In countries that maintain the use of capital punishment, the
     European Union seeks the progressive restriction of both its scope
     and the number of offences for which capital punishment may be
     employed, as defined in several human rights instruments.
     In this regard, the European Union welcomes the United States
     Supreme Court rulings of June 2002 and March 2005 declaring the
     execution of persons with mental retardation and the execution of
     juveniles respectively, to be unconstitutional. The European Union
     urges the US authorities to extend these restrictions, in
     particular, to the execution of persons with severe mental illness.
     The European Union welcomes the US commitment to the Vienna
     Convention on Consular Relations (VCCR). However, the European
     Union regrets the US decision to withdraw from the Optional
     Protocol of the VCCR, which gives the ICJ jurisdiction over
     disputes arising from the convention.
     The EU appreciates and values its co-operation with the US on a
     wide range of human rights concerns around the world. The European
     Union therefore takes this opportunity to renew its call for a
     moratorium to be placed on the application of the death penalty, by
     both the US federal and state authorities, in anticipation of its
     legal abolition.
     The Candidate Countries Turkey, Croatia* and the former Yugoslav
     Republic of Macedonia*, the Countries of the Stabilisation and
     Association Process and potential candidates Bosnia and
     Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbia, and the EFTA countries Iceland,
     Liechtenstein and Norway, members of the European Economic Area, as
     well as Ukraine, the Republic of Moldova, Armenia and Azerbaijan
     align themselves with this declaration.

   Texas Governor [2]Rick Perry responded to the EU's appeal for a death
   penalty moratorium:
   
     â230 years ago, our forefathers fought a war to throw off the yoke
     of a European monarch and gain the freedom of self-determination.
     Texans long ago decided that the death penalty is a just and
     appropriate punishment for the most horrible crimes committed
     against our citizens. While we respect our friends in Europe,
     welcome their investment in our state and appreciate their interest
     in our laws, Texans are doing just fine governing Texas.â

   This is cute, but regrettable. Governor Perry doesn't seem to take the
   EU's statement seriously. Of course, the EU is not suggesting that it
   wishes to "govern Texas." It is simply engaging in public diplomacy
   about an issue of global concern. Recognizing Texas's sovereignty over
   this issue, it is issuing a diplomatic request for Texas to consider a
   moratorium.
   Rather than mock the European Union's respectful diplomatic overture,
   I wish Governor Perry would take it seriously and address the EU's
   concerns on the merits.

References

   1. http://www.eu2007.pt/UE/vEN/Noticias_Documentos/Declaracoes_PESC/20070821Texas.htm
   2. http://www.governor.state.tx.us/divisions/press/pressreleases/PressRelease.2007-08-21.0521