List of African kontries wey don scrap di death penalty

Prison cell

Wia dis foto come from, Getty Images

Ghana parliament don vote to scrap di death penalty, dem join a long list of African kontries wey done do so in recent years.

Di kontri currently get 170 men and six women on death row, wey dia sentences go now dey replaced by life imprisonment. Di last execution happun for 1993.

Execution bin don be di mandatory sentence for murder for Ghana.

Opinion survey suggest say most Ghanaians approve di scrapping.

Last year, seven pipo bin dey sentenced to death for Ghana - but dem no execute dem. Treason also bin dey punishable by death for Ghana.

MP Francis-Xavier Sosu na im put forward di bill to amend di Criminal Offences Act and get di backing of di parliament Committee on Constitutional, Legal and Parliamentary Affairs.

One London-based campaign organisation, di Death Penalty Project (DPP), bin work with Mr Sosu to change di law.

Statement from DPP say Ghana na di 29th African kontri to scrap di death penalty, and di 124th globally.

In recent years, many African kontries don scrap di death penalty, including Benin, Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Sierra Leone and Zambia.

Mr Sosu say "on death row, prisoners wake up dey think say dis fit be dia last day on earth. Dem be like di living dead: psychologically, dem don stop to be humans.

"Abolishing di death penalty show say we dey determined as a society not to be inhumane, uncivil, closed, retrogressive and dark."

E add say dis go pave di way to a free and progressive society reflecting "our common belief say di sanctity of life dey inviolable". 

Africa kontries wey abolish death penalty

  • Cape Verde abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 1981.
  • Mozambique, Namibia, and Sao Tomé and Príncipe abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 1990.
  • Angola abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 1992.
  • Guinea-Bissau and Seychelles abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 1993.
  • Djibouti and Mauritius abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 1995.
  • South Africa abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 1997.
  • Cote D’ivoire abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2000.
  • Senegal abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2004.
  • Liberia abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2005.
  • Rwanda abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2007.
  • Burundi and Togo abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2009.
  • Gabon remove di death penalty from im law for 2010.
  • Congo Republic and Madagascar abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2015.
  • Benin Republic abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2016.
  • Guinea abolish di death penalty for ordinary crime for 2016 / Guinea abolish di death penalty for all crimes.
  • Kenya abolish di mandatory death penalty for murder for 2017.
  • Burkina Faso abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2018.
  • Chad abolished di death penalty for all crimes for 2020.
  • Sierra Leone abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2021.
  • Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, and Zambia abolish di death penalty for all crimes for 2022.