To set an example for the protection of human rights, the International Day of Action “Cities for Life – Cities for Life / Cities against the death penalty” will take place for the 21st time on 30 November. Like every year, Darmstadt, the city of science, adheres to the initiative of the international community of Sant’Egidio with a glockenspiel in the castle, which at 12 o’clock will play songs about death and dying.
Mayor Jochen Partsch underlines the particular importance of this day: “The right to life is a fundamental right of every human being on our planet. No political regime and no person should ignore this right in the 21st century. Especially in times when the war has returned to Europe and lives are being sacrificed in Iran for domestic political ends, it is more important than ever to fight for these ideals.For this reason, together with many other cities of the world, we support on this day, as on any other day, the alliance of the Community of Sant’Egidio”.
to strengthen the appreciation of human life
Since the campaign began in 2002, events have taken place on 30 November to promote a culture of valuing human life. The International Day of Cities for Life is the world’s largest mobilization of cities for respect for human rights. In Germany, nearly 300 cities are participating in the action day, including many major cities such as Berlin, Hamburg, Stuttgart, Bremen, Cologne, Leipzig, Schwerin, Rostock, Nuremberg, Hanover, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Dortmund, Würzburg and numerous cities more small.
The individual positive developments of recent months bode well. On 27 May 2022, the National Assembly of the Central African Republic voted by acclamation to abolish the death penalty, which has yet to be announced by the President of the Republic. Africa is about to become the second continent after Europe without the death penalty. In June 2022, a referendum in Kazakhstan accepted the new constitution, which no longer provides for the death penalty. Similar news also comes from the US, because Virginia – a southern state with a traditionally high number of executions – became the 23rd US state to abolish the death penalty in March 2021.
Overall there is a decrease in the number of death sentences and executions, even if this figure is not always verifiable. In December this year, the United Nations General Assembly plans to adopt a new resolution for a worldwide moratorium on the death penalty, hoping to further strengthen the movement for universal abolition.
“But worrying news is inevitable,” Partsch points out. “Especially in crisis areas, the number of executions is on the rise. Death sentences are often imposed for drug-related offenses and are often marked by discrimination against the poorest and most vulnerable. Statements critical of the regime can even lead to the death sentence and execution, as is happening this year in Myanmar or currently in Iran. This makes clear that the global commitment for a culture of life and against the death penalty must not be interrupted”.
The Community of Sant’Egidio is a lay Christian movement present in around seventy countries around the world which works for peace and justice. The community has been fighting against the death penalty since 1998 and is fighting for its universal abolition with the World Coalition against the Death Penalty.
More information about the alliance can be found online www.santegidio.org respectively http://nodeathpenalty.santegidio.org/en.
(Text: PM Science City Darmstadt)
