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Vatican calls U.N. vote against death penalty 'sign of hope'
By John Thavis
Source: AmericanCatholic.org
Published: Thursday, December 11, 2008

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VATICAN CITY (CNS)—The Vatican said it was a "sign of hope" that the United Nations had voted for a moratorium on the death penalty.

By a 104-54 vote Dec. 18, 2007, the U.N. General Assembly approved the nonbinding resolution to suspend executions. The United States was among the countries opposing the resolution; 29 nations abstained.

Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, Vatican spokesman, said the vote was "a very positive event."

"It shows that despite the persistence of so much violence in the world, there is a growing awareness in the human family of the value of life, of the dignity of every person and of the concept of a nonvindictive punishment," Father Lombardi said.

He said it showed that people increasingly favor justice that respects human rights and refuses "every violent solution."

"Therefore, this vote should be interpreted as a sign of hope and a step forward on the way of peace," he said.

Father Lombardi expressed the Vatican's appreciation for those who worked hard to support passage of the resolution, an accomplishment that seemed difficult to achieve not too long ago.

Archbishop Celestino Migliore, the Vatican's representative to the United Nations, told Vatican Radio that the Holy See "welcomes with satisfaction the results of the vote."

According to Amnesty International, 133 countries have abolished capital punishment, and last year 91 percent of executions took place in six countries: China, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Sudan and the United States.

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