Zimbabwe has abolished the death penalty after President Emmerson Mnangagwa signed into law an act that will commute to jail time the sentences of about 60 prisoners on death row.
Since 2005, there has been a moratorium on executions in the southern African country, but courts continue to condemn people to death for crimes such as murder, treason, and terrorism.
The Death Penalty Abolition Act, published in the Government Gazette, states that courts can no longer impose capital punishment for any offense, and all current death sentences must be remitted to jail time.
However, one section states that the death penalty may be abolished in an emergency.By the end of 2023, at least 59 persons in Zimbabwe had been sentenced to death.
Amnesty International noted in a statement that the new statute is a “historic moment”.
Twenty-four countries across sub-Saharan Africa have abolished the death penalty for all crimes while two additional countries have abolished it for ordinary crimes only, Amnesty said.
Mnangagwa has been a vocal opponent of capital punishment since he was sentenced to death in the 1960s for blowing up a train during the guerrilla war for independence.
The sentence was later commuted of the 16 countries known to have carried out executions in 2023, only one — Somalia — was in sub-Saharan Africa, according to Amnesty.
