SOUTH KOREA. ABOLISH DEATH PENALTY, CATHOLIC, OTHER RELIGIOUS LEADERS URGE GOVERNMENT

April 4, 2006: the Pan-Religion Union for the Abolition of the Death Penalty held a press conference in South Korea’s National Assembly building and released a statement calling for an urgent end to capital punishment.
Members of the union belonged to Buddhism, Catholicism, Chondo-gyo, Confucianism, Protestantism, Won Buddhism and Korean folk religions.
The conference coincided with a public hearing on the elimination of capital punishment held by the National Assembly during the extraordinary session it convened ahead of local elections scheduled for May.
Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan, retired archbishop of Seoul, Rev. Kang Won-yong, honorary president of the World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP), and Venerable Jikwan, chief executive of the Jogye Order, signed the statement on behalf of the three major religions of Catholicism, Protestantism and Buddhism. "It is a well-known fact that the death penalty has no impact on deterring the outbreak of crimes. If the government sticks to the penalty, it means that it gives up its duty to correct criminals," the statement read. (Sources: UCANews, 06/04/2006)