BELARUS. INTERIOR MINISTER NAVUMAW: DEATH PENALTY CANNOT BE DISPENSED WITH NOW

November 15, 2007: the death penalty is a measure that cannot be dispensed with now, especially in the post-Soviet region, Belarusian Interior Minister Uladzimir Navumaw told BelaPAN while commenting on a draft resolution calling for a moratorium on the death penalty which was approved by the UN Third Committee.
“Look at the country where the UN is located,” General Navumaw said. “We will follow its example.”
According to the minister, the resolution was proposed for political reasons and not on common sense grounds.
“It’s not me who will make this decision,” he said. “But one should listen to crime victims and not just to decision-makers who are protected by certain privileges.”
Mr Navumaw noted a steady decline in the number of reported murders in Belarus in the last five years. “It stands in stark contrast to countries where the death penalty is not applied,” he said. (Sources: BelaPAN, 16/11/2007)