TUNISIA. ABOLITIONIST DRAFT LAW PRESENTED

March 6, 2008: a group of Tunisian parliamentarians presented a draft law for the abolition of the death penalty in their country. They explained to the local press that it was an initiative by parliamentarians Mustafa al-Yahyawi and Abd al-Malek al-Ubaydi and that the proposal is for the "abolition of the death penalty and its substitution with life imprisonment."
The draft law was signed by approximately 25 parliamentarians and was presented to the Parliament to be considered by the President and then by the Parliament.
This initiative is the first of its kind in Tunisia and is a step without precedent in the country’s legal practice. Draft laws are usually presented by the President of the Republic or the Government.
The sources explained that the preparation of the project, the phase of study and elaboration, required two years. The essence of the proposal is to have the death penalty, which is handed down by civil and military tribunals, substituted with life imprisonment. It holds that "the right to life is scared, irrenounceable and undeniable."
Furthermore, the text states, "no human power, no matter how high, can decide to take the right to life from a person." (Sources: Aki, 06/03/2008)