WHICH COUNTRIES HAVE THE DEATH PENALTY
The death penalty is one of the most controversial topics around the world and is regularly discussed in various international venues. Each year more and more countries reject this form of punishment for criminals. Nevertheless, as of 2023, 53 states still impose death sentences by various methods, including beheading, electrocution, hanging, lethal injection and execution.
According to official data from Amnesty International, an international nongovernmental organization, there were 579 executions in 18 countries worldwide in 2021, a 19.9 percent increase from the previous year (483 executions in 2020). The year 2020 had the lowest number of executions recorded by Amnesty International in the last decade. Executions were most frequent in China, as well as in Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and Somalia.
In 2023, of the 196 independent states that are members of the UN or have UN observer status, 111 countries completely abolished the death penalty in law for all types of crimes. In addition, seven states have introduced a ban for ordinary crimes (while retaining the death penalty for special circumstances such as war crimes) and 24 countries do not use the death penalty in practice. However, 53 countries (listed below) still impose the death penalty on criminals.
Next, we will find out which countries legally allow the death penalty.
| № | COUNTRY | LAST EXECUTION (YEAR) |
| 1. | Afghanistan | 2022 |
| 2. | Antigua and Barbuda | 1991 |
| 3. | Bahamas | 2000 |
| 4. | Bangladesh | 2022 |
| 5. | Barbados | 1984 |
| 6. | Bahrain | 2019 |
| 7. | Belarus | 2019 |
| 8. | Belize | 1985 |
| 9. | Botswana | 2021 |
| 10. | Vietnam | 2021 |
| 11. | Guyana | 1997 |
| 12. | Democratic Republic of Congo | 2003 |
| 13. | Dominica | 1986 |
| 14. | Egypt | 2022 |
| 15. | Zimbabwe | 2005 |
| 16. | India | 2020 |
| 17. | Indonesia | 2016 |
| 18. | Jordan | 2021 |
| 19. | Iraq | 2022 |
| 20. | Iran | 2023 |
| 21. | Yemen | 2021 |
| 22. | Qatar | 2020 |
| 23. | China | 2022 |
| 24. | Comoros | 1997 |
| 25. | Cuba | 2003 |
| 26. | Kuwait | 2022 |
| 27. | Lesotho | 1995 |
| 28. | Libya | 2010 |
| 29. | Malaysia | 2017 |
| 30. | Myanmar | 2022 |
| 31. | Nigeria | 2016 |
| 32. | United Arab Emirates | 2021 |
| 33. | Oman | 2020 |
| 34. | Pakistan | 2019 |
| 35. | Palestine | 2022 |
| 36. | Saudi Arabia | 2022 |
| 37. | North Korea | 2022 |
| 38. | Saint Kitts and Nevis | 2008 |
| 39. | Saint Vincent and the Grenadines | 1995 |
| 40. | Saint Lucia | 1995 |
| 41. | Singapore | 2022 |
| 42. | Syria | 2022 |
| 43. | United States of America | 2023 |
| 44. | Somalia | 2022 |
| 45. | Sudan | 2021 |
| 46. | Thailand | 2018 |
| 47. | Taiwan | 2020 |
| 48. | Trinidad and Tobago | 1999 |
| 49. | Uganda | 2005 |
| 50. | Ethiopia | 2007 |
| 51. | South Sudan | 2022 |
| 52. | Jamaica | 1998 |
| 53. | Japan | 2022 |
Note. The Republic of Belarus is the only European country that has not abolished the death penalty.
During 2021, 2,052 death sentences were handed down, an increase of 38.9% over 2020 (1,477). In all, at least 28,670 people were sentenced to death at the end of the year. The number of sentences rose sharply in South Asian countries such as Bangladesh (181), India (144) and Pakistan (129).
The last countries to abolish the death penalty were Zambia (2022), Equatorial Guinea (2022), Papua New Guinea (2022), Central African Republic (2022), Sierra Leone (2021), Kazakhstan (2021) and Chad (2020).
