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Biden Fails a Death Penalty Abolitionist’s Most Important Test

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The mystery of Joe Biden’s views about capital punishment has finally been solved. His decision to grant clemency to 37 of the 40 people on federal death row shows the depth of his opposition to the death penalty. And his decision to leave three of America’s most notorious killers to be executed by a future administration shows the limits of his abolitionist commitment. The three men excluded from Biden’s mass clemency—Dylann Roof, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and Robert Bowers—would no doubt pose a severe test of anyone’s resolve to end the death penalty. Biden failed that test.
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Anti-death penalty double bill in the Gaza Strip

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The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), a Gaza-based NGO and a member of the World Coalition, organised two meetings on the death penalty in March.


The first meeting took place on March 10 in the offices of the Palestinian Society for Democracy and Law in Rafah. At least 30 individuals representing a number of NGOs in Rafah attended.

The second meeting was held on March 12, in cooperation with Sharek Youth Forum in Gaza City. At least 30 students and graduates of al-Azhar University in Gaza and a number of civil society activists attended the meeting.

Raising public awareness

The events are part of PCHR's death penalty project, which aims at raising public awareness and creating a public opinion calling for the abolishment of capital punishment from Palestinian laws.
PCHR also seeks to stop extra-judicial executions carried out by Israeli forces against Palestinians.

The meetings discussed the international trend towards the abolition of the death penalty from domestic laws, and the recent United Nations General Assembly resolution calling for a moratorium on executions.

During the meetings, discussions were opened among the participants who were divided between supporters of and opponents to the death penalty.
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