In 2014 the number of people sentenced with the death penalty increased by 28 %. According to the UN the penalties were imposed for terrorism and drug charges. In 2014, there had unfortunately been a 28 % increase in the number of people condemned to death, according to data presented by the UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic. The increase in death sentences, "represents an overall increase in Member States resorting to death penalty to prevent terrorism or drug related offences," the UN official explained. Simonovic spoke at a press conference in the UN Headquarters in New York, and said that according to the book, Moving Away from the Death Penalty: Arguments, Trends and Perspectives , in 1975, about 97 % of countries were executing criminals, but in 2015, only 27 % of countries resorted to the death penalty. However, the UN official warned that even though there is a drop in the number of documented executions, there is a possibil...
Striving for a World without Capital Punishment