Pidana Mati Dalam Perspektif Hukum Internasional

Refleksi Hukum : Jurnal Ilmu Hukum, Edisi April 2009, p. 7-20No other subjects in penology and criminal law could ignite such a prolonged debate as the subject of death penalty. While in practice this kind of punishment has been implied on criminals as long as the history of mankind, death penalty has divided people sharply into two different sides. Morality, human rights, religious norms are common reasons upon which the opponents of capital punishment rest their arguments. However, similar reasons, differently interpreted, are also central to the proponents of the death penalty. This paper focuses on how international law views this hot debated issue. Instead of providing a clear cut opposition to death penalty, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), --as a consequence of its political character--, provides indistinct attitude toward the (il)legitimacy of the death penalty. On the other side, international law documents issued in more recent years, clearly reflect inauspicious position on capital punishment. The Rome Statute as well as the ICTY and ICTR statutes noticeably specify a term of life imprisonment as the most severe penalty, applicable for the perpetrator of even the most severe evil actions against humanit