October 24, 2025

Legal analysis by Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan on the negative experience of countries that have reinstated the death penalty and its tragic consequences for the Kyrgyz Republic

“Kyrgyzstan must remain a country that chooses life, not death”

The Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan team, together with its partner solidarity network—the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH), Women Learning Partnership (WLP), and the Civil Society Platform for Solidarity with the OSCE (CSP), expresses its deep concern to the senior leadership of Kyrgyzstan regarding initiatives aimed at reinstating the death penalty. We are convinced that such a step would set an unacceptable and dangerous precedent, contrary to both fundamental human rights principles and the international obligations voluntarily assumed by our state .

A return to this punishment would be a direct violation of international treaties to which Kyrgyzstan is a party, including Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR , aimed at the complete abolition of the death penalty. Such a step would also contradict Kyrgyzstan's obligations under the UN Human Rights Council , Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights .

Kyrgyzstan cannot legally reinstate the death penalty. In 2010, when Kyrgyzstan ratified the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1989), it put an end to the death penalty as the highest measure of punishment, as it assumed irreversible obligations under this international treaty. Specifically, Article 1 states:

“No one under the jurisdiction of a State Party to this Protocol shall be subjected to the death penalty” (Article 1).

This Protocol does not contain any provisions on denunciation, withdrawal, or, more simply, provisions allowing a State to renounce its obligations under the treaty. According to Article 56 of the Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties (1969), to which Kyrgyzstan has been a party since 1997, if a treaty does not provide for the possibility of withdrawal, a state cannot denounce it unless all parties agree.

However, to date, no country in the world has denounced this Protocol. Moreover, in accordance with Article 26 of the same Vienna Convention of 1969 “Pacta sunt servanda”, every treaty in force is binding upon the parties to it and must be performed by them in good faith, and Article 27 of the same Convention does not allow a State Party to “invoke the provisions of its internal law as justification for its failure to perform its international obligations”. Moreover, in accordance with Article 6 of the Constitution of Kyrgyzstan: “The universally recognized principles and norms of international law, as well as international treaties that have entered into force in accordance with the legislation of the Kyrgyz Republic, are an integral part of the legal system of the Kyrgyz Republic.”

Thus, the reinstatement of the death penalty is impossible from a legal point of view, as it would constitute a gross violation of international law by Kyrgyzstan, and therefore of national legislation. Consequently, any attempts to revise or ignore international treaties aimed at abolishing the death penalty would contradict the fundamental principles of international law and undermine Kyrgyzstan's legal reputation.

From a psychological point of view, the death penalty does not serve a preventive function and does not deter crime. At the moment of committing a serious crime, a person usually does not realize the consequences of their actions and does not think about punishment, including the death penalty. Most such crimes are committed in a state of severe emotional distress, under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or mental disorders. People with such disorders often need treatment and rehabilitation rather than execution.

Thus, the death penalty does not prevent crime, but only reproduces the cycle of violence, undermining faith in humane justice. When the state responds to murder with murder, it itself becomes a participant in the violence it is supposed to prevent. This contradiction destroys the moral authority of justice and undermines the very idea of a humane state.

The experience of other countries convincingly shows that the return to or active use of the death penalty inevitably leads to a deterioration in the human rights situation and a weakening of the rule of law.

● In Pakistan, after the moratorium was lifted in 2014, mass executions began, often carried out in violation of fair trial standards. In February 2025 alone, 46 extrajudicial executions were recorded (data from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch ).

● In Egypt, since 2013, mass death sentences have become a tool of political repression, with more than 100 extrajudicial executions recorded, including the killing of prisoners.

● In Indonesia, the resumption of executions for drug-related crimes has drawn international condemnation due to impunity and violations of the rights of the accused.

● In Saudi Arabia, the increase in public executions has been accompanied by increased censorship and persecution of human rights defenders.

● In Iran, mass executions for participating in protests and political views are accompanied by torture and a lack of independent courts .

All these examples show that the death penalty does not strengthen the rule of law, but rather increases arbitrariness, fear, and violence. However, even in the case of the countries listed above, they had no international obligations to abolish the death penalty, as they are not parties to the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR.

The return to the death penalty is all the more dangerous in an imperfect judicial system such as we have in Kyrgyzstan, as there is always the possibility of judicial error, and in the case of the death penalty, such errors are irreparable. Moreover, it creates risks of selective justice, especially in a country where serious problems persist with extrajudicial executions in closed institutions, torture, discrimination, pressure on human rights defenders, lack of effective appeal mechanisms, and systemic impunity.

According to the National Center for the Prevention of Torture (NCPT), 151 people have died in the country's correctional facilities over the past three years, 19 of whom committed suicide. These cases are linked to harsh conditions of detention, lack of medical care, and limited access to legal protection . Investigations into such incidents are complicated by the lack of transparency and secrecy of the relevant authorities. These facts point to systemic violations of the right to life and human dignity, which makes any talk of reinstating the death penalty morally unacceptable and legally controversial.

The systematic impunity of officials who violate the rights and freedoms of citizens, including victims of torture, undermines citizens' trust in the rule of law and the restoration of justice, as exemplified by the case of prisoner of conscience and renowned human rights defender Azimzhan Askarov .

The human rights organization Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan expresses its readiness to assist state bodies and civil society institutions in attracting national and international experts on issues related to the humanization of criminal justice, the improvement of criminal legislation, and the strengthening of the state's capacity to combat violence and crime.

We are ready to support joint initiatives aimed at developing effective mechanisms for the prevention of torture, cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment or punishment, as well as strengthening measures to combat sexual violence and ensure the protection of victims of such crimes .

For all questions, please contact the Bir Duino Kyrgyzstan team, Executive Director Murat Karypov by email: birduinokyrgyzstan@gmail.com, m.karypov@gmail.com and by phone: +996555422222 and the director of the Osh office, Bir Duino Khusanbay Saliev: salievkhusanbay@gmail.com