Lebanon fell short of abolishing the death penalty and becoming the first Middle Eastern country to formally end capital punishment when a two-day parliamentary session was adjourned on Thursday.
The session lost its legal quorum of two thirds after members of the Christian Lebanese Forces parliamentary bloc walked out of the chamber.
“It’s disappointing that various MPs chose to end the parliamentary session before a vote can be held, delaying the official end of this cruel and arbitrary sentence,” Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch, told The National.
Members of three Lebanese parliamentary committees had jointly approved a draft law abolishing the death penalty on July 9. To become law, the bill must be approved by parliament with at least 65 of the chamber's 128 members present.
Lebanese courts continue to hand down death sentences, although no executions have been carried out in the country since 2004. Rights groups see the abolition of the death penalty as an important step forward for human rights and criminal justice in Lebanon.
“Despite an unofficial moratorium on the use of the death penalty for the past two decades, Lebanon needs to go a step further and declare a firm break from this cruel practice,” Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a press release.
If passed by parliament, the bill would be sent to the cabinet and then to President Joseph Aoun for approval. The government has already signalled its support for the measure, which has faced no major public opposition.
About 80 prisoners in Lebanon are on death row, with capital punishment applicable to crimes including murder, terrorism and treason. The abolition bill is part of broader efforts to reform Lebanon's judicial and penal systems, which have faced criticism over lengthy delays, abuse and political interference.
Thursday's parliamentary session also included a vote on a general amnesty bill aimed primarily at easing prison overcrowding. The measure has sparked controversy amid sectarian and political divisions over which prisoners would benefit.
About 8,500 people are held in Lebanon's prisons, which have a capacity of only 4,500. Many are being held in pretrial detention.
Lebanese Forces MP Fadi Karam said his bloc was not opposed to abolishing the death penalty itself. But he argued that passing the bill on commuting death sentences before the amnesty law could allow prisoners sentenced to death to benefit twice.
He said the bloc had called for the bill commuting death sentences to be withdrawn and postponed until a future legislative session. The request was rejected, prompting the MPs to walk out of the session.
“We are against the death penalty because we do not believe in killing the killer, but we are not in favour of reducing the sentence of someone sentenced to death in a way that would allow them to leave prison after benefiting from two laws,” he said.
