Roma - Pope Francis Expresses His Opposition To The Death Penalty

Pope Francis has called for the worldwide abolition of death penalty, saying the commandment "You shall not kill" absolute and valid for the guilty as well as the innocent.

“I appeal to the consciences of those who govern to reach an international consensus to abolish the death penalty,” he told tens of thousands of people in St Peter’s Square in the Vatican on Sunday.

“The commandment ‘You shall not kill’ has absolute value and applies to both the innocent and the guilty,” he told the crowd.

He threw into relief the importance of “a growing opposition to the death penalty even for the legitimate defence of society” because modern means existed to “efficiently repress crime without definitively denying the person who committed it the possibility of rehabilitating themselves”.

The Pope voiced his support on Sunday by proposing that Catholic leaders suspend the practice for a year to mark the Holy Year of Mercy, in the A World Without the Death Penalty international conference, taking place in Roma on Monday.

“All Christians and men of good will are called on to work not only for the abolition of the death penalty, but also to improve prison conditions so that they respect the human dignity of people who have been deprived of their freedom,” he said.

His predecessors Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II also spoke out against the death penalty.