Strasbourg - The world's first conference against the death penalty opened yesterday, with the secretary general of the Council of Europe calling for a worldwide abolition.
Mr Walter Schwimmer criticised in particular the US, saying that if the death penalty was an effective instrument to fight crime, "the United States would be a crime-free country".
He also spoke out against the recent decision by Texas Governor Rick Perry to veto a bill that would have outlawed the execution of mentally retarded people. He called for a fight to ban completely executions and singled out Turkey, Russia and Armenia - all members of the Council of Europe - to abolish the death penalty officially.