10 december 2012: Presentation of the International Commission against Death Penalty, University of Padova

The International Human Rights Day will be celebrated on 10 December 2012 in the Aula Magna "Galileo Galilei" of the Palazzo del Bo of the University of Padua.

The event will be characterised by the meeting with the International Commission against Death Penalty as well as by the circumstance that the event coincides with the 30th anniversary of the establishment of the Centre on human rights and the rights of peoples of the University of Padua.

Programme

Aula Magna Galileo Galilei
University of Padua

h. 10.30 - 12.30

Time to abolish the death penalty
Presentation of the International Commission Against the Death Penalty

Opening Addresses
Giuseppe Zaccaria, Rector of the University of Padua
Marco Mascia, Director of the Human Rights Centre, University of Padua
Flavio Zanonato, Mayor of Padua
Paolo Giaretta, Senate of the Republic, Member of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe
Barbara Degani, President of the Province of Padua
Clodovaldo Ruffato, President of the Regional Assembly of Veneto

Keynote Speeches

Federico Mayor, President of the International

Commission, Former Director General of UNESCO

Ruth Dreifuss, Member of the International

Commission, Former President of the Swiss Confederation

h. 15.30 - 17.30

Roundtable with civil society and the academy
The Current Situation of the Death Penalty in the World: Challenges and Opportunities

Opening Addresses
Giuseppe Zaccaria, Rector of the University of Padua
Claudio Piron, City Councillor for Education, Padua
Marialuisa Coppola, Councillor for Human Rights, Region of Veneto

Chair
Antonio Papisca, UNESCO Chair in Human Rights, Democracy and Peace, University of Padua

Participants

Federico Mayor, President of the International Commission

Giuliano Amato, Member of the International Commission, former Prime Minister

Ruth Dreifuss, Member of the International Commission, former President of the Swiss Confederation

Mario Marazziti, Community of Sant’Egidio, Rome

Elisabetta Zamparutti, Member of the Italian Parliament, Hands off Cain, Rome

Tina Marinari, Amnesty International, Rome

Luigi Foffani, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Academics for Abolition

Asunta Vivó, Secretary General of the International Commission

Manuel Manonelles, Director of the Foundation Culture of Peace

Debate

International Commission against the Death Penalty (ICDP)

http://www.icomdp.org

The Spanish Government launched an initiative to establish the International Commission against the Death Penalty in order to reinforce the fight against the death penalty in all regions of the world and in order to establish a moratorium on the use of the death penalty, with a view to its complete abolition. The initiative is supported by 15 countries representing all the regions of the world: Algeria, Argentine, Dominican Republic, France, Italy, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Mongolia, Norway, Philippines, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Switzerland, Togo and Turkey.

The ICDP was established on 7 October 2010 in Madrid. Its mandate is to undertake complementary actions to the ones carried out by International and Regional Organizations, civil society and representatives of the political world, favouring the abolition of the death penalty.

The added value of the ICDP lies in the importance of its members, their independence in decision making and broad geographical representation, giving it a high profile in the international arena.

The objectives of the ICDP are:

- Promote the abolition of the death penalty in the legislation of countries carefully considered, in particular, in the legislation of countries which apply a de facto moratorium on the use of the death penalty.

- Promote the establishment of a moratorium on the use of the death penalty in all regions of the world, allowing the most widespread and effective implementation of a universal moratorium on the horizon of 2015, with a view to its total abolition.

- Solicit the stop of executions in cases where International Law restricts its application, in particular, when it affects the most vulnerable groups of society (juvenile offenders, pregnant women and mentally ill).

To achieve these objectives, the International Commission will carry out the following activities in a strategic and selective manner: collaborate and intervene before high representatives and personalities of specific countries, along with International and Regional Organizations and civil society representatives; make appeals and statements on matters of concern relating to the abolition of the death penalty; participate in conferences and seminars, as well as in campaigns to mobilize public opinion; dissemination of information and presentation of papers at international forums; promote intellectual and artistic works in favour of the abolition of the death penalty.

The members of the Commission are: Giuliano Amato, Louise Arbour, Robert Badinter, Mohammed Bedjaoui, Ruth Dreifuss, Michèle Duvivier Pierre-Louis, Asma Jilani Jahangir, Ioanna Kuçuradi, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, Rodolfo Mattarollo, Federico Mayor (President), Ibrahim Najjar, Bill Richardson, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero (Honorary Member).