The United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, is inviting governments, civil society organisations, and individuals around the world to submit inputs for a forthcoming report on a global moratorium on the use of the death penalty.
The call for submissions, issued through the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), will inform a report to be presented to the United Nations General Assembly during its eighty-first session scheduled for September 2026.
According to the announcement, the report is being prepared in response to United Nations General Assembly Resolution 79/179, on a “Moratorium on the use of the death penalty” adopted on December 19, 2024, which requested the Secretary-General to provide an update on global developments related to the use of the death penalty.
The planned report will examine progress made since the adoption of the resolution and provide insights into safeguards aimed at protecting the rights of individuals facing the death penalty. These include access to appeals processes, the right to seek pardon or commutation of sentences, and transparency in how the death penalty is applied.
It will also gather information from countries on key indicators such as the number of people sentenced to death, the number currently on death row, executions carried out, and cases in which death sentences have been reversed, commuted, or pardoned. Data may also include disaggregated information based on factors such as sex, age, nationality, race, and other relevant criteria.
In addition, the report will assess restrictions placed on the use of the death penalty, efforts by countries to reduce the number of offences that attract the death penalty, and experiences of states that have established moratoriums or abolished the death penalty entirely.
Contributions received will help shape the Secretary-General’s analysis and recommendations to the General Assembly, which continues to deliberate on global efforts toward limiting and potentially abolishing the death penalty.
The OHCHR noted that, unless otherwise requested, submissions will be published in full on its website. Stakeholders are encouraged to share their perspectives, experiences, and relevant data to support the preparation of the report.
Submissions must be sent by email to ohchr-registry@un.org no later than March 27, 2026, with the subject line “Input for the report on a moratorium on the use of the death penalty.” Contributions can be up to 1,500 words and may be submitted in Word, PDF, or Excel formats.
Accepted languages include English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian, and Chinese.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said the initiative reflects the UN’s ongoing commitment to promoting and protecting human rights globally, including continued dialogue on the future of the death penalty.