Three African countries on cusp of death penalty abolition

FILE - Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa, pictured speaking in Harare on Sept. 4, 2023, was himself once sentenced to death but avoided execution. He has urged the nation's Parliament to pass a death penalty abolition bill. Lucia Masuka, head of Amnesty International in Zimbabwe, is pictured in Harare in September 2024. She says most countries in the world are moving away from the death penalty and she urges African countries to follow suit. (Columbus Mavhunga/VOA) Casten Matewu, a lawmaker from Zimbabwe’s main opposition party, the Citizens Coalition for Change, is pictured at Parliament, Oct. 9, 2024. He says a death penalty abolition bill will easily win parliamentary approval. (Columbus Mavhunga/VOA)

The international human rights organization Amnesty International says three sub-Saharan African countries considering ending the death penalty should do it now and pave the way for others around the world to follow in their footsteps.