Human rights group, Amnesty International Ghana has urged President John Dramani Mahama to commute all death sentences of prisoners in Ghana to life imprisonment and take steps toward abolishing the death penalty.

The appeal was made during the launch of the Global Death Sentences and Executions Report 2025 on May 20, 2026.

Speaking at the event, Board Chair Francis Nyantakyi noted that the death penalty violates fundamental human rights and undermines human dignity, describing capital punishment as irreversible, inhumane, and vulnerable to judicial error.

“It violates the right to life and has no place in a justice system rooted in human rights and human dignity. The death penalty is flawed. It is irreversible, and no justice system is immune to error,” he said.

“We call on President Mahama to commute death sentences to life imprisonment and move toward ending the death penalty,” he added.

Nyantakyi also noted that the growing number of abolitionist countries demonstrates that change is possible through political will, legal reform, public advocacy, and sustained international pressure.

“The fight against the death penalty is not only about changing laws, but also about affirming the value of every human life,” he said.

The report highlighted a global rise in executions despite an increasing number of countries abolishing the death penalty.

It revealed that 2,707 people were executed across 17 countries in 2025, marking the highest number of recorded executions globally since 1981.

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Amnesty International Ghana warned that wrongful convictions, unfair trials, and the irreversible nature of executions make capital punishment a serious human rights concern.

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