Global Use Of Execution

In the United States, capital punishment is primarily reserved for murderers, but several other nations consider a larger number of crimes to warrant the death penalty. They include acts that harm another person such as rape and aggravated assault, or political offenses, as in espionage and treason. Military factions often have their own list of crimes that are deemed worthy of capital punishment. These include displays of cowardice during a battle, desertion of any soldier, insubordination to a higher ranking officer, and any attempt at mutiny. Centuries ago, the list of offenses that were punishable by execution was far more expansive.

Ancient civilizations tended to view the death penalty as the ultimate method of deterring crime. Executions were often large public events where people would gather to taunt the prisoners and cheer their demise. The officials of the time wanted the general public to see exactly what could happen to them if they committed the same type of crimes. Lists of punishable offenses were much more expansive, so there were many more reasons a person could be put to death. Ancient Greek and Roman cultures considered a tremendous number of deeds to be worthy of capital punishment, and as recently as the 19th century some nations had more than 200 crimes that could result in the loss of life.

The bodies of people who had been put to death were often displayed for public viewing. This allowed for people who were not present at the actual execution to see the end result of illegal activities. One notorious example of this was established in Afghanistan, when law breakers were placed in small cages that were hung high off the ground. They would be locked inside and left to slowly die. This allowed anyone passing by to see the prisoner while they were being tormented, and the aftermath. Although this was a brutal policy, it was also extremely effective in greatly reducing the amount of robberies and related crimes in the country.

These days, many nations are moving away from the concept of capital punishment. The practice has been abolished entirely in locations all around the world. Some modern societies have become more concerned with the rights of the accused and the possibility of wrongful execution for innocent people. Other forms of deterrence such as long term imprisonment have become more widely accepted. Several countries do still actively execute criminals, but it is usually reserved for people who have committed serious offenses such as sexual assault, war crimes, and murder.

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