It is with a heavy heart that the Academic Network for the Abolition of the Death Penalty bids farewell to Professor Christof Heyns who passed away on March 28th. His demise will be widely felt by the academic community and by human rights activists. Professor Heyns was Director of the Institute of International and Comparative Law at the University of Pretoria, former member of the United Nations Human Rights Committee and United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary executions from 2010 to 2016, are noteworthy his visits to Honduras where he analyzed “the situation of violence” and examined the measures adopted to prevent attacks against the life, safety and physical integrity of people.¨ or to Chad where he asked that the country return to the moratorium on the death penalty after the execution of Islamic terrorists without the guarantees of the International Law, stating that capital punishment "is an extreme form of punishment and, if it is used, it should be imposed after a fair trial that respects the strictest procedural guarantees as stipulated in international human rights law."
In the office she was replaced by Agnes Callamard and the prestige that her work achieved is proof of the threat her successor suffered from members of the Saudi royal family due to the description she made of the extrajudicial execution and prior torture of the journalist Kashogi in the embassy of this country in Turkey.
At the regional level, he was also a member of the Working Group on the Death Penalty, Extrajudicial, Summary and Arbitrary Murders, and Enforced Disappearances in Africa of the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights. In these roles her work drew attention to highly sensitive issues such as the use of force by private security companies in law enforcement contexts; the use of drones and autonomous weapons in armed conflicts or anti-terrorist operations; and the forensic role in protecting the right to life.
Our Organization had the opportunity to share meetings in international forums for the protection of human rights and it was always a privilege to listen to their opinions and participate in intense debates to guarantee the right to life and to enjoy an environment free of violence.
REPECAP- Academicsforabolition joins the large number of institutions and individuals who regret the untimely departure of Dr. Christof Heyns.
Rest in peace.-
It is with great sadness that the international Academic Network for the Abolition of the Death Penalty bids farewell to Professor Christof Heyns who passed away last March 28th. His passing will be widely felt by the academic community and by human rights activists.
Professor Heyns was Director of the Institute of International and Comparative Law at the University of Pretoria former member of the United Nations Human Rights Committee and United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary and arbitrary executions from 2010 to 2016, his visits to Honduras where he analyzed “the situation of violence” and examined the measures taken to prevent attacks on the life, safety and physical integrity of persons are noteworthy. ¨ or to Chad where he called for the country to return to a moratorium on the death penalty following the execution of Islamic terrorists without the guarantees of international law, indicating that capital punishment ¨ is an extreme form of punishment and, if it comes to be used, should be imposed after a fair trial that respects the strictest procedural guarantees as stipulated by international human rights law”.
He was replaced in the office by Agnes Callamard and the prestige of her work is evidenced by the threat to her successor by members of the Saudi royal family for her description of the extrajudicial execution and torture of journalist Kashogi at the Saudi embassy in Turkey.
At the regional level he was also a member of the Working Group on the Death Penalty, Extrajudicial, Summary and Arbitrary Killings and Enforced Disappearances in Africa of the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights. At these functions his work drew attention to highly sensitive issues such as the use of force by private security companies in law enforcement contexts; the use of drones and autonomous weapons in armed conflicts or counter-terrorism operations; and the forensic role in the protection of the right to life.
Our Organization had the opportunity to share meetings in international forums for the protection of human rights and it was always a privilege to listen to their opinions and participate in intense debates to guarantee the right to life and to enjoy an environment free of violence.
REPECAP- Academicsforabolition joins the large number of institutions and individuals who mourn the untimely departure of Dr. Christof Heyns.
May he rest in peace
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