Gay Mitchell
Ceist:78 Mr. G. Mitchell asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if he raised with the United States authorities the recent execution of Mr. Sean Sellars for a crime committed when he was 16 years old. [4543/99]
Written Answers. - Execution of US Prisoner.
I am well aware of the case of the late Sean Sellars, who was executed on 4 February 1999 in Oklahoma, USA.
I am also fully aware of the strong concerns which were raised and in particular the fact that Mr. Sellars had been sentenced to death for crimes which he committed when aged 16. I fully share those concerns and note that Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights – to which the United States is a party – expressly forbids the execution of persons whose crime was committed when aged under 18. While recognising that the United States has made a reservation to the article in question, I further noted that the US had not executed a prisoner for a crime committed at the age of 16 since 1959.
As our partners in the European Union share our strong concerns regarding the human rights issues in this case, it was agreed that the matter should be raised at EU level. To this end, the current Presidency of the European Union (Germany) was mandated by all member states to carry out a démarche to the US authorities at federal and state level, informing the authorities of the EU's concerns and of our collective view that the imposition of the death penalty in this case was contrary to international norms and calling for commutation of the death sentence to life imprisonment. Regrettably, despite this and other pleas for clemency, the State authorities in Oklahoma chose to proceed with the execution as scheduled on 4 February.
Following the execution of Sean Sellars despite EU démarches at State and Federal level, EU partners agreed that it would be appropriate to issue a public statement expressing our common deep concern and regret. We viewed the execution as a serious regression in efforts to achieve international abolition of the death penalty. An agreed statement reflecting these concerns was issued by the European Union on 11 February 1999.