DUSHANBE, June 10, 2013, Asia-Plus -- The board (Shuro) of Tajikistan’s lower house (Majlisi Namoyandagon) of parliament that met on June 10 has decided to set up a special working group to study the public opinion of the death penalty.

Muhammadato Sultonov, a spokesman for the Majlisi Namoyandagon, says the working group will hold its first meeting within the next few days to approve its structure, elect the head of the group and draw a work plan       

We will recall that since 2004, Tajikistan put moratorium on death penalty.  At the same year, life imprisonment was declared as a legal alternative of that punishment.  In spite of the fact that no death penalty issued in Tajikistan, this type of punishment exists de-jure.  Number of articles in Tajikistan, for which capital punishment used to be delivered, was decreased from 16 up to 5 and they were for murder, terrorism, rape, biocide and genocide.

The board also considered a draft law on energy efficiency and a draft law requiring amendments to the country’s law on science and national science and development policy.

These issues have been tabled to the agenda of a regular sitting of the fourth session of the Majlisi Namoyandagon of the fourth convocation that will take place on June 13, Sultonov said.