L'Abolition de la peine de mort - La Grande Explication

(Re)Watch more episodes of #LaGrandeExplication 👉 http://bit.ly/la-grande-explication Subscribe! 👉 http://bit.ly/2QLeh5V When was the death penalty abolished? On October 9, 1981, France definitively abolished the death penalty. Supported by the Minister of Justice, Robert Badinter, a fervent abolitionist lawyer, this law marked the culmination of a debate that had divided France for two centuries. France was then one of the last countries in Western Europe to abolish the death penalty. SMS 1: WHY DID IT TAKE SO LONG?! On May 10, 1981, at the dawn of a new decade, the French elected a new President: François Mitterrand. It was the great comeback of the left, after 23 years of the right in power. Mitterrand promises to profoundly reform French society: increase the minimum wage, retirement at sixty, creation of a wealth tax... abolition of the death penalty. Abolish the death penalty. For two centuries, many voices have been raised against this cold-blooded sentence. Introduced during the French Revolution, it was intended to shorten suffering and ensure equality in the face of death. An inhuman and barbaric punishment, but above all, useless, with no impact on the crime rate. Yet, public opinion remains overwhelmingly in favor of the death penalty. It advocates exemplary punishment: death for the guilty. The guillotine remains. In the 1970s, several criminal cases sent shockwaves through the country and further slowed the abolitionist movement. Buffet, Ranucci, Carrein, Henry... Names that fill the minds and hearts of the French with dread. Hatred and fear annihilated reason, and the crowd demanded execution. In 1976, the Patrick Henry case, particularly odious and highly publicized, left its mark. Yet, despite the horror and hatred, this case would prove decisive in the abolition of the death penalty. SMS 2: DECISIVE? WHAT HAPPENED? On January 18, 1977, the trial of Patrick Henry began. Patrick Henry escaped the guillotine and was sentenced to life imprisonment. Behind this decision, which sparked public outrage, lay the fierce struggle of a young lawyer: Robert Badinter. He transformed the Patrick Henry case into a trial against the death penalty and managed to convince the twelve jurors not to execute the criminal. In the National Assembly, the debate was rekindled, and new abolitionist amendments were presented. But a few months later, the guillotine struck one last time. It wasn't until the election of François Mitterrand and his Minister of Justice, Robert Badinter, that the death penalty was removed from the penal code, despite public opinion still favoring its retention. It was then replaced by life imprisonment. SMS 3: AND IS IT STILL APPLIED IN MANY COUNTRIES TODAY? The death penalty is still applied in 56 countries. In 2017, there were 993 executions, to which must be added those classified as state secrets in China. Several thousand, according to Amnesty International... ####################################### Even more content at: https://www.lumni.fr Find Lumni on: Facebook ▶   / lumnifr   Twitter ▶   / lumni.fr   Instagram ▶   / lumnifr