Mapped: The 53 places that still have the death penalty – including Japan

Oliver Smith
Updated
Just a handful of states considered to be
Just a handful of states considered to be

Seven members of the Aum Shinrikyo cult behind the deadly 1995 Sarin attack on the Tokyo underground have been executed.

It may come as a surprise to many to learn that Japan, a nation associated with tranquil temples and modernity, still has the death penalty. Indeed, it is one of just a handful of states considered to be "industrialised" that still executes criminals, the others being the US, Singapore and Taiwan. 

As the map above shows, every European country has abolished it, with one exception: Belarus. Often dubbed "Europe's last dictatorship", it executed two people in 2017 and more than 200 since 1990. A large number of Caribbean nations still have the death penalty too, including St Lucia, Barbados and Antigua. 

Capital punishment continues in Belarus - Credit: rannica - Fotolia/Picasa
Capital punishment continues in Belarus Credit: rannica - Fotolia/Picasa

The most recent countries to abolish capital punishment include Burkina Faso (2018), Guinea (2017), Benin (2016), and Madagascar (2015). 

The 53 countries that have the death penalty

  1. Afghanistan

  2. India

  3. Nigeria

  4. US

  5. Iran

  6. Japan

  7. Taiwan

  8. Kuwait

  9. Zimbabwe

  10. Libya

  11. Thailand

  12. Guyana

  13. Uganda

  14. Bangladesh

  15. Iraq

  16. Indonesia

  17. Botswana

  18. UAE

  19. Bahamas

  20. Cuba

  21. Belarus

  22. Yemen

  23. Saudi Arabia

  24. Vietnam

  25. Syria

  26. Egypt

  27. South Sudan

  28. DRC

  29. Ethiopia

  30. China

  31. Sudan

  32. Comoros

  33. Somalia

  34. Barbados

  35. Malaysia

  36. Chad

  37. Pakistan

  38. Oman

  39. Singapore

  40. St Kitts and Nevis

  41. St Lucia

  42. Bahrain

  43. North Korea

  44. Equatorial Guinea

  45. St Vincent and the Grenadines

  46. Palestinian territories

  47. Trinidad and Tobago

  48. Lesotho

  49. Antigua and Barbuda

  50. Belize

  51. Dominica

  52. Jamaica

  53. Jordan

Total executions in 2017

According to Amnesty International, 23 countries carried out at least 993 executions last year (down on the 1,032 that took place in 2016, and the 1,634 that occurred in 2015). However, the real figure is likely to be much higher.

Hundreds were executed in Iran last year
Hundreds were executed in Iran last year

"China remained the world’s top executioner – but the true extent of the use of the death penalty in China is unknown as this data is classified as a state secret; the global figure of at least 993 excludes the thousands of executions believed to have been carried out in China," explains the human rights organisation. "Excluding China, 84 per cent of all reported executions took place in just four countries – Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Pakistan.

"Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates resumed executions in 2017. Amnesty International did not record executions in five countries − Botswana, Indonesia, Nigeria, Sudan and Taiwan − that carried out executions in 2016." 

See its website for a full breakdown of facts and figures. 

Maps of the world