Secret executions carried out in China, Mongolia and Viet Nam

At least 1,200 people were executed during 2007 and it is thought that many more were killed in secret by the state, according to new figures in a report released by Amnesty International on Tuesday. Countries executing people in secret include China, Mongolia and Viet Nam.

China, called “the world’s top executioner” by the human rights organization, classifies the death penalty as a state secret, meaning that only the Chinese authorities know exactly how many people have been killed with state authorization.

Eighty-eight percent of all known executions during 2007 took place in five countries: China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the United States.

Yet 2007 also saw the United Nations General Assembly vote – by 104 to 54, with 29 abstentions – to call on all countries to end the use of the death penalty.

To read the report, click here.