Church urges Australian Government to oppose death penalty

The Catholic Church is stepping up its pressure on the Australian Federal Government to maintain a consistent line in opposing the use of the death penalty, regardless of who is being executed.

Launching a paper on the death penalty, the chairman of the Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, Bishop Christopher Saunders, stressed the document's timeliness as a number of the Bali 9 face execution.

Bishop Saunders argued that people should oppose the death penalty because every person, regardless of their citizenship, shares a fundamental right to life.

"Our opposition to capital punishment cannot end at our national borders. The dignity and sanctity of all human life must be respected in all circumstances. Every person, whatever their citizenship, shares the most fundamental right - the right to life," Bishop Saunders said.

The inconsistency displayed by the previous coalition and the current Federal Labor government was evident in their defence of certain convicted criminals when they were facing the death penalty, he argued.

He pointed to the Coalition and Labor parties who were unequivocal in pleading with the Singapore Government to spare the life of drug trafficker Van Nguyen from execution while taking the opposite approach to the execution of the Bali bombers.

Bishop Saunders urged the Australian Government to work energetically with neighbouring countries to abolish the death penalty.