EU urges Sri Lanka not to end moratorium on death penalty

The European Union has urged Sri-Lanka not to end its four decades law on death penalty, saying capital punishment is not an effective deterrent to counter illicit drugs and related crimes.

In a statement from the European Union a week after Sri-Lanka president Maithripala Sirisena announced that dates have been for the country’s first executions in 43 years amid rising alarm over drug-related crimes.

Authorities have intensified a crack down on drug class to deter smugglers from using the Indian Oceans Island nation as a transit point for distribution in the region.