Today Mongolian President Tsakhia Elbegdorj announced a moratorium on the death penalty in his country as well as his intention to work to abolish the death penalty completely.

In this connection Günter Nooke, the Federal Government Commissioner for Human Rights Policy and Humanitarian Aid at the Federal Foreign Office, issued the following statement in Berlin today (14 January):

”I expressly welcome President Elbegdorj’s announcement. Especially in a region where human rights violations are a daily occurrence, we urgently need action like this; it is a step in the right direction.

It is very important to me that Mongolia receive every possible help from us in implementing this plan. I will continue working to ensure that the German Government stands side by side with Mongolia as its partner, ready and willing to assist.“