Spokesperson Heather Nauert comments on a vote related to the death penalty at the UN Human Rights Council 36th Session.
Extract
Department Press Briefing
“… There was a vote at the Human Rights Council in Geneva, and we have seen a lot of reporting about that, press releases that have criticized the U.S. Government’s vote at the Human Rights Council on the question of the death penalty. The headlines and much of the reporting that has come out of that has been misleading. As our representative to the Human Rights Council said on Friday, last Friday, the United States is disappointed to have voted against that resolution. We voted against that resolution because of broader concerns with the resolution’s approach in condemning the death penalty in all circumstances, and it called for the abolition of the death penalty altogether. “We had hoped for a balanced and inclusive resolution that would better reflect the positions of states that continue to apply the death penalty lawfully,” as the United States does. The United States unequivocally condemns the application of the death penalty for conduct such as homosexuality, blasphemy, adultery, and apostasy. We do not consider such conduct appropriate for criminalization.”
More: https://www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/dpb/2017/10/274592.htm
U.S. Explanation of Vote: https://geneva.usmission.gov/2017/10/03/u-s-explanation-of-vote-resolution-on-the-question-of-the-death-penalty/