The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) welcomes the recent decision of the Constitutional Court of the Kyrgyz Republic that the death penalty cannot be reintroduced under the Constitution of Kyrgyzstan, and that proposed constitutional amendments to that effect are impermissible.
In its decision of 10 December 2025, the Constitutional Court found that the reintroduction of the death penalty would be incompatible with the constitutional guarantee of the right to life and with the express constitutional prohibition of the death penalty. The Court further recalled that Kyrgyzstan has undertaken binding commitments under international human rights treaties— in particular the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty—forbidding the reintroduction of capital punishment.
“Justice systems in all countries are vulnerable to error or abuse, and the death penalty makes any such failure irreversible”, said Temur Shakirov, Director of the ICJ Europe and Central Asia Programme. “Maintaining the abolition of capital punishment therefore remains essential to the effective protection of the right to life.”
The Court’s reasoning reflects the correct place of international human rights treaties in the constitutional system of Kyrgyzstan. With respect to this, the ICJ salutes the critical role of the Court in upholding the rule of law and protecting human rights. The human rights organization recalls that the abolition of the death penalty is a core safeguard of the right to life.
While under international human rights law and standards States are obliged to take all necessary measures to respond effectively to violence against women and children, including by conducting prompt and impartial investigations with a view to brining those responsible to justice, as well as securing meaningful protection and support for victims and survivors, these objectives can and must be pursued without resorting to capital punishment.
Background
In October 2025, draft constitutional amendments proposing the reintroduction of the death penalty were made public. The President subsequently requested the Constitutional Court to review their constitutionality. On 10 December 2025, the Constitutional Court concluded that the proposed amendments were incompatible with the Constitution and could not be submitted to a referendum.
Kyrgyzstan is a State party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and to its Second Optional Protocol, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty. The Second Optional Protocol reflects a commitment by States parties to the permanent abolition of capital punishment and does not permit reintroduction of the death penalty once the obligation has been undertaken. The Constitutional Court referred to these treaty commitments as part of the legal framework relevant to its assessment.
Under the Second Optional Protocol to the ICCPR, States parties undertake an obligation to abolish the death penalty and not to reintroduce it once abolished.
