Zimbabwe has abolished the death penalty after President Emmerson Mnangagwa commuted to jail time the sentences of prisoners on death row.

Zimbabwe has officially abolished the death penalty, marking a significant shift for a nation that last carried out an execution nearly 20 years ago.

Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa — who has not signed death warrants for those facing capital sentences since he came to power in 2017 — signed the death penalty abolition bill into law Dec. 31,

Countries that retain the death penalty often argue that the public supports it. In Zimbabwe, research helped challenge this narrative.