The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area National legislation of Russia provides for the application of the death penalty. The Constitution retains it as an exclusive form of punishment for exceptionally grave crimes against life.76 Under the Criminal Code, the death penalty can be applied for five types of offences: aggravated murder; assassination attempts against a state or public figure; attempts on the life of a person administering justice or preliminary investigations; attempts on the life of a law-enforcement official; and genocide.77 Pardons are granted that commute the death penalty for the deprivation of liberty for life or for a term of 25 years.78 The debate on reinstating capital punishment in Russia continued during the reporting period. On 30 December 2013, Roman Hudyakov, a member of the Russian Parliament from the Liberal-Democratic Party, suggested restoring the death penalty for certain grave crimes, such as pedophilia, serial killings and terrorism.79 This suggestion came after two suicide bombers killed dozens of civilians at the train station and on a bus in Volgograd on 29 and 30 December 2013.80 On 5 April 2014, Igor Morozov, a member of the Federation Council Committee for Foreign Affairs, claimed that the moratorium on the death penalty could be lifted if Russia is excluded from participation in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.81 However, on 8 April 2014, the press service of the Ministry of Justice stated that the death penalty cannot be reinstated due to the country’s international obligations pursuant to Protocol 6 to the ECHR and the Constitutional Court ruling, which placed a moratorium on executions until the ratification by Russia of this document.82 76  Article 20 of the Constitution of the Russian Federation, adopted on 12 December 1993. 77  Article 105 (2), Article 277, Article 295, Article 317 and Article 357 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, adopted on13 June 1996, amended on 29 June 2009. 78  Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, op. cit., note 77, Article 59 (3). 79  “Депутат ЛДПР предложил отменить мораторий на смертную казнь”, Российскaя газетa [LDPR member suggests repeal of death penalty moratorium, Rossiskaya gazeta], 30 December 2013, <http://www.rg.ru/2013/12/30/ motatoriy-anons.html>. 80  “Second suicide bomber in Russia’s Volgograd kills 14 on bus”, Reuters, 30 December 2013, <http://www.reuters. com/article/2013/12/30/us-russia-blast-trolley-idUSBRE9BT03N20131230>. 81  “В России может быть снят мораторий на смертную казнь”, Российскaя газетa, [Death penalty moratorium might be lifted in Russia, Rosisskaya Gazeta], 5 April 2014, http://www.rg.ru/2014/04/05/kazn-anons. html. On 10 April 2014, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe suspended voting rights of the delegation of the Russian Federation, including their right to be represented in the Assembly’s leading bodies and to participate in election observation missions. The decision is effective until the end of the 2014 session (26 January 2015). See “Citing Crimea, PACE suspends voting rights of Russian delegation and excludes it from leading bodies”, Official Website of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, 10 April 2014, <http://assembly.coe.int/nw/xml/News/News-Viewen.asp?newsid=4981&lang=2>. 82  Ibid. 22