The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area–Background Paper 2021 Indeed, another factor that can help swing opinion are the voices of stakeholders from within the criminal justice system, in particular prosecutors and former executioners. Not perceived as the ‘usual suspects’ in supporting death penalty abolition, their voices may be particularly powerful in political as well as public discourse. While public opinion on capital punishment is notoriously difficult to measure and does not exempt states from their human rights obligations, it is undoubtedly a factor that can facilitate or impede abolition. Improved public education is therefore an important contributing factor towards abolition and for the sustainability of abolition by helping to resist attempts at reinstating the death penalty. The research conducted for this background paper showed that communication of factual information related to the application of the death penalty is a highly influential factor on the road to abolition. This underlines the importance of the commitment of all OSCE participating States to provide information on the use of the death penalty to the public and to exchange information on the question of the abolition of the death penalty. This is an area where civil society has proven to be particularly adept at organizing information campaigns and outreach events among the public, legislators and state officials. In this context, it is important to note that states have committed to creating a safe and enabling environment that empowers human rights defenders to pursue their activities.134 Interventions by the international community help to anchor the work of civil society and other national abolitionists. The ability of national actors to draw on international principles and safeguards has provided justification and weight to arguments of abolition advocates. Providing impetus for political leaders to act at the national level, inter-governmental organizations and external actors more generally are a significant factor for progress towards the global abolitionist trend. Support by international organizations, including participation in events and statements, have also been described as a considerable motivational factor for national abolitionist movements. In all these regards, international standards and monitoring help to move the abolition process forward, even where public or political opinion still support the death penalty. Finally, research for this background paper has shown that reputational risks and considerations of international standing can feature among considerations by political decision-makers that lead them to support abolition. In light of the growing abolitionist movement in the international community, retaining the death penalty 134 OSCE ODIHR, Guidelines on the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, p. 30. 35