The Death Penalty in the OSCE Area–Background Paper 2017 vi) Anyone sentenced to death shall have an effective right to appeal to a court of higher jurisdiction, and steps should be taken to ensure that such appeals become mandatory. vii) Where applicable, anyone sentenced to death shall have the right to submit an Individual complaint under International procedures; the death sentence will not be carried out while the complaint remains under consideration under those procedures; the death penalty will not be carried out as long as any related legal or formal procedure, at the international or at the national level, is pending. viii) Anyone sentenced to death shall have the right to seek pardon or commutation of the sentence. Amnesty, pardon or commutation of the sentence of death may be granted in all cases of capital punishment. ix) Capital punishment may not be carried out in contravention of a state’s international commitments. x) The length of time spent after having been sentenced to death may also be a factor. xi) Where capital punishment occurs, it shall be carried out so as to inflict the minimum possible suffering. It may not be carried out in public or in any other degrading manner. xii) The death penalty should not be imposed as an act of political revenge in contravention of the minimum standards, e.g., against coup plotters. European Union Guidelines on the Death Penalty, 8416/13 (12 April 2013) […] II. OPERATIONAL PAPER The EU considers that the death penalty constitutes serious violation of human rights and human dignity. Encouraged by the growing momentum towards abolition of the death penalty worldwide, the EU will continue its long-standing campaign against the death penalty. 11 The abolition of capital punishment contributes to the progressive development of human rights. Capital punishment is inhumane and unnecessary. No compelling evidence exists to show that the death penalty 91