article 6 of the Covenant. The question of whether the fact that Canada had abolished capital punishment except for certain military offences required its authorities to refuse extradition or request assurances from the United States to the effect that the death penalty would not be imposed on Mr. Charles Chitat Ng, must, in my view, receive an affirmative answer. may cause prolonged suffering and agony and does not result in death as swiftly as possible, as asphyxiation by cyanide gas may take over 10 minutes. The State party had the opportunity to refute these allegations on the facts; it has failed to do so. Rather, the State party has confined itself to arguing that in the absence of a norm of international law which expressly prohibits asphyxiation by cyanide gas, "it would be interfering to an unwarranted degree with the internal laws and practices of the United States to refuse to extradite a fugitive to face the possible imposition of the death penalty by cyanide gas asphyxiation". Regarding the death penalty, it must be recalled that, although article 6 of the Covenant does not prescribe categorically the abolition of capital punishment, it imposes a set of obligations on States parties that have not yet abolished it. As the Committee pointed out in its general comment 6 (16), "the article also refers generally to abolition in terms which strongly suggest that abolition is desirable". Furthermore, the wording of paragraphs 2 and 6 clearly indicates that article 6 tolerates – within certain limits and in view of future abolition – the existence of capital punishment in States parties that have not yet abolished it, but may by no means be interpreted as implying for any State party an authorization to delay its abolition or, a fortiori, to enlarge its scope or to introduce or reintroduce it. Accordingly, a State party that has abolished the death penalty is, in my view, under the legal obligation, under article 6 of the Covenant, not to reintroduce it. This obligation must refer both to a direct reintroduction within the State party's jurisdiction, as well as to an indirect one, as is the case when the State acts – through extradition, expulsion or compulsory return – in such a way that an individual within its territory and subject to its jurisdiction may be exposed to capital punishment in another State. I therefore conclude that in the present case there has been a violation of article 6 of the Covenant. 16.4 In the instant case and on the basis of the information before it, the Committee concludes that execution by gas asphyxiation, should the death penalty be imposed on the author, would not meet the test of "least possible physical and mental suffering", and constitutes cruel and inhuman treatment, in violation of article 7 of the Covenant. Accordingly, Canada, which could reasonably foresee that Mr. Ng, if sentenced to death, would be executed in a way that amounts to a violation of article 7, failed to comply with its obligations under the Covenant, by extraditing Mr. Ng without having sought and received assurances that he would not be executed. 16.5 The Committee need not pronounce itself on the compatibility with article 7 of methods of execution other than that which is at issue in this case. Regarding the claim under article 7, I agree with the Committee that there has been a violation of the Covenant, but on different grounds. I subscribe to the observation of the Committee that "by definition, every execution of a sentence of death may be considered to constitute cruel and inhuman treatment within the meaning of article 7 of the Covenant". Consequently, a violation of the provisions of article 6 that may make such treatment, in certain circumstances, permissible, entails necessarily, and irrespective of the way in which the execution may be carried out, a violation of article 7 of the Covenant. It is for these reasons that I conclude in the present case that there has been a violation of article 7 of the Covenant. 17. The Human Rights Committee, acting under article 5, paragraph 4, of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, is of the view that the facts as found by the Committee reveal a violation by Canada of article 7 of the Covenant. 18. The Human Rights Committee requests the State party to make such representations as might still be possible to avoid the imposition of the death penalty and appeals to the State party to ensure that a similar situation does not arise in the future. [English original] * The texts of eight individual opinions, submitted by nine Committee members, are appended. B. INDIVIDUAL OPINION SUBMITTED BY MESSRS. A. MAVROMMATIS AND W. SADI (DISSENTING) APPENDIX Individual opinions submitted under rule 94, paragraph 3, of the rules of procedure of the Human Rights Committee We do not believe that, on the basis of the material before us, execution by gas asphyxiation could constitute cruel and inhuman treatment within the meaning of article 7 of the Covenant. A method of execution such as death by stoning, which is intended to and actually inflicts prolonged pain and suffering, is contrary to article 7. A. INDIVIDUAL OPINION SUBMITTED BY MR. FAUSTO POCAR (PARTLY DISSENTING, PARTLY CONCURRING AND ELABORATING) Every known method of judicial execution in use today, including execution by lethal injection, has come under criticism for causing prolonged pain or the necessity I cannot agree with the finding of the Committee that in the present case, there has been no violation of 106