A/HRC/21/29 registered. In October 2011, the Attorney-General of Barbados announced that it would abolish the mandatory imposition of the death penalty in accordance with the decision of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in the Boyce v. Barbados case.9 In September 2011, the Bombay High Court of India declared “unconstitutional” section 31A of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985, which imposed a mandatory death sentence for drug trafficking.10 On 1 February 2012, also in India, the Supreme Court declared the mandatory imposition of the death penalty under the Arms Act 1959 unconstitutional.11 III. Enforcement of the death penalty 21. Although the international community as a whole is moving towards abolition of the death penalty in law or in practice, some States continue to use the death penalty. Furthermore, as noted by the Secretary-General in previous reports,12 up-to-date and accurate global figures on the application of the death penalty are difficult to obtain. This difficulty arises from a lack of transparency on the part of many Governments in relation to the number and characteristics of individuals executed. Official figures on the use of the death penalty in 2011 were available only in a small number of countries. The data on the use of the death penalty continues to be classified as a State secret in some States. Furthermore, in some States, convicted inmates were not informed of their forthcoming execution, nor were their families and lawyers; and bodies of the executed inmates were not returned to the families. 22. According to non-governmental organizations, at least 18,750 people remained under death sentence at the end of 2011 and at least 680 people were executed worldwide during that year, excluding China. The exact number of executions carried out in a number of countries, including China, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Egypt, the Islamic Republic of Iran and Viet Nam, was not available.13 In the first half of 2012, the use of the death penalty has continued or may have even increased in some countries. According to some reports, Iraq executed 65 people in first 40 days of 2012.14 In May 2012, the Iranian authorities confirmed that 35 executions had taken place.15 According to the Ministry of Justice of Japan, three prisoners were executed on 29 March 2012; these executions were the first to take place since July 2010.16 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 6 Boyce v. Barbados, paras. 62–64, 74, 80, Inter-American Court of Human Rights, 20 November 2007; American Convention on Human Rights, art. 2. Indian Harm Reduction Network v. The Union of India, in the High Court of Judicature at Bombay in its criminal jurisdiction under article 226 of the Constitution of India, June 2010, para. 57. State of Punjab v. Dalbir Singh, section 27(3) of the Arms Act of 1959 (as amended in 1988). A/HRC/4/78, A/HRC/8/11, A/HRC/12/45, A/HRC/15/19 and A/HRC/18/20. Death Sentences and Executions, p. 8. Human Rights Watch, “Iraq: 65 Executions in First 40 Days of 2012”, 9 February 2012. Available from www.hrw.org/news/2012/02/09/iraq-65-executions-first-40-days-2012. See also “Pillay condemns Iraq’s execution of 34 individuals in a single day”. Available from www.ohchr.org/en/NewsEvents/Pages/DisplayNews.aspx?NewsID=11774&LangID=E. Spokesperson of High Representative Catherine Ashton, statement on the use of the death penalty in the Islamic Republic of Iran, Brussels, 30 May 2012. Available from www.consilium.europa.eu. See International Commission against the Death Penalty, statement on Japan’s first executions since July 2010, Geneva, 29 March 2012. Available from www.icomdp.org/cms/wpcontent/uploads/2012/03/ICDP-Statement-on-Japan-29-March-2012.pdf.