A/HRC/27/23 which has intervened in 247 cases of Indonesian nationals sentenced to death abroad.49 The Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs of the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Philippines provided legal assistance to Filipino migrant workers facing death sentences abroad.50 The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico established a legal support programme, known as the Mexican Capital Legal Assistance Program, for Mexicans facing the death penalty in the United States of America. Between its inception in 2000 and February 2014, the programme intervened in 1,001 cases of first-degree murder and the interventions led to the prevention or reversal of the death penalty in 878 cases.51 57. In the United States of America, in January 2014, the State of Texas executed Edgar Arias Tamayo, one of the 51 Mexican nationals subject to the International Court of Justice Avena decision.52 Following the execution, the United States Department of State issued a statement regretting the decision of the State of Texas to proceed with the execution without review and reconsideration in accordance with the Avena decision, and noted that the execution illustrated the critical importance for the Congress to pass the Consular Notification Compliance Act, which would provide an additional mechanism for the United States to meet its international obligations.53 Despite repeated national and international calls to suspend further executions, another Mexican national was executed in the State of Texas in April 2014, in violation of the Avena decision.54 VI. Use of the death penalty against children, persons with mental or intellectual disabilities and other vulnerable groups A. Children 58. In September 2013, reaffirming the absolute prohibition in international human rights law of the execution of persons for crimes committed before they were 18 years of age, the Human Rights Council adopted resolution 24/12 in which it urged States to ensure that, under their legislation and practice, neither capital punishment nor life imprisonment were imposed for offences committed by persons under 18. 59. The legislation of 14 States allows the application of the death penalty to children. They are India (Jammu and Kashmir), the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritania, Nigeria, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Tonga, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen. During the reporting 49 50 51 52 53 54 14 Amie Fenia Arimbi, “247 Indonesians abroad under threat of death penalty”, Antara News, 20 September 2013. Available from www.antaranews.com/en/news/90806/247-indonesians-abroadunder-threat-of-death-penalty. See joint submission of Migrante International and the Asia Pacific Mission for Migrants to the Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families at its twentieth session, April 2014. Statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico, 11 March 2014, Geneva. In the Avena decision, the International Court of Justice found that the United States had failed to provide consular notification and access to 51 Mexican nationals, as required under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. United States, Department of State, “Execution of Mexican national Edgar Arias Tamayo”, 23 January 2014. Available from www.state.gov/r/pa/prs/ps/2014/01/220546.htm. United States, Mission to the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, “Response to European Union on execution of Mexican national”. Available from iipdigital.usembassy.gov/st/english/texttrans/2014/04/20140416297946.html #ixzz31WP1NQWE.