Book on capital punishment

Il-Piena Kapitali f'Malta u Pajjizi Ohra is the latest book by historian and writer Edward Attard.

The 292-page illustrated book compiles some shocking cases, stories and statistics about the widely debated and controversial capital punishment.

The book delves back into history to try and find out the origins of capital punishment, even making references to the book of Genesis.

The author gives details of all the cases of capital punishment in Malta since 1800. The death penalty was abolished in Malta 30 years ago.

The last case of capital punishment in Malta, by hanging, took place in 1943, while the last capital punishment sentence was handed down in 1963, changed later to a prison sentence.

Among other things, the book makes reference to Amnesty International's drive to make the death penalty illegal worldwide, while other chapters deal specifically with the death penalty in the US and the UK.

In the prelude to the book, Prime Minister Eddie Fenech Adami, Opposition leader Alfred Sant, and the Archbishop, Mgr Joseph Mercieca also express their views on the issue of capital punishment.

Throughout his career, Mr Attard, 55, has written books on the police, the prisons and about homicides, including Delitti f'Malta - 200 sena ta' Omicidji, which compiles all murder cases from 1800.