Capital punishment in Europe rights became a particular priority. The Kingdom of Italy had abolished the death penalty for civilians with the adoption of the Zanardelli Penal Code of 1889, but the Fascists had reintroduced it with the 1930 Penal Code. The European Convention on Human Rights was adopted in 1950, but some countries took many years to ratify it. The United Kingdom retained the death penalty for high treason until 1998; however, this technicality was superseded by the absolute ban on the death penalty in 1976. William Joyce was the last person to be put to death for high treason in the UK,
United Nations moratorium on the death penalty not to reintroduce it; 4. "Requests" the Secretary-General to report to the General Assembly at its sixty-third session on the implementation of the present resolution; 5. "Decides" to continue consideration of the matter at its sixty-third session under the same agenda item. "The General Assembly," "Reaffirming" its resolution 62/149 of 18 December 2007 on a moratorium on the use of the death penalty, "Welcoming" the decisions taken by an increasing number of States to apply a moratorium on executions and the global trend towards the abolition of the death penalty, 1. "Welcomes" the report of the Secretary-General on the implementation