Equatorial Guinea scraps death penalty eight years after last execution

FILE PHOTO: Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo attends a plenary session of the Paris Peace Forum, France November 12, 2019. Ludovic Marin/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

MALABO (Reuters) - Equatorial Guinea has abolished the death penalty, according to a new criminal code signed by veteran President Teodoro Obiang eight years after the last executions took place.

With a population of about 1.4 million split between a mainland on the Central African coast and an island in the Gulf of Guinea, Equatorial Guinea has a poor record on human rights. Campaign groups and foreign powers have accused the Obiang government of torture, arbitrary detentions and sham trials.