Kampala — The Head of the European Commission to Uganda, Ambassador Vincent de Visscher has called for the abolition of the death penalty saying it's cruel and inhumane.

"The European Union considers capital punishment to be cruel and inhumane punishment which fails to provide deterrence to criminal behaviour and represents an unacceptable denial of human dignity and integrity," Mr Visscher said, during the launch of a book, "Towards Abolition of the Death Penalty in Uganda" by the Foundation for Human Rights in Kampala on Friday.

"With the death penalty, any miscarriage of justice which is inevitable in any legal system is irreversible," he said. "The European Commission encourages and urges the government of Uganda to continue working with civil society organisations and development partners in order to observe a complete moratorium and the abolition of the death penalty," he added.