A Logical Contradiction in the Right to Life: Why a Human-Rights-Based State Must Abolish the Death Penalty

This paper presents an argument for the abolition of the death penalty, not from emotional, religious, or cultural perspectives, but from the standpoint of an internal logical contradiction within the structure of a human-rights-based state. The state exists as a structural entity whose raison d’être is to guarantee fundamental human rights. While it may restrict certain rights of criminals—such as freedom of movement—it must never revoke the right to life. The deprivation of life through capital punishment is an act of self-negation, undermining the very foundation of the state’s identity as a guarantor of human rights. Therefore, in a state predicated on fundamental human rights, the death penalty is logically impermissible. Supplementary perspectives include a historical critique of lex talionis, the redefinition of victim protection as care and compensation, and a counterargument that endorsing capital punishment entails relinquishing one’s own right to life.