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

This paper argues for the abolition of the death penalty not from emotional, religious, or cultural perspectives, but from the standpoint of a logical contradiction within the structure of a human-rights-based state. The state exists 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 constitutes an act of self-negation, undermining the state’s very raison d’être as guarantor of human rights. Therefore, within any state predicated on human rights, the death penalty is logically impermissible. The analysis situates this conclusion within both historical and philosophical contexts, showing the rupture between ancient retributive doctrines and modern human rights principles.