Rights campaigners in Hong Kong are seeking a regional debate on the use of the death penalty and will urge Asian governments to impose a moratorium on the practice.
Although the death penalty does not exist in Hong Kong, prominent local figures have put their signatures to an open letter calling for a moratorium on the death penalty in the region and around the world.
The letter is part of an effort by Amnesty International Hong Kong to engender debate in the region as a first step towards the abolition of execution.
Among the signatories are Democratic Party legislator Martin Lee Chu-ming, head of the Catholic Church in Hong Kong Bishop Zen Ze-kiun, The Frontier legislator Lee Cheuk-yan and mainland dissident Han Dongfan.
The last execution in Hong Kong was carried out in 1966 and the death penalty was abolished in 1993.
But Liz Whitelam, Amnesty's anti-execution campaigner, said there was still cause for concern.