According to Amnesty International, 1,718 people were executed in China in 2008. At least 7,003 face the death sentence. In a secretive regime such as China, nobody really knows if these figures are accurate. Most of these executions were done through the firing squad. There are plans, however, to completely eradicate the use of firing squads by the end of 2009 and opt solely for the more expensive method of lethal injection. The Supreme Court deems the latter as a more humane method.

Lethal injections were introduced in China in 1997. The complete shift to this method of execution has been rather slow due to its expensive cost, with the cost per dose of potassium cyanide at 300 yuan (£30). According to provincial authorities, the lethal injection means uses two shots in the arm. The first shot of anaesthetic takes effect after about 10 to 20 seconds. The second shot of potassium cyanide causes death in one to two minutes.

Currently, there are already some provinces that have switched to the sole use of lethal injection such as Yunnan, as well as the cities of Chengdu and Taiyuan. But by the end of this year, a special room designated for lethal injection executions will be put up near Beijing’s Number One Detention Centre. Most death sentence prisoners are incarcerated in this facility.

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Via Times Online