Capital punishment was “totally abolished” in the oil-rich central African nation after the president signed a new penal code, shared on Twitter by the vice president.

The last official execution in the small country was carried out in 2014, according to Amnesty International, but international NGOs and the United Nations regularly accuse the regime of forced disappearances, arbitrary detention and torture.

“I am writing in capitals to seal this unique moment: ‘EQUATORIAL GUINEA HAS ABOLISHED THE DEATH PENALTY’,” tweeted Vice President Teodoro Nguema Obiang Mangue, one of the head of state’s sons and viewed as his likely successor.

A journalist on state television called the event “historic for our country” in a brief announcement at the end of a news programme.

The measure will come into force in the 90 days following its publication in the official state journal and was approved by parliament in advance.

President Obiang, 80, has spent more than 43 years in power, a world record when excluding monarchies.