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Tuesday, February 7, 2017
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MANILA – The proposed re-imposition of the death penalty does not deter crime and only targets the poor, said Sen. Richard Gordon.
Gordon, chairman of the Senate committee on justice and human rights, said the death penalty is not the answer to the rising criminality in the country.
“My father was assassinated, tatlong attempt sa buhay ng tatay ko, baka nga apat o lima pa e. But I’m against (death penalty) because hindi solusyon yan e. Bakit kamo? Kapag namatay, uulit na naman ‘yung iba. Sa umpisa siguro may matatakot, pero sandal lang ‘yun e, hindi tumatagal ang takot. Parang instant gratification yan,” the senator shared.
He also said capital punishment is anti-poor because the marginalized are the ones usually accused of crimes.
They cannot afford legal representation, according to him.
“Palaging mahirap ang pumapatay, sila ang natatamaan. Wala silang abogado dahil sa poverty.”
Gordon believes that locking up convicts far away from their families can be an effective and legal deterrent against crimes.
“‘Pag kinulong mo ang isang tao at ang penal system natin ay ikaw ay nasa malayong lugar, mahihirapan ang pamilya mo para bisitahin ka at dapat malaki ang publicity, meron tayong website, etong taong ‘to pumatay ‘to kaya siya nakukulong. May stigma sa pamilya mo. Aba’y papatay ka ba ng tao? Nakakahiya ‘yung pamilya mo kapag ika’y nakapatay ng tao tapos ikaw, nakukulong for life,” the senator explained.
Another deterrence strategy, he said, is to provide people “better education” and “employment opportunities.”
“Poverty drives one to kill or to commit crimes. ‘Yung mga hired killer, tumatanggap sila ng bayad para pumatay kasi wala silang trabaho. ‘Yung mga nagnanakaw, wala silang alam na trabaho kaya napipilitan silang magnakaw. So, ang solusyon mo diyan para mawala ang crimes, education and employment opportunities.”
Sen. Leila de Lima also promised to fight the passage of bills seeking to reinstate the death penalty.
There was no “credible” evidence that showed the death penalty deterred the commission of crimes, de Lima pointed out.
“Death was never as much an effective instrument of justice, as it has been a horrifying potent weapon for the politically and militarily powerful to wield against those they seek to oppress and subjugate,” the former Justice secretary said./PN
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