DEATH PENALTY

The death penalty is a government-sanctioned punishment by death. Death penalty in the Philippines is
stated on the Republic Act No. 7659 which is an act to impose the death penalty for 1 the Pre-Spanish
time where Filipinos although infrequent, is already practicing it. The Spanish also imposed it on locals
who rebelled against them and it was retained during the American period. Of course, who would forget
the 1965-1986 Martial LAW? Even though it was abolished during Cory Aquino’s term, it was re-imposed
when Ramos stepped into the presidency. It was also present in Estrada and Arroyo’s term.

Today, Death Penalty has been again, active in discussions around the country where Filipinos argue
whether it is practical, beneficial, and necessary if re-established. in tackling about this topic, we must
ask ourselves this question, “how can it be justifiable if we don’t know if WE HAVE established our justice
system out of a desire for rehabilitation or out of a desire for retribution?” Looking at the Philippine
context, due to various reasons and particular situations, we view death penalty, as impractical, not
beneficial, and unnecessary.

Practicability death penalty is impractical in the Philippines because our state has a flawed judicial
system, it opposes to the culture of the majority and it is simply not compatible with our unfortunate
kind of economy thus it is not a proven deterrence to crime.

The death penalty is not practical in the Philippines because we have a flawed judicial system. According
to an essay about the practicality of death penalty by Valderrama, it was stated there that, “For the
death penalty to be practical and efficient, a fair criminal justice system is essential. However, The
criminal justice system in our country is full of defects such as faulty police work, coerced confessions,
inept defence counsel, perjured testimony and trial court decisions based on seemingly inconclusive
evidence. In addition, the Supreme Court, in a 2004 decision, made 72% judicial errors. How can death
penalty be a practical one when the judiciary of the country is inefficient and full of incompetence?” “We
have to address the long pestering issue of impunity. Poor law enforcement results in breakdown of law
and order.”

The death penalty is not practical in the Philippines because it opposes to the culture of the majority of
the Filipinos. For we believe in the value of life. In a sense, people want death penalty because we don’t
want killings to happen yet we impose killing for killing. We may say that death penalty should only be
for heinous crimes but at the end of the day, yes, we know which crime requires severe punishment but
do we know enough to decide which life to take and when we take it?

In connection to that, it is simply not compatible with our economy because according to the PSA,
poverty incidence among Filipinos is rising to 25.8% in the first half of 2014, from 24.6% in 2013. By this
and by how we see our country, we can really say that poverty is everywhere. The death penalty is very
impractical for the Philippines for people would, again and again, do anything by any means necessary
just to feed their families even though that would mean dirty works and punishment. Emotions
overpower judgment in times of desperation. “In a 2004 survey, of 1,121 death row inmates in the
Philippines, it was found that majority of the inmates knew of the death penalty before they committed
their offenses. Clearly, death penalty has little deterrence to none.”

The death penalty in the Philippines is not practical because our system and our economy are still not
ready for it. However, it will never make our country any better. We opt to have the death penalty to
protect our country from criminals yet imprisonment can do that. Instead of killing them, why don’t we
have them for special labor work that could help us in many ways just like the Palawan- Iwahig Prison
and Penal Farm where inmates are made to work in farms? In that way, we are saving ourselves from
the condemnation of taking a human life and at the same time doing something that could practically
help our economy.

In beneficitialiy it teaches the Condemned Nothing. What is the purpose of punishment? We take our
lead from one major source, our parents—and there’s no doubt that they took their lead from their own
parents. When your child tries some crazy acrobatic move off a piece of furniture and hurts himself, you
might spank him to be sure that he remembers never to do it again.

So when the child grows up, breaks into a home, and steals electronics, he gets caught and goes to
prison. His time in prison is meant to deprive him of the freedom to go where he wants anywhere in the
world, and to do what he wants when he wants. This is the punishment, and most people do learn from
it. In general, no one wants to go back. But if that child grows up and murders someone for their wallet
or just for fun, and they are in turn put to death, they are taught precisely nothing, because they are no
longer alive to learn from it. We cannot rehabilitate a person by killing him or her.

It Does Not Dissuade. If the foreknowledge of any punishment is meant to dissuade the criminal from
committing the crime, why do people still murder others? One thing is, capital punishment does not
appear to be doing its job; it doesn’t seem to be changing every criminal’s mind about killing innocent
people. If it does not dissuade, then it serves no purpose. The warning of life in prison without parole
must equally dissuade criminals.

Most prisoners consider each other to be in the same predicament and treat each other quite well in
general. But they are still in prison and despair about their lack of freedom. What is life like for Zacarias
Moussaoui, the member of the September 11 hijacking teams who got caught a month before the
attack? A single juror saved him from death. He has, since 2006, been incarcerated for twenty-three
hours per day in a tiny concrete cell, with one hour of daily exercise in an empty concrete swimming
pool; he has no access to other inmates, and only rare contact with guards, who say nothing to him; he
can see nothing of the outside world except a tiny sliver of sky—and this will be his life. Capital
punishment is an unnecessary threat.

The risk of executing innocent people. Death penalty is irreversible and these may lead to people paying
for the crimes they did not even commit. This kind of things really happen even how really developed a
country and its justice system is because it is always susceptible to human failure. Also, unlike prison
sentences, death penalty is irreparable. One case was of Cameron Todd Willingham, which was found
innocent after his execution in 2004. And other people who were wrongly convicted of a crime, they are
suffering for years or decades, thinking what will happen to them which is like mental torture. There are
also cases in which death penalty is often used in a disproportional manner against the poor, minorities
and members of racial, ethnic and political and religious groups.

Death denies opportunity of rehabilitation. Many people believe that people who are sentenced of
death penalty should get second chances, because for them, people who are in death rows never got
any first chances. And also for them what makes a criminal is poverty, racism, neglect, violence that
came from society or from parents, and mental illnesses, which can be treated and lessen the effects on
them or can change them to become a better individual through rehabilitation. One case was of Stan
Tookie Williams, a former leader of the notorious Crips gang in Los Angeles. While in bars he reflected in
life and wrote a series of anti-gang books for the youth. For years, Stan has been talking to students via
telephone urging them to stay away from the gang life. He captivated the youth, his message resonated,
and his books were very effective, but instead of recognizing what he has done behind bars and how he
changed, he was still executed in 2005.

There is no evidence that it will reduce crime rates. There is actually no evidence that implementing
death penalty will reduce the crime rates. Yes, people might fear the said punishment but this does not
apply to all. The implementation of death penalty, especially on those innocent people might actually be
the reason why people would protest against the government or worse, would be criminals themselves
in seek of vengeance. According to the NC Coalition for Alternatives to Death Penalty, the murder rate
for the state of North Carolina actually declined following a halt in utilizing execution as a form of
punishment. The coalition also points out that, “…most people on death row committed their crimes in
the heat of passion, while under the influence of drugs or alcohol, or while suffering from mental illness.
They represent a group that is highly unlikely to make rational decisions based on a fear of future
consequences for their actions.”

Therefore, we conclude that death penalty’s disadvantages ultimately outweigh its advantages.
Thus, death penalty is impractical, not beneficial and unnecessary. For as the famous Mahatma Gandhi
would say, “an eye for an eye will only make the whole world blind.”