Death penalty won’t deter crime—bishop

Warning against possible railroading, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has vowed to keep a close eye on the progress of the death penalty bill at the House of Representatives after it passed committee-level approval.

CBCP Episcopal Commission on Prison and Pastoral Care executive secretary Rudy Diamante said opponents of the bill seeking to revive capital punishment in the country should not be complacent just because discussions were delayed.

Diamante said the postponement of the debates may just be a “strategy” of proponents to distract critics.

“You can never tell within this Congress kasi baka mamaya nililito lang kami kaya tuloy pa rin ‘yung lobbying… para nang sa ganun baka bigla silang magbotohan,” Diamante said over Church-run Radyo Veritas.

“Ganyan sila, ganyan ang ginawa nila diyan sa mother committee, biglang nagbotohan na lang, hindi tinawag ‘yung iba para magsalita kasi meron pa dapat, meron pang magsasalita pero ayun bigla nilang ipinasa,” he added.

(You can never tell within this Congress because it’s possible that they are just misleading us, so the lobbying continues…that way they can suddenly proceed with the voting.

(That’s how they are, that’s how they work in the mother committee, they vote all of a sudden without calling on others to speak, because there are others who are yet to speak, but they pass it swiftly.)

Deputy Speaker Capiz Rep. Fredenil Castro, one of the principal authors of the bill, said the bill’s discussion on the floor will be moved to early next year so lawmakers would have time to prepare for a thorough plenary debate.

Diamante said proponents of the death penalty bill, a priority legislative measure of President Rodrigo Duterte, should explain why they are pushing for the revival of death penalty when crime rates are going down.

“Hindi maipaliwanag na bakit nila irerestore yung death penalty gayun ang statictics naman ay nagsasabing bumababa yung krimen eh anong reason. Wala, walang maibigay mismo ang PNP tungkol dun sa issue na yan,” he added.

(They cannot explain why the death penalty is to be restored, when the statistics show that the crime rate is going down, so what’s their reason. No reason, even the PNP cannot provide a reason behind that issue.)

Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo said death penalty should not be used by lawmakers as a measure to punish or get back at criminals, adding that they should be given a second chance to reform their lives by following due process.

“Hindi natin dapat gagamitin iyan sa paghihiganti kasi para sa atin ang mahalaga ma-reform ang tao at umaasa tayo na ang buhay ng tao ay may pagkakataon at may kakayahan na magbago. Marami sa mga biktima diyan ang mga mahihirap na walang kapasidad na ipagtanggol ang kanilang sarili at marami ng mga kaso na ang mga pinatay ay mali pala ang akusasyon sa kanila. Kaya dapat hindi maibalik ang death penalty,” Pabillo said.

(We shouldn’t use this for revenge because what is important for us is for the person to be reformed and we hope that the person will have the opportunity and the capability to change his life. Many of those who may fall victim to this are poor and have no capacity to defend themselves, and there are already many cases of killing over false accusations. This is why the death penalty should not be restored.)

Noting that death penalty was not a solution to criminality, Pabillo said he was hoping that lawmakers would realize that only God and not men like them has the right to take someone’s life.

“Ang death penalty ay hindi solusyon para sa krimen. Ang dapat ayusin ay ang ating judiciary system hindi iyan death penalty kasi pati mga bansa na may death penalty tuloy pa rin ang mga krimen nila,” he added.

(Death penalty is not a solution to crime. What should be fixed is our judiciary system, not the [restoration of the] death penalty because even countries that enforce death penalty continue to be plagued by criminality.) CDG/rga

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