Duterte’s War On Drugs In Philippines Would Mean More Executions If Capital Punishment Is Reimposed

President Rodrigo Duterte

The Senate of the Philippines suspended a hearing into a bill for reinstating death penalty Tuesday after officials expressed concerns over an international treaty that bars the country from reimposing the capital punishment.

"We are suspending because there is a supervening event — the treaty of international convention on civil and political rights [of the United Nations Human Rights Office] — which states that all executions should not be continued, was ratified," said Sen. Richard Gordon, chair of the Senate Committee on Justice and Human Rights.

However, Senate President Pro-Tempore Franklin Drilon said that the Philippines should first withdraw from the treaty before the discussing about reimposing the punishment, which was abolished on June 24, 2006, by the then-President Gloria Arroyo.

"We have ratified the treaty and we have concurred in ratification with the treaty. If you're saying we can withdraw from this, shouldn't we withdraw from the treaty first before we discuss any matter related to the reimposition of death penalty? So that we will not be in violation of international law?" Drilon said.

In December, Human Rights Watch urged the Philippines to not reinstate death penalty.

“The Philippine government should acknowledge the death penalty’s barbarity and reject any moves to reinstate it,” Phelim Kine, deputy Asia director, said in a statement at the time. “The failure of the death penalty as a crime deterrent is globally recognized and the government should maintain the prohibition on its use.”

Meanwhile, President Rodrigo Duterte — who assumed office last June — has launched the so-called war on drug dealers in the country. The possibility of the reimposition of death penalty has raised concerns that his government will be able to execute more people in the drug war.

Within six months of taking office, Duterte’s drug war killed nearly 6,000 people, according to a December report by Al Jazeera. Of those, 2,041 drug suspects were killed during police operations from July 1 to Dec. 6, while another 3,841 were reportedly killed by unidentified gunmen from July 1 to Nov. 30.

Source: International Business Times, February 7, 2017

Pacquiao is Firm: Drug Traffickers Deserve The Death Penalty!

Senator Manny Pacquiao

Eight division world champion Manny Pacquiao is once against pushing for a law that would impose the death penalty on drug traffickers in the Philippines.

Pacquiao, who last year became a senator in his country, once again defended the controversial bill on Tuesday during the first public hearing of the Senate justice and human rights committee on the proposed death penalty bill.

“Drug traffickers deserve the death penalty. We need to take a firm stand against drug traffickers. On a personal level, I can forgive. However, the heinous crime of drug trafficking is committed not just against a person, but against the nation. Drug traffickers deserve the death penalty,” Pacquiao said, according to GMA News.

Pacquiao, who one aspires to become the President of the Philippines, is the author of three death penalty bills on crimes involving drugs, kidnapping, and aggravated rape. "There is now a need to enact a measure that will decisively repress drug trafficking,” Pacquiao said. “We cannot ignore the immensity of the drug problem in our country. We cannot maintain the status quo. We need to take a firm stand against drug traffickers."

Source: Boxing Scene, Edward Chaykovsky, February 7, 2017

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