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Hope floats for anti-death penalty advocates
23 February 2006 --- Church-based anti-death penalty organizations expressed strong support for President Gloria M. Arroyo's stand to scrap the capital punishment.
"Indeed, events after the last one we had, have proven that the imposition of the capital punishment is not a deterrent of crime as it's advocates claim," said Bishop Pedro D. Arigo, Episcopal Commission of Prison and Pastoral Care (ECPPC) chairman.
The commission reiterated its view that abolition of the death penalty law is a practical recognition of the dignity of every human being created into the image of likeness of God.
The Coalition Against Death Penalty (CADP) and International Commission of Catholic Prison Pastoral Care (ICCPPC) also lauded Arroyo's decision of showing interest to heed their call.
In seeking for abolition of the said law, says CADP President Fr. Silvino L Borres, the President is declaring that in pursuing justice, one need not yield to vengeance and barbarism.
"One can work for justice that heals and not justice that kills," he said.
ICCPPC Representative Rodolfo Diamante, meanwhile, clarified that their stand against death penalty is in no way a posture to let criminals go off the hook.
He said that those who have violated the law should still be held responsible after a trial.
"Otherwise, they become effective endorsers of crime and criminal actions, and strong parody for the ethical adage that crime does not pay," Diamante said.
They urged the government and the faithful to move away from a philosophy of "retributive justice" and encourage "restorative justice" strategies that respect the inherent dignity of the human person and the fundamental of any person to life.
As of July 2005, around 1, 200 inmates are in the death row.
The said groups, who have been at the forefront to stop execution, also appealed to the legislators for the immediate passage of the bill repealing the death penalty law.
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