by Leela Ramdeen, Chair, CCSJ and Director, CREDI
Emotions are running high because of ‘runaway crime,’ and once again T&T finds itself in the throes of looking for ways in which to resume hanging. Sadly, this debate is taking place during our 40 days of non-violence. Our response to crime is a moral test for all of us.
Recently I was interviewed via telephone on Radio 102.1 on this issue and was able, once again, to outline the Church’s position on capital punishment. I urge all people of goodwill to read the AEC Bishops’ statement on capital punishment which was released in September 2016: http://www.rcsocialjusticett.org/downloads/capitalpunishmentbooklet.pdf
Let me state from the outset that while CCSJ condemns the rise of violent crime in our region and expresses solidarity with victims, members reject the notion that capital punishment will act as a deterrent in fostering respect for life in our communities.
The Catholic Church believes that society has a right to protect itself from persons who commit heinous crimes and offenders must be held accountable. However, our Church believes that non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect society from offenders.
Pope Francis has made it clear that: “The commandment ‘You shall not kill’ has absolute value and applies to both the innocent and the guilty…Today, the death penalty is inadmissible no matter how serious the crime of the offender. It is an offence to the inviolability of life and the dignity of the human person that contradicts God’s plan for man and society and His merciful justice…The death penalty does not do justice to the victims, but encourages revenge…For the Rule of Law the death penalty represents a failure, as it obliges the state to kill in the name of justice.”
And, as Archbishop Desmond Tutu said to us in Madrid at a Conference on the Death Penalty: “There is no justice in killing in the name of justice, and no godliness in exacting vengeance.”
Years ago the late Lloyd Best stated that T&T is in a state of pre-collapse. We are acting like the person who lost a coin in the dark but he is looking under the street light for it because there is light there! Why can’t we see that whipping up emotions even more will not reduce homicides?
There is no evidence that the death penalty is a deterrent to crime. The UNDP 2012 report: Human Development and the shift to better citizen security, rightly states that T&T needs a better balance between legitimate law enforcement and prevention, with an emphasis on prevention; and more investment, for example, in youth development, job creation and reducing poverty and socio-economic inequality/ inequity. These strategies can contribute to a safer and more democratic and just society in the region. Where are our prevention strategies?
The Attorney General (AG) has said that there are currently 33 persons on death row, 11 of whom fall within the five-year limit based on the Pratt and Morgan ruling. This means that the sentences of these 11 persons will be commuted to life.
In July 2016, the AG said there are 2,300 individuals incarcerated in remand, of whom 1,000 are facing murder charges. Since the wheels of the criminal justice system in T&T grinds slowly, many have been waiting on their trial for years. Many more are on the loose because our detection rate is abysmally low at less than 10 per cent. As Chief Justice Ivor Archie has said: “Social scientists…suggest that the certainty of conviction, and within a reasonably quick time, is a more potent factor” than executions.
We continue to address the symptoms of crime and not the root causes. What are we doing to strengthen family life; to get rid of the drugs and guns in our land; to eliminate violence in our schools; to promote restorative justice and a culture of non-violence, respect for self and others, character development, good neighbourliness; to speed up prison reform and rehabilitation processes?
As Chair of the Greater Caribbean for Life, I stated at a hearing of the Inter American Commission on Human Rights in Washington in March 2015: “While the crime rate remains high in many of the countries in the region, inadequacies in law enforcement and preventive measures hinder progress. There is a need for all countries in the region to strengthen their criminal justice systems, for example, by: improving their law enforcement agencies, their detection and conviction rates, their forensic capabilities, and court facilities which may serve to improve efficiency and processing of cases; dealing with inordinate delays in the system due, for example, to court backlogs and high case load; developing and implementing effective witness protection programmes; and dealing with incompetence and corruption, for example, in some police forces.”
