Dear Editor,
It is most palpable and tacitly understood that the majority of Guyanese prefer the retention of the death penalty as the best deterrent Guyana and other countries that have enacted laws to sentence convicted terrorists to death should take steps to repeal them and also abolish the death penalty altogether, top international advocates against the death penalty said Wednesday.
Commissioner with the International Commission against the Death Penalty, Justice Navi Pillay told a news conference ahead of a judicial colloquium with Guyanese judges and magistrates that she hoped that Guyana would review its Terrorism Act that has 12 provisions for the death penalty.
For the following reasons below I suggest that the death penalty should be supported by all and retained in Guyana: The death penalty gives closure to the victim’s families who have suffered. It creates another form of crime deterrent. Justice is better served. It would seem that our justice system shows more sympathy for criminals than it does victims.
DNA testing and other methods of modern crime-scene science can now effectively eliminate almost all uncertainty as to a person’s guilt or innocence.
Prisoner parole or escapes can give criminals another chance to kill. It contributes to the problem of overpopulation in the prison system. It gives prosecutors another bargaining chip in the plea bargain process, which is essential in cutting costs.
Guyana should retain the death penalty.
Yours faithfully,
Rooplall Dudhnath
