Caribbean Church appeals for moratorium on Death Penalty

Leela Ramdeen

Leela Ramdeen, consultant with the Catholic Commission for Social Justice (CCSJ) in Trinidad & Tobago writes: The World Day against the Death Penalty will be observed on Thursday October 10. The 2024 Theme is: The Death Penalty protects no one. Abolish it now.

Once again, the Catholic Commission for Social Justice (CCSJ), calls on Trinidad & Tobago's Government to adopt a de jure moratorium on the death penalty, as recommended by the UN, and focus on crime prevention and promoting human development in TT. We already have a de facto moratorium in TT. The last hanging here took place in July 1999 when Anthony Briggs was hanged.

While CCSJ vehemently condemns the rise of violent crime in our region and express solidarity with victims, members reject the notion that capital punishment will act as a deterrent or foster respect for life in our communities. CCSJ is committed to promoting more durable and effective solutions aimed at reducing crime in TT - rather than the taking of life. We support non-lethal means of making convicted offenders accountable to society for heinous crimes that they commit.

In 2018 Pope Francis approved a revision of the Catholic Catechism (2267), making it clear that "the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person, and she works with determination for its abolition worldwide."

The paradox of the retentionist countries in the Caribbean is that since December 2008, when Charles Laplace of St Kitts and Nevis was hanged, there have been no other executions in the region, mainly because, as our Prime Minister, Dr Keith Rowley has admitted, the rules of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC). and the judicial process in TT create major challenges in implementation. He has said: "The death penalty is the law of the land, however the final court in this country, which is the Privy Council, has laid down certain conditions under which the penalty can be carried out for those persons found guilty." PM Rowley acknowledged, some time ago, that since we are unable to meet these conditions, "it is virtually impossible to carry out the death penalty."

While the world is moving further away from the death penalty every day, English-speaking countries in our Region, including TT, oppose abolition. Today, 112 countries are fully abolitionist, 23 are abolitionist in practice, and 55 are retentionist. There is no evidence that abolitionist countries are less safe.

We should reflect on the words of our first Prime Minister, Dr Eric Williams, who in his Independence Day address to the nation in 1962 asked: "What use will you make of your Independence?" On 24 September, we celebrated 48 years as a Republic, having marked 62 years of independence on 31 August. The time has come for us to promote our self-determination by reflecting on whether we are doing all that we can/should be doing to reduce crime and violence, and to create conditions that will help us to build a just and peaceful society. The death penalty is not the answer to our social ills.