The Noose
by
Dr Andrew Azzopardi
I can’t describe the strange feeling that was looming in my mind as I saw
Saddam being noosed to death. I can’t explain the emotion when I saw
him dangling flaccidly, lifeless in the second hand video clip version of his
chastisement come spectacle. A death penalty, which according to the
first reports on the media by the executioners, was carried out
professionally and with consideration towards the dignity of the person!
Now, let me lay the cards on the table, some, many or most, may have
been quite happy with what was happening to this monster! ‘He
deserved it they say’! I personally have no commiseration towards this
man, if, what has been presented as evidence in his trial was genuine and
legitimate. But, this is 2007 civilisation we are talking about, aren’t we?
Was the consequence to ‘his’ ghastly deeds an act of:
• justice or vindication;
• righteousness or vendetta;
• even-handedness or vengeance?
To me this was nothing less than a grotesque, gruesome and ghastly
reaction by those that claim they hold justice to heart! Others would say
that this is only an hors d'oeuvre of what he made people go through.
Whilst, I can rationalise these arguments, in particular, those coming from
people who were candidly involved with this man, I still have my
reservations about the verdict and the corollary.
Capital punishment has been argued as being a social deterrent, a costeffective strategy to get rid of its ‘losers’. Whilst disapproving of such lingo,
how have these, so called ‘loosers’, come about? Who has contributed
or endorsed the construction of this conduct? I believe that as a
globalised society we need to carry the responsibility of having such a
bigwig. Getting rid of people is no solution. ‘Killing’ for ‘murder’ sounds
awfully paradoxical, absurd and ridiculous to me.
Capital punishment and the act of Noosing we have witnessed on the
media recently are nothing but a feat of human degradation. The
continued existence of humanity depends on decorum and respect for
social justice. Is capital punishment a form of fair dealing or is it a way of
brushing responsibilities under the carpet? How will society deal with the
reality of inserting a malevolent mentality if this mode of reprimand
persists?
Frightful statistics:
• 3,374 prisoners, at year ending 2003, were held under sentence of
death.
• 60 inmates in 2005 in the USA were executed.
• 1,004 persons were executed in the USA only since the use of the death
penalty was resumed in 1977.
• 2,148 people according to Amnesty International, during 2005, were
executed in 22 countries, 94% in China, Saudi Arabia, Iran, and the USA
alone.
• 5,186 people were sentenced to death in 53 countries.
• 20,000 prisoners are on death row across the world.
• 1,770 people according to Amnesty International are estimated to
having been executed in China during 2005. The true figures are
believed to be much higher. A Chinese legal expert was recently
quoted as stating the figure for executions is closer to 8,000 people
based on information from local officials and judges.
• 19,000 and 24,000 people currently condemned to death and
awaiting execution.
It is a fact that scientific studies have consistently failed to find convincing
evidence that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than other
punishments. The most recent survey of research findings on the relation
between the death penalty and homicide rates, conducted for the
United Nations in 1988 and updated in 2002, concluded:
". . .it is not prudent to accept the hypothesis
that capital punishment deters murder to a
marginally greater extent than does the threat
and application of the supposedly lesser
punishment of life imprisonment."
Bloodlust, that’s what this is all about! We slay each other and instead of
bereaving the tragedy we want the State to satisfy our bloodlust by killing
the reprobate. We must learn to deal with these people who are in our
midst - reprimand and condemn, but not become them!