Jeffrey Fagan, a professor of law at Columbia University in the US, told that there is no evidence to show scientific evidence that the death penalty deters criminal behavior, stressing that even when executions are frequent and well-publicized, there are no observable changes in crime. Executions serve only to gratify the desire for retaliation. Any retributive value is fleeting, lasting only until the next crime.
Conducted study discloses that over 88 per cent of the criminologists neither believe the death penalty deter murderers nor add any significant deterrent effect above that of long-term imprisonment. In fact, the number of homicide studies over the past century is enormous and there is no consistent evidence of marginal deterrent effect.
Does death penalty deter drug trafficking cases?
Iran has some of the toughest drug laws in the world and a high frequency of injection drug use, while Sweden does not have the death penalty and it has comparatively low rates of problematic drug use.
The study reveals that the low rates of efficacy of law enforcement, the relative immunity from the law of those who profit most from drugs trade, and the higher risks of violence and death they most probably run from others involved in the drugs trade, all make it seem unlikely that the death penalty in itself has a marginally stronger deterrent effect than long terms of imprisonment, especially when only 11 of 33 countries with power to execute offenders for drugs offences have actually done so within the past 10 years.
Likewise, the studies show that criminals are deterred more by an increase in their likelihood of apprehension than by an increase in the magnitude of their punishment, meaning that likely capture is a more effective deterrent than potential death".
Comparative report on drug crime rates in Singapore and Indonesia with death sentences executed bare that there is no deterrent effect. If capital punishment has a deterrent effect on drug trafficking, this would lead to less drug trafficking, and therefore higher wholesale drug prices, in Singapore. However, wholesale drug prices for both cocaine and heroin were significantly higher in Indonesia than in Singapore from 2003 to 2006, and drugs generally were more widespread in Singapore than Indonesia in this period, pointing out that drug trafficking was not deterred as a result of Singapore's high levels of capital punishment.
A typical factor in drug-trafficking cases is the potential for large monetary gains, and on a consideration that 'the money overrode any rational judgment for which a trafficker might be prepared to risk even the death penalty.
To wrap it up, given the comparative analysis detailed above, there is scant research on whether the death penalty deters drug trafficking. Experts who have considered the issue of the death penalty as a punishment for murder, and in some cases drug offenses, around the world, pronounce that there is not enough substantiation to conclude that the death penalty deters. Since there is no corroboration that backs up positive result of death penalty, it’s imperative that lives on a death should be saved and be given instead of a second chance to discern what life could offer without this crime after an unnatural existence in imprisonment.
| ||||
What to avoid as a tourist/resident in Singapore?
| ||||
Singapore‘s tag as “The Fine City” has a double connotation referring to the immaculate, or fine, state that the country is in, and the many different fines implemented. The country has such a strong reputation on its security measures that the authorities publicize “low crime does not mean no crime,” reminding the public to remain cautious.
As you step out of the Changii Airport, be reminded that there are acts considered harmless in your home country that are illegal in Singapore. For youth who are considering education experience in Singapore, that could be very rewarding given their discipline, but make sure to trek on the safe side than swerve on the other side:
Chewing Gums
Singapore bans chewing gum and importation is illegal even if it is not for trading. The current set of regulations does not have provisions for carrying gum for personal use. Improper disposal of gum and carrying large quantities of the banned product cost a bulky fine of up to $1000 for first time offenders.
Drugs
Singaporean authority does not distinguish between drugs taken back home before one enters the country, and those taken within their borders. The Singapore police are sanctioned for a random drug test on both locals and visiting foreigners so make it a point to be cleared from any substance before entering the country, or avoiding intake is thus even better.
Littering
First time offenders who throw small items like cigarette butts or candy wrappers are fined $300, while bigger items like drink cans or bottles are deemed as defiant which requires appearance before the court, whose punishment usually involves a Corrective Work Order (CWO), taking the offenders to clean up a specified area while wearing a bright luminous green vest. This corrective measure is implemented in the hopes of developing the offenders’ empathy towards the hardship that the cleaners endured in keeping the environment clean, and the unpleasantness of the litter. It is also admittedly aimed at publicly shaming the offenders to ensure that they don’t regress to being a litterbug again.
Smoking
The smoking prohibition covers all indoor places (shopping centers, offices, and shops ) and outdoor public facilities (fitness areas, sports courts, and playgrounds ), multi-purpose halls, pedestrian overhead bridges, covered walkways and link ways, hospital outdoor compounds, a five-meter perimeter around bus shelters, and common areas of residential buildings. This is implemented to ensure a safe, healthy, and clean environment for the public, shielding the public from secondhand smoke risks.
Urinating in Elevators & Not Flushing the Toilet
Expect to pay a fine when caught on not flushing the toilet which is more than just a breach of propriety in Singapore. Elevators are equipped with Urine Detection Devices (UDD), which detect the scent of urine, setting off an alarm and closing the doors until the police arrive to arrest the offender.
Jaywalking
First coined in the U.S. referring to the reckless or illegal crossing of pedestrians on roads, Singapore mainly refers to jaywalking as crossing the street in non-designated area so they provide marked pedestrian lanes to regulate such an offense.
Homosexual Relations
The legislation on “Outrages on Decency” criminalizes same sex relations, deemed as “unnatural sex” or sex “against the order of nature,” and which is subject to a 2-year imprisonment.
Vandalism
Vandalism is a serious offense in Singapore subject to penalties which include fines, imprisonment, and caning from three to eight strokes. Damaging, destroying and stealing public property, as well as drawing, painting, writing, inscribing, and marking any private property without the owner’s permission are illegal. Attaching placards, banners, posters, and flags is likewise banned.
There’s a case of an 18-year-old American citizen Michael P. Fay who was pleaded guilty to two charges for vandalizing cars by spray-painting them and was sentenced to two months of jail and six counts of caning (three strokes for each charge, which was reduced after an appeal for clemency from U.S. President Bill Clinton.), which teaches to learn to respect the regulations of the country that non-Singaporeans visit.
 |
| Marina Bay Sands Skypark, Base Jump, Singapore |
References:
[1]Ayee Macaraig, 'Philippines can succeed like Singapore', Published 6:00 PM, August 06, 2015, Updated 9:46 AM, August 08, 2015, http://www.rappler.com/world/specials/southeast-asia/101784-sg50-philippines-lessons-singapore
[2] Camille Diola, 15 things Lee Kuan Yew said about the Philippines, Updated March 23, 2015 - 11:29am, http://www.philstar.com/news-feature/2015/03/23/1436680/15-things-lee-kuan-yew-said-about-philippines
[3]PiliPinas 2016 Cebu Presidential Debate: Part 2 goes to Grace Poe, Published 9:50 PM, March 20, 2016
Updated 10:08 PM, March 20, 2016, http://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections/2016/126319-pilipinas-2016-presidential-debate-cebu-round-2-winner
[4] Maila Ager , MONEY LAUNDERING: Where did $81 million go?, http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/773406/money-laundering-where-did-81-million-go
[5] Lira Dalangin-Fernandez, InterAksyon.com, Elderly prisoners, including GMA, political detainees can gain from SC Enrile ruling - ex-justice, http://interaksyon.com/article/116701/elderly-prisoners-including-gma-political-detainees-can-gain-from-sc-enrile-ruling---ex-justice
[6] Marc Jayson Cayabyab, Sona: Aquino touts detention of Arroyo, Enrile, Revilla, Estrada, http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/708182/sona-aquino-touts-detention-of-arroyo-enrile-revilla-estrada
[7] Jee Y. Geronimo, Cebu debate: Duterte, Poe favor return of death penalty, http://www.rappler.com/nation/politics/elections/2016/126523-presidential-debate-duterte-poe-death-penalty
[8] Fact check: No proof the death penalty prevents crime
Updated http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-02-26/fact-check3a-does-the-death-penalty-deter3f/6116030
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment