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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.
Tochi Deserved to Live but Singapore Murdered Him Printable Version PRINTABLE VERSION
by Wilfred Mamah, United Kingdom Feb 6, 2007
Human Rights   Opinions

  


The ICCPR Committee has also found violations of Art. 6, in cases, involving the application of the death penalty, without compliance to the convicts right to fair trial. See Llyodell Richards v. Jamaica, Communication NO 535/1993, UN Doc.CCPR/C/59/D/535/1993; Pratt & Morgan v. Jamaica, Communication No. 210/1986 and 225/1987 (6 April 1989); UN Supp. NO 40 (A/44/40 AT 222.

In the case of the 19 year old Nigerian; Tochi Amara Iwuchukwu; Singapore shifted the burden of proof from the state to the accused. The trial judge gave a clear indication that it is possible that Tochi did not know that what he was carrying was hard drugs. In the absence of the guilty mind, “mens rea; the actus reus, i.e. the actual act of carrying the drugs does not lead to guilt. Fair trial is therefore in issue here, but Singapore went ahead to execute the young boy, without giving any attention to any mitigating circumstance, insisting on their strict law that stipulates for a compulsory death sentence, which the judges, had to interpret strictly in defiance to the fundamental requirement of fair trial. It is indeed a real shame that a young boy of 19 should die in such a way in the 21st century.

The truth that must be faced is that as long as death penalty continues to be imposed, the society would continue to spread the deadly gospel of violence. The dangerous philosophy of deterrence, disablement and vengeance are at the heart of the culture of violence holding sway across the world. The best punishment for Saddam Hussein would have been to spend the rest of his life in jail, but Iraq chose the path of vengeance and retribution and we would have to spend the rest of our lives, trying to explain to our children that the horrific execution of Saddam, distributed on the World Wide Web, equals to justice. They may want to know, what indeed justice is, and whether justice is culture-specific. They may want to know what is just in the destruction of human life. They may want to know the difference between when a state kills and when an individual does same?

The Way Forward:
Let us face it: the philosophy of deterrence, disablement and vengeance has lost all forms of attraction. There are empirical basis to show that death penalty does not deter violent criminals. What deters offenders is the certainty of detection and punishment and there are so many ways to punish offenders. No society that retains the death penalty can claim to be an open society. Our conception of an open society is one that is transparent, tolerant and that strives to achieve what we would like to term “comprehensive justice”, that is, justice that is not one sided. Justice must connect to the realities of human existence, and factor in the challenges and deprivation that the human person continuously face. The state, must exercise leadership in the seeming feud between the forces of good and bad in any society. We have often said that the state must stand on a higher pedestal than the depraved offender.

It is heartening to note that Nigeria is on the path to an open society. Considering the strategic position of Nigeria, in Africa, we should not lose track as a result of the dangerous philosophy of deterrence, holding sway in Iraq and Singapore and some states of America. OBJ should be encouraged to learn a few lessons from the way Singapore shunned his pleas, for Tochi and take a significant step with the National Assembly to abolish this strange penalty. The Nigerian judiciary should be encouraged to continue to promote the rehabilitative theories of punishment. The state’s right to punish offenders is incontestable, but punishment must have utilitarian bases. The era of an “eye for an eye” is gone. Every society must go within itself in soul searching for answers to the dilemma of crime. Why are they criminals? What should be done to improve the justice system and ensure that law abiding citizens are protected? How do we develop alternatives and seek to recapture the offender and turn him around? How do we develop a comprehensive strategy for assisting victims of crimes? These are serious questions that no society can shy away from. Death Penalty is a cowardly way of confronting the real issues of crime and criminality. Iraq and Singapore should be instances of how not to punish in the 21st century and beyond.

We use this opportunity to appeal to the Attorney General of the Federation, Chief Bayo Ojo, to make public and implement the recommendations contained in the Prof. Oluyemi Bamgbose-led National Study Group on Death Penalty of 2004, which recommended that a moratorium be put in place pending when the issue of the death penalty is constructively debated by the Nigerian people and a consensus reached as to its abolition or retention in our statute books. We also call on the National Assembly to pass the Moratorium Bill submitted by HURILAWS in 2004 and make history before the curtain falls on May 29th on their tenure.

* Willy Mamah researches International Humanitarian Law, in London;







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yes
Chucks Evuka | Feb 27th, 2007
Death panality is total misreguard to humanity,why must evil be paid for evil,giving warnings is accepted but deathpanalty no.it is time to change for good and stop the olden days method of handling issues. thans chuks

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