The death penalty between supporters and opponents
The death penalty is one of the oldest punishments in history and has traces in ancient civilizations, such as: the Greek and Pharaonic civilizations, and execution was applied in these civilizations. As for Islamic legislation, although it stipulated the death penalty, it resorted to alternatives such as: the pardon of blood relatives, the blood money paid to the victim’s family. So what is execution? And what is the death penalty? What are the pros and cons of execution?
Concept of death penalty:
The death penalty is defined as the killing of the offender by a judicial decision because of the commission of a major crime, and this crime is defined by the Penal Code, where these crimes are limited, so the punishment must be contained in a judicial ruling and be applied in court, and if this is disturbed, then the death penalty is outside the law. Law.
Resorting to the death penalty in the societies in which this penalty is applied, such as Iraq and Egypt, reduces heinous crimes such as: terrorism, treason, sexual abuse and drugs, and it is a deterrent as it deters criminal thinking from committing serious crimes because the law in those societies stipulates the death penalty, and on the other hand it is considered The death penalty is a cruel, degrading, inhuman punishment that violates the human right to life.
Countries that apply and countries that do not apply the death penalty:
Countries that apply the death penalty: Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, North Korea, India, Chad, Russia, China, Guinea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nigeria, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, USA, Vietnam, UAE, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Iraq Iran, Egypt, Jordan, Oman, Bahrain.
Countries that do not apply the death penalty: Comoros, Congo, Ethiopia, Cuba, Zambia, Lebanon, Palestine, Qatar.
The death penalty between its supporters and opponents?
The death penalty is considered a controversial punishment in most countries, where the increase in crimes has led to a lot of talk about the death penalty. The opposing position is the rejection of the European Union, Amnesty International and many human rights organizations to the death penalty, which violates the human right to life.
First - the most important arguments of its opponents:
The death penalty is an inhumane punishment.
The death penalty violates the human right to life.
The death penalty does not have a deterrent effect, as it does not prevent people from committing crimes.
Countries that apply the death penalty do not have a fair judicial system.
It may be applied wrongly by the justice authorities, and if the convicted person is actually innocent, then he committed an error that cannot be corrected after killing an innocent soul.
The death sentence is revenge, not justice.
The death penalty perpetuates the idea of killing rather than combating it.
Secondly, the most important arguments of its supporters:
The reasons for the death penalty are commensurate with the act of murder.
Ending the murderer's life will prevent him from committing new crimes and serve as an example to those who dare to approach these serious crimes.
The families of the victims feel justice as they refrain from retribution or revenge themselves.
Death penalty according to Amnesty International?
Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases without exception. Every day people are killed against the state as punishment for many crimes, sometimes for acts that should not be criminal, in some countries it can be for drug-related offences, and in some cases for acts of It is linked to terrorism and premeditated murder, and in some countries it executes people under the age of 18 when they committed the crime, and other countries use the death penalty for people with mental disabilities, Amnesty International considers it a violation of human rights to life because he has the right to life and the right not to be tortured or cruel or humiliating punishment.
In 2019, Amnesty International recorded 657 executions, and in 2020, Amnesty International recorded 483 executions in 18 countries, and this indicates a decrease in the execution rate by 26%, which is the lowest number for Amnesty International. Amnesty International believes that the death penalty is a symptom of The phenomenon of violence is not a solution to it.
The death penalty was widely applied in the West in ancient times, but there were calls for its abolition because it contradicts the right to life and the importance of man in society, and that life is a gift from God to the individual, and he is the one who takes it away from him, and no one else has the right to take this right from him. It must be noted that the death penalty has declined in the world on a large scale with the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, and in the end, making hasty decisions to execute a person may not solve a problem. We have an obligation to impose life-threatening penalties in order to maintain decent behavior in society.