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| Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban |
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THE PHILIPPINES. DEATH PENALTY LAW UNCONSTITUTIONAL, CHIEF JUSTICE
April 24, 2006: moves to abolish the death penalty in the Philippines received a big boost when Chief Justice Artemio Panganiban said the law on capital punishment "as written" was unconstitutional. Speaking at the first Supreme Court media seminar, the country's top jurist said it was now up to Congress to repeal Republic Act No. 7659.
"The death penalty law as written is unconstitutional," Panganiban said. "Thus, it follows that lethal injection would also be unconstitutional."
He said that while the 1987 Constitution scrapped capital punishment, Congress was given the power to restore it on two conditions--that it be restored for heinous crimes and only on proof of "compelling reasons."
"Congress was not able to show the compelling reasons and the crimes mentioned therein are not heinous, anyway not all of them," Panganiban said. The options available to lawmakers are to "reduce the number of crimes punishable by death or abolish the death penalty entirely," he said. (Sources: Inquirer, 25/04/2006)
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