21 May 2008 :

in the Philippines, Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez rejected proposals to revive the death penalty. Gonzalez said there is no sufficient study yet that shows that the death penalty will prevent criminals from committing heinous crimes.
"There has been no sufficient study which will tell us if the death penalty was really a deterrent. What is important is to make sure there is proper reinforcement. This may be better than imposing death penalty," he said.
Gonzalez said it is up to Congress if it wants to revive the death penalty.