International Exchange in 倉敷コミュのShould Japan abolish death penalty?

I don' t support the death penalty. I understand the pain the
husband must be going through losing his wife and young child
but I think it is better to put someone who committed a crime
like this in prison without any chance of release until the day
they die.
As you mentioned, the death penalty doesn't work as a deterrent.
It doesn't make the victim's family feel any better, they have still
lost the person they love. And it costs millions of dollars.
If you look at the case of the United States there have been many
people who have been executed who it was later discovered were
innocent. Also in the U.S. an African American and a white person
can commit the exact same crime but the African American is
10 times more likely to receive the death penalty.
I don't think people who commit crimes like this have human rights.
They have shown themselves to be animals and I think they should
be put in prison and never let out, but revenge is not justice and
the death penalty seems too much like revenge.

===============================================

(you're English is very good. It doesn't really need correction but
I have changed it a little to make it sound more natural. Where
I have removed words I have put <>. Where I have changed
words I have put them in CAPITALS)

Now, many developed countries have abolished THE death penalty,
but it’s unlikely to happen in Japan. Despite the international trend,
80% of Japanese think THE death penalty should be maintained.
Opponents <> say it’s cruel, but doesn’t this <> offend the emotions
of THE victims’ family?

In April, THE Yamaguchi Supreme Court sentenced a man, now 27,
to DEATH for killing a woman and her daughter in 1999. He got into
THEIR apartment BY pretending to be a repair man, and killed the 23
year-old woman to rape her. <> He ALSO smashed her 11 month-old
baby, who was crying, <> on the floor and strangled her.

The trial was controversial from the beginning because the man was
a minor when he committed the crime. In the first trial, THE Yamaguchi
District Court sentenced the man to indefinite imprisonment. The judge
said, “He was just 18 years old <> and can be rehabilitated.”
In the second trial held at THE Yamaguchi Supreme Court, the same
decision was made.
The husband of the woman, now 32, <> was strongly opposed to the
SENTENCE because under the current juvenile law, the criminal
may be released in AS LITTLE AS 7 years. He said, in a press conference,
“I would go <> kill him myself if HE IS RELEASED without the most severe
punishment.”
Many people seemed to identify with him. The case was sent to Hiroshima
High Court and THEY decided to send the case back to Yamaguchi Supreme
Court. Finally, in the retrial held at THE Yamaguchi Supreme Court, the judge
decided to give the defendant THE death sentence <>. The judge said,
“Considering the atrocity of the crime, there is no sufficient reason to avoid
death penalty.”

People aged over 18 can be sentenced to DEATH according to the juvenile
law in Japan. But it’s rare for minors to be given THE death sentence <>.
The defendant just turned 18 at that time of the crime, so his <> lawyers
ARGUED that he COULD be rehabilitated AND THE DEATH PENALTY
should be avoided. Some of them are advocates of abolishing CAPITAL
PUNISHMENT. They say “Even a MURDERER has human rights. He
should be given a second chance.”
For THE victims’ family, they never have a second chance. .

However, it's true that even capital punishment is not working to reduce
heinous crime.
<> Some people are not EVEN afraid of being executed.
In June, Tsutomu Miyazaki, who killed four young girls in 1988 and
1989, was hanged.
According to a news source, he DIDN'T SHOW ANY REMORSE OR OFFER
AN APOLOGY.

SO, is death penalty meaningless?
I'd like to hear from both sides, people who support death penalty and
advocates of abolishing it.

Thank you very much for the comment and corrections, Ian.
You are always helpful.

Back to the topic.
Revenge is never justified, but I would feel the same with the husband of the woman
in Yamaguchi’s case if a member of my family was killed. We can’t revenge, so we count on the law.
In Japan, there is no life-imprisonment. Some experts say it is difficult for Japan to apply life imprisonment. Indefinite imprisonment in Japan means prisoners can be released in 20 years on average, and have a chance to come back to the society. In case of juvenile criminals, that period is shorter.

If we had life imprisonment, it would make any difference. But looking at the bizzare murder cases these days happened, there is no balance between the gravity of crime
and punishment. In case of Tsutomu Miyazaki, he burned the victims’
bodies and sent one of the victims’ bone to her parents with a criminal declaration.
Some years ago, a man who molested a little girl and killed her in Nara pref. was sentenced to death. The incident was sensational because he sent a photo of the dead girl to her mother by cell phone after he drowned the girl. In such cruel murder cases, most victims’ families call for capital punishment.

Also, I suppose it costs more than the death penalty. It
takes a lot of public money to keep prisoners alive. They have to be treated as human beings as long as they live. Victim’s family would suffer from the dilemma that
their beloved family member was brutally killed while the killer is kept alive.

I read that Australia abolished the death penalty in 1985. How did it change your country? Did the crime rate in your country decrease? How does your country deal with the emotions of victims’ family?

Thank you for reading this!
I’d be glad if you corrected this one, too.

In Australia there is a prison sentence called "life with no possibility of parole".
That is for the worst of criminals and it really means that they will die in jail.

They also have a sentence where a prisoner who is likely to commit another
crime can be held in prison indefinitely. This law was created to keep pedophiles
who don't feel any remorse in prison.

I believe that if the government of Japan made some laws for the worst criminals
where they could go to prison and never be released, that would be a greater
punishment than death.

I don't think prison should be easy for these criminals who are the worst. I think
they should be allowed a few books and maybe a radio but apart from that I
think they should have no luxuries. They should work 6 days per week to pay
for the cost of keeping them and if they refuse to work they should lose the
few luxuries they have. I don't believe they should have contact with other
prisoners. Maybe you can see that what I am describing isn't something
anyone would enjoy.

I understand the pain of the family and when you described the crime in
Yamaguchi I felt some of that pain myself. I can't say the husband is
wrong to feel the way he does, I would feel the same...and yet I still think
the death penalty is wrong.

A few years ago a group of militant Muslims set off some bombs in Bali
(Indonesia). Many Australians died as well as people from other countries
including Japan. The bombers were sentenced to death and a few days
ago their last appeal failed so they will probably be shot within a month.

The father of one of the young men who died has always said the killers
should not be killed. He even appealed to the Indonesian government
to give them life in prison, not death. He said that if his life was ruined
because of what these killers did, they wouldn't have just killed his son,
in a sense they would have killed him. So instead he chose to forgive
them. I don't know if I could be so forgiving but I think his is an
interesting example.

Revenge is never justified, but I would feel the same AS
the husband of the woman in THE Yamaguchi case, if a
member of my family was killed. We can’t AVENGE, so we
count on the law.
In Japan, there is no life-imprisonment. Some experts say it
is difficult for Japan to apply life imprisonment. Indefinite
imprisonment in Japan means prisoners can be released in AS
LITTLE AS 20 years <>, and have a chance to come back to
<> society. In case of juvenile criminals, that period is shorter.

If we had life imprisonment, would it make any difference? <> BUT looking
at the bizzare murder cases these days, there is no balance between
the gravity of crime and THE punishment. In case of Tsutomu
Miyazaki, he burned the victims’ bodies and sent one of the victims’ BONES
to her parents with a criminal declaration.
Some years ago, a man who molested a little girl and killed her in Nara
pref. was sentenced to death. The incident was sensational because he
sent a photo of the dead girl to her mother by cell phone after he drowned
the girl. In such cruel murder cases, most victims’ families call for capital
punishment.

Also, I suppose PRISON costs more than the death penalty. It
takes a lot of public money to keep prisoners alive. They have to be
treated as human beings as long as they live. THE victim’s family would
suffer from the dilemma that their beloved family member was brutally
killed while the killer is kept alive.

I read that Australia abolished the death penalty in 1985. How did it change
your country? Did the crime rate in your country decrease? How does your
country deal with the emotions of victims’ family?