At the ceremonial commissioning of the Talparo Potable Water Treatment Plant, Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar committed her government to implementing the death penalty to curb what she described as a "tsunami of crime" in Trinidad and Tobago. A year ago, the Government tabled legislation in Parliament to amend the constitution to create three categories of murder and remove some legislative obstacles to the death penalty, but the bill encountered firm resistance from the Opposition who objected to the legislation. The Prime Minister's announcement seemed to be a hasty and predictable response to the sharp spike in criminal activity which followed the lifting of the state of emergency, casting a grim pall on efforts by government ministers and the police service to put a good face on any lasting effect that the SoE might have had on crime.
The last fortnight specifically has seen a sharp rise in particularly brazen murders, and a death count of 30 murders committed in the first 22 days of the year. Public confidence in the capacity of the police service to either limit crime or bring brazen killers to justice is rapidly dimming. According to the Prime Minister, "...the majority of the citizenry are interested in having the death penalty implemented. It is part of the law of Trinidad and Tobago." And so it is. But ever since 1999 when former Attorney General Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj implemented the death penalty, hanging Dole Chadee and eight drug dealing accomplices, the mortal punishment solution has been held in abeyance. The legislation, The Constitution (Amendment) (Capital Offences) Bill, proposed by the Prime Minister in January 2011, is not required to resume hanging, but it is an overdue effort to streamline and clarify the process of appeals that makes incarceration on death row a long, drawn out affair.
Clearly, a balance must be struck between a prisoner's right to appeal the most fatal of convictions and the successful, timely execution of their sentence. At least one of the steps along that road will be the shifting of this country's court of final appeal from the Privy Council to the Caribbean Court of Justice. The discussion at this juncture is not about issues of morality related to the death penalty, but about the process by which the Prime Minister is seeking to resume efforts to implement the death penalty. There are many issues at play in resuming hangings in Trinidad and Tobago. It's a polarising issue that demands an opportunity for broader discussion and consultation, which would offer the Government a chance to make its case for the death penalty with communities and muster a more transparently gathered collection of opinions and suggestions to Parliament for discussion.
There is no evidence of public consultation on the matter, nor have citizens had an opportunity to articulate their thoughts on the matter. It's certainly a debate worth having. There are many aspects of criminal investigation and jurisprudence that constitute the path that leads from arrest to execution for a murder accused that demand review and informed consideration. Such discussions would only lead to a more lucid ventilation of the issues, greater transparency in the process, reduced opportunity for wrongful incarceration and a greater sense of justice for victims in the result of the legal process. Evidence gathering and warehousing, the DNA identification process, the appeals process and the method of execution are just a few of the issues that remain shakily managed in Trinidad and Tobago and that are clearly in dire need of procedural analysis and review. Before leaping directly to the hangman's noose as a salve for the nation's ills, the Prime Minister should take the time to ensure that the path to that final solution is clear, fair and capable of standing up to critical review.