Former Attorney General Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj says the Government’s plan to bring back the hangman is an election gimmick to garner support from citizens who feel they are under siege from criminals.
Maharaj was responding to questions about the Government’s intention to once again attempt to pass the Constitution (Amendment) (Capital Offences) Bill 2015.
Speaking on Sunday at Gaston Courts, Chaguanas, following a meeting with the Clico policyholders group, Maharaj said during his time as AG, he was able to execute the death penalty under the existing law.
However, when he was asked to take a bill to parliament to make things “simpler,” Maharaj said it was met with a lot of opposition as proposed amendments would have facilitated the death penalty being carried out long after the stipulated period of five years had expired.
In the Pratt and Morgan ruling, the Privy Council ruled that it was inhumane for prisoners to wait more than five years on death row.
Once the stipulated period has passed, death row inmates can apply to have their sentences commuted to life.
Maharaj said the Caribbean Court of Justice had endorsed the Privy Council’s decision that it was unlawful to keep people on death row for an unusually long time, and had declared it unconstitutional, a move which had only provided the criminal elements with “a greater weapon.”
Prior to his exit as the AG, Maharaj advised the government of the time to take steps to expedite the process and reduce the delaying tactics often employed when a convicted prisoner was placed on death row.
He said that had now been changed so an appeal no longer had to be considered by the United Nations Human Rights Committee, the Inter-American Commission and other human rights bodies.
Maharaj said it was now only the Inter-American Commission which was involved in the process.
However, he added: “It is my view that this is a public relations exercise because the Government knows that this will be struck down by the courts and the criminals will have a better chance.
“What they should have done in the last four or five years, was to take steps in improving the administrative machinery to expedite the processes.
The AG had a duty to do that and he has failed. He is now coming to ask Parliament to try and give him the power to execute, when the bill will be challenged by all the death row prisoners.”
BACKGROUND
In February 2011, the Government failed to secure the support of opposition members to amend the controversial “hanging bill.”
It was defeated as 29 Government members voted in favor of it, while 11 Opposition members voted against it.
During last Friday’s parliamentary session, Attorney General Anand Ramlogan presented a letter to Opposition Leader Dr Keith Rowley, signaling the government’s intention to once again table the bill.
He invited Rowley to submit his party’s proposals to ensure the amendments were passed—and for the State to carry out the death sentence on convicted murderers, despite the length of time they took in exhausting appellate procedures. The current murder toll now stands at 17 for the first 11 days of the new year.