From Leela Ramdeen, Chair of GCL and CCSJ
Commemoration of the 12th World Day Against the Death Penalty has already started in the Greater Caribbean region as the Greater Caribbean for Life (GCL) hasembarked on a Speaking Tour to raise awareness of the inhumanity of the death penalty. GCL will visit 6 Caribbean countries between 4 – 16 October.
Please see articles below relating to the first two stops in Antigua and Jamaica.
Antigua – 4 October
Jamaica – 5 October
Saint- Lucia – 10 October
Grenada – 13 October
Barbados – 14 October
The Bahamas – 16 October
Also taking place on World Day, 10 October:
– In Jamaica, GCL Member, Peter Espeut will dedicate his weekly column in The Gleaner to the issue of capital punishment.
– In Trinidad and Tobago, the Catholic Commission for Social Justice will participate with Principals of some Catholic Schools to address the issue during the Schools’ Assemblies on the death penalty.
…Remember to tell us about YOUR World Day event!
First stop: Antigua and Barbuda, 4 October
The first event on the speaking tour took place on 4 October in Antigua and Barbuda. Some 70 persons gathered at the Multipurpose Cultural Center in St John’s on Saturday evening to hear a public lecture on the Death Penalty. The event was organised by GCL Member, Sir Clare Roberts, and the Antiguan & Barbudan organization which he Chairs, Human Rights for All. Sir Roberts is also the Deputy Governor of Antigua and Barbuda. He and his team did a great job in advertising the lecture in the Antiguan media.
The speakers at the event were:
– Leela Ramdeen, Chair of GCL and also Chair of the Catholic Commission for Social Justice in Trinidad and Tobago;
– Renny Cushing, member of the House of Representatives of the State of New Hampshire, USA, and founder and Executive Director of Murder Victims’ Families for Human Rights (an organization that comprises of families of murder victims who oppose capital punishment); and
– Juan Melendez, a Puerto Rican who spent nearly 18 years on death row in Florida for a crime he did not commit. He was exonerated in 2002.
A number of government officials attended the event including the Governor General, Dr. Rodney Williams, the Attorney General, Hon. Steadroy Benjamin and the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP), Mr. Anthony Armstrong. The crowd also included many university students and the media was well represented.
The evening was marked by lively discussion, with a crowd that was generally more in favour of capital punishment, including the Attorney General and DPP who maintained strong positions in favour of the death penalty.
The Chair of GCL gave an overview of the death penalty situation in the Greater Caribbean region, listing the many rulings and guidelines by the Judicial Council of the Privy Council which make it almost impossible for the English Speaking Caribbean countries to implement the death penalty. Her concern was that instead of “baying for blood”, many politicians in the region should be devising strategies/implementing policies that will promote respect for life and for the dignity of each person. She highlighted the recommendations outlined in the UNDP 2012 report on Human Development and the Shift to Better Citizen Security which states, inter alia, that countries in our region should develop a better balance between legitimate law enforcement and prevention, with a focus on prevention e.g. through youth development, job creation, addressing poverty and social exclusion.
She shared information about the aims and objectives of GCL, stressing that while GCL condemns the rise of violent crime in the region and expresses solidarity and compassion with the victims of crime, Members reject the notion that capital punishment acts as a deterrent or fosters respect for life in our communities; it will not help countries to build safer, more secure communities and will not promote sustainable development.
She also highlighted key issues relating to the World Day Theme for 2014: Mental Health: Care, Don’t Kill and referred the gathering to the material available on this issue on the WCADP wesite.
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Renny Cushing shared his personal experience as a victim, having lost his father to murder in 1988, and as an advocate for crime victims and for abolition. He stressed that victims’ families were not taken care of by society effectively and tended to focus on basic revenge instead of worrying about helping families cope with their loss. He explained that “another killing by the state is not going to do anything to bring our loved one back. All it’s going to do is to fill another coffin and create another grieving family”.
Another powerful testimony was delivered by Juan Melendez who described what it has been like to spend 17 years, 8 months and 1 day on death row awaiting capital punishment for a crime he did not commit. Juan’s story also sheds light on the 146 persons who have been exonerated in the USA alone since 1973. (See the following link for the Innocence List –
www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/innocence–list-those-freed-death-row
Juan told the audience how his mother, weeping shortly after his release, told him that even though she had been praying for a miracle that he would be released, she had been saving money during all those years to be able to bring his body home: an ordeal that no mother should have to go through.
After the event a prominent Barrister-at-Law, Attorney-at-Law and Notary Public who attended, wrote to Sir Roberts expressing his thanks for “an excellent discussion.” He said: “As you now know my post graduate studies at Cambridge in Criminology focused on the philosophy surrounding the question of punishment through sentencing. We were taught by Professor Nigel Walker and Dr David Thomas QC, who encouraged us to have lively debates and in depth study around the question of the death penalty…I am very much against state organized killing, which brings us down to the level of the perpetrators in the taking of human life. Please let me know when similar debates and discussion arise in the future as I am most interested in getting involved.”
Second stop: Jamaica – 5/6 October
From Antigua, the abolitionist trio headed to Jamaica to speak at a Public Forum at Campion College High School, Kingston Sunday afternoon. The audience of about 60 persons comprised mainly lawyers, students, and members of the Independent Jamaican Council for Human Rights (IJCHR). Dr Lloyd Barnett, a member of GCL’s Executive, is a member of IJCHR which group organised the event in collaboration with the Catholic Archbishop, Most Rev. Charles Dufour.
Archbishop Dufour and Jamaican Attorney-at-Law and former Judge at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Margarette May Macaulay were also present.
The debate focused on issues surrounding the use of the death penalty, including questions regarding Mental Health, the theme of the 12th World Day. Leela Ramdeen drew attention to the situation of people with mental health problems who are at risk of a death sentence or execution. She shared information about the availability of materials on the WCADP website to support activities on World Day on 10 October, reminding the gathering that, as the WCADP states: “While opposing the death penalty absolutely, abolitionists are also committed to see existing international human rights standards implemented. Among these is the requirement that persons with mental illness or intellectual disabilities should not face the death penalty.”
Again, she urged governments to adopt more appropriate/durable strategies to prevent crime. She pointed to examples such as Suriname: a country in the region that is in the process of removing the death penalty from its criminal code.
The audience was touched by the powerful testimonies of Juan and Renny. Among emotional moments, was when Renny Cushing recounted how one day in court, someone pointed out to him the son of his father’s killer. Later the offender’s son and Renny both found themselves alone in the car. The man started to apologise to Renny about his father’s act. Renny stopped him saying that he did not have to do so, as he had not committed the crime.
Juan’s story was also a basis to highlight the myriad of injustices that form part of death penalty systems: the high risk of it being imposed on innocent persons, as well as its unfair and unequal application on the basis of race and class. Strong points were made underlining these inequalities. Leela Ramdeen reminded the gathering of the saying: “Capital punishment is for those with no capital”.
On Monday 6 October, the abolitionist trio had a busy programme too. They appeared in the popular morning TV programme, Smile Jamaica, on TVJ; and on the morning radio show of CMB Radio. They then addressed Law Students at the Norman Manley Law School. From the lively question and answer session, it is clear that the students generally have questions about the humanity of the death penalty and of its deterrence to crime.
The Trio also met with Catholic Archbishop Charles Dufour who committed to take further action to address issues relating to the death penalty. Later in the afternoon, Juan Melendez and Renny Cushing had another radio interview with Dionne Jackson Miller.
The day ended with members of the IJCHR, together with Leela, Renny and Juan sharing a meal together.
PART 2 OF THE TOUR COMMENCES ON FRIDAY 10 OCTOBER – WORLD DAY AGAINST THE DEATH PENALTY
See the following link to WCADP’s Mobilization kit for use:
World Coalition Against the Death Penalty : uniting all those …
Also see the list of Innocence (146 innocent persons exonerated in the USA alone since 1973.
Also see information about 2 Death Row inmates with intellectual disabilities who were freed in North Caroline, USA, in September 2014
Death Penalty Information Center: DPIC
