Death Penalty

Death penalty has been used as a punishment for criminals since ancient times. Nowadays, some countries have abolished this penalty while some others still apply it. The controversy is whether it should be used in Mexico as a more effective way to punish murderers. The main supporters of death penalty are of course the 18 countries that still apply it. China, Japan and USA are the more representative countries that have preserved low crime rates through an effective application of this punishment. I am not stating that we should imitate everything they do just because they are first world countries. We must see them as a positive example and a guide to apply this punishment according to the demands of Mexico´s situation. And the current situation that we live in our country is truly critical and alarming; criminals have taken control over our streets and our lives, they commit the cruelest and inhuman crimes without showing regret. For this reason, we need a better punishment to bring back peace and safety to the citizens. As in everything else in life, we need to consider both sides of the coin. The main opponent of the application of this penalty is the UNCHR (United Nations Commission on Human Rights) that claims that this is not an effective solution and it carries more problems that what it solves. Since it is an international organization with high credibility, we need to pay attention to its arguments and then make refutations based on an objective use of reason. Those who disagree state that jail time is sufficient punishment for criminals so death penalty is unnecessary. To a certain extent they may be right, but unfortunately in Mexico, prisons can be considered crime schools because criminals comfortably live and continue operating inside their cages. They learn new crime modalities, contact new people so when they are set free, they go back to what they do best: committing crimes. Some people argue that applying this penalty would be against God´s will because nobody is in right of taking a human life under any circumstances. I would like to ask those people: Does a murderer think of God while committing his crime? I do not think so. Besides, history has shown us that religion and law are two different things that must remain separated from each other for an objective and fair application of justice. Other opponents of this idea claim that innocent people may be unfairly punished by the death penalty; they have a point in thinking like that because our legal system is not really trustworthy. This is why my proposal implies deep changes in our complete system facing other problems like corruption. Once we change this, we can apply a death penalty knowing that it will be a fair and effective punishment. Criminals in Mexico can now be considered terrorists; people are afraid of going out and living a normal life. That is unfair, we cannot continue hiding and keeping our heads down. The government should bring back peace and confidence to its citizens. Death penalty would be a good start because criminals would have to think twice before taking a human life; those who continue committing this crime would be eradicated from the streets for good and our country would be a better place.