Priest peeved by Govt plan to enforce hanging
By Akile Simon
ROMAN CATHOLIC priest, Fr Reginald Hezekiah, has lashed out at Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar’s plan to carry out the death penalty.
The contentious issue of returning to the hangman was first raised by Works and Transport Minister Jack Warner. The issue was supported by members of the public, several of Warner’s colleagues and most recently Justice Minister Herbert Volney, who last week called for the hangings to be done in public.
Speaking during mass at the St Charles’ RC Church in Tunapuna on Sunday evening, however, Hezekiah said it was morally incorrect for Persad-Bissessar’s Government to decide to hang convicted murderers.
He said previously, Persad-Bissessar quoted scriptures from the Old and New Testaments to support the death penalty, but it appeared she was now in need of a copy of the Bible and someone to read it for her.
Not all the laws of the land are in keeping with God’s will and commandments, Hezekiah told the congregation.
“We hearing all kinds of arguments. ‘Break their necks, they kill people, pop their necks. Why we spending all this set of money keeping them (murderers) in jail and they would never change’. Our Prime Minister saying, the Old Testament says ‘an-eye-for-an-eye and a-tooth-for-a-tooth’. Then she continues … the New Testament says, ‘forgive… It’s our choice’. It’s not our choice! We need to teach her the Bible, okay. We need to send her a Bible, because that’s not what the Bible says,” Hezekiah told the congregation.
“Jesus said, in the Old Testament in the former times, he said, that ‘an-eye-for-an-eye and a-tooth-for-a tooth’, but he says, ‘I say to you, love your enemies. Love one another as I have loved you.’ This is what he said. ‘I give you a new commandment’.”
During Government’s retreat in Tobago last week, Persad-Bissessar added her voice to the ongoing issue by saying the death penalty by hanging is the law of the land and the People’s Partnership Government will abide by that law.
“Should we resume hangings? Should we not resume hangings? It is the law of the land. For the time being, that is the law of the land, as far as we can we will abide by the rule of law and implement the law of Trinidad and Tobago,” the Prime Minister said.
Also in Tobago, Persad-Bissessar said she was unhappy that her ministers were discussing the issue in public. Yesterday, her mandate seemed to have been followed as Warner refused to answers questions on hanging during the unveiling of four new water taxis.
Referring to the Prime Minister’s statement, he said he would concede to her wish for no more public debating on it, but that his stance remained the same.
On Sunday, Hezekiah said several laws of the land were not in accordance with God’s teachings and when the time comes, those responsible for such breaches will have to answer.
“Because something is the law of the land doesn’t mean it’s morally correct. We need to understand that. Very often, history would tell us that we have to go against laws that were passed by governments,” Hezekiah said. (Trinidad Express)