GMA wants commuted death sentences reversed

Despite legal obstacles, President Arroyo wants the commuted death sentences of six kidnappers reversed so they can be executed as soon as possible.

"It’s time to send the champions of darkness to the lethal injection chamber," the President said, brushing aside criticism from the Roman Catholic Church which opposes capital punishment.

Mrs. Arroyo said she has examined her conscience and remaines "a very good Catholic" but criminals have been emboldened by her "suspending" the execution of some 1,815 convicts on death row.

"I think I’ve studied religion and theology long enough for me to know that there are ranges of interpretation and I’ve taken this course because of my duties as President," she said.

The Chief Executive said it wasn’t difficult for her to turn around from the stand she declared when she assumed the presidency in January.

She had consented to a moratorium on executions amid calls from some sectors for a review of Republic Act 7659, or the Heinous Crimes Law, that allowed capital punishment for crimes such as rape, kidnapping, murder and drug trafficking.

But criminals, particularly kidnappers, have become "more savage" and murder their victims even after the payment of ransom, she said.

A crime watchdog group has listed 93 kidnappings in which 202 people were abducted between January and September, including three Americans and 17 Filipinos seized by Abu Sayyaf bandits in May.

More than half of these 93 cases occurred in Metro Manila with the victims mostly wealthy Filipino-Chinese. The group believes kidnap gangs have collected about P141.8 million in ransom.

"It is now time to put an end to their cruelty. Let us now listen to the cries of their victims and their families. Let us now listen to the public’s call for justice," she stressed.