SWS: Filipinos prefer life terms for drug-related crimes

MANILA, Philippines — A majority of Filipinos prefer the imposition of life imprisonment for seven drug-related crimes instead of the death penalty, a survey by Social Weather Stations (SWS) showed.

Commissioned by the Commission on Human Rights (CHR), the survey results were released yesterday coinciding with the 16th World Day Against Death Penalty.

Results of the SWS survey conducted in March showed that less than 40 percent of Filipinos believe that the death penalty should be the punishment for those convicted of crimes related to illegal drugs.

The pollster asked the respondents what the punishment should be for those found to have committed seven drug-related offenses: importation of illegal drugs, maintenance of drug dens, manufacture of illegal drugs, murder under the influence of drugs, rape under the influence of drugs, sale of illegal drugs and working in drug dens.

The respondents were given four punishment options such as 20 years in prison, 40 years in prison, life imprisonment and death penalty.

For six out of the seven crimes, the survey showed that 33 percent demanded death penalty as punishment, with majority choosing life imprisonment.

The exception is for rape committed under the influence of drugs, where more people – although still a minority of 47 percent – prefer death penalty rather than life imprisonment (44 percent). 

Six percent chose 40 years in prison for rape committed while under the influence of drugs while three percent chose 20 years.

CHR Commissioner Karen Gomez-Dumpit said the survey aims to get the perception of Filipinos about the death penalty.

A previous survey showed that a majority of Filipinos support the re-imposition of death penalty for heinous crimes related to illegal drugs.

According to Dumpit, the latest survey revealed that fewer Filipinos agree with reinstating the death penalty if there are alternatives.

“The survey showed that if people were given a choice, seven in 10 would not choose death penalty (for most offenses). This should be a reminder for us. We have to frame our issues in a way that people have alternatives,” she said.

Other crimes

The other drug-related crimes included in the survey were working in drug dens (54 percent for life imprisonment, 22 percent for death penalty), sale of illegal drugs (55 percent for life imprisonment, 24 percent for death penalty) and maintenance of drug dens (53 percent for life imprisonment, 30 percent for death penalty).

Also included were murder under the influence of illegal drugs (51 percent for life imprisonment, 30 percent for death penalty), importation of illegal drugs (53 percent for life imprisonment, 31 percent for death penalty) and manufacture of illegal drugs (51 percent for life imprisonment, 33 percent for death penalty).

A majority of the respondents agreed that death penalty should be re-imposed for people proven by courts to have committed serious crimes (59 percent agree, 33 percent disagree).

The CHR has reiterated that death penalty is not the solution to deter crimes.

Dumpit said they would submit the survey results to Congress in support of their position against the death penalty.