Argumentative Essay: Life Imprisonment VS Death Penalty

Crimes are becoming more and more rampant in our country. A lot of prisoners are being sent to jail everyday. Punishment for those who commit major crimes like murder and such could be life imprisonment or death penalty. Although criminals are a menace to the society, the process by which they are penalized are still important and as such, life sentence in a country like Philippines is more applicable because 1) they are also human beings and they have the right to self-correction through rehabilitation, 2) with the corrupt and unfair justice system that we have, death penalty is abused and 3) death sentence is irreversible.

First, criminals are also like us; they too are human beings who have the right to self-correction through rehabilitation. Sometimes these criminals kill, steal and the like because of their environment. An example is poor people. These people may have reasons why they commit crimes. They have nothing to eat or no money to spend. So what do they do? They steal from people just so they can live a normal life. Another instance is when they are paid to do something illegal. The poor have no other choice because they think that this is he only way to have a normal life.

There is still room for change. On my trip to Palawan, we went to Iwahig. Iwahig is where different prisoners from Manila, Cebu and other places are kept. What is interesting about this prison is that criminals are not behind bars. They are free to wander around Iwahig. There are three classifications: brown, blue and orange. These classifications show how much longer the prisoner will stay in Iwahig. Brown and Blue inmates are free to roam around. They even sell products to tourists to make money. On their shirts, minimum and medium is written respectively. This means that they have less than five years to stay in Iwahig. Based from how I interacted with these inmates, I can see that they have changed for the better. Even though they are about to get out of prison, some inmates just lived there and brought their families to Iwahig. There are houses made for them. They are too scared of what the people might do to them when they learn that they are already out of prison. Some might seek for revenge. These people are human beings too. They know how to feel and love. They, too, fear the people around them. These people can still change if given a life sentence but a death penalty is something you cannot correct anymore.

Second is that the justice system in our country is corrupt and unfair; thus, death penalty is abused. I have heard some stories from people that our justice system is not very fair. Why? It is because people who have money can easily file a case and get done with it while for the poor cannot afford to make "under the table" agreements that is why our justice system is corrupt and unfair. We all know about the plunder case of Erap. He abused his power before as the President of our country. He was accused by Chavit Singson of taking jueteng money and tobacco tax kickbacks. His trial in the senate was a mess since the trial was aborted for no good reason at all, ("Only God Can Get Rid of Erap Now", 2007) This only proves that we have an unfair and corrupt justice system in our country.

Last is that death penalty is irreversible. We cannot be assured that death sentence will be given to deserving criminals because of our current judicial inefficiencies. A mistake is death penalty is something that you cannot take back. Our current judicial system has been abusive of death penalty. They do not choose life imprisonment. In life imprisonment, you can still see that there is a change in man. Life imprisonment somehow helps the prisoner. Death penalty cannot. A criminal also has a family. He is influenced by those around him. When he see that he is still loved by his family because they visit him frequently, there is still chance for him to change. A death penalty is irreversible. Once you get a life from another person, it cannot be brought back.

Life imprisonment is more advisable than death penalty. Another life cannot be wasted because of another life or wrong doing. Who knows, maybe this person will change the future, right? Death penalty is a risky one. It is something that cannot be undone. It should be taken seriously and should not be abused. There is still a room for change in a person. We cannot be certain of death penalty as a solution to a crime that has been committed. Life is an important gift given by God. We should learn how to take care of it. Death is not the only solution to the problem because in the end, it is our loss and not only their family's loss because they too are human beings. We all know what it feels like to lose someone.

Reference:

Only God Can Get Rid of Erap Now. (October 7,2007) Retrieved April 5,2010 from

http://www.artfreaks.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=415

Reflection:

I had a hard time writing this essay. :( It was hard to choose what topic to write about. When I chose this, life imprisonment vs death penalty, I looked for references that can help me write this essay. But I was not able to find something that would support my stand. It is a good thing that I know something about this but still it was not enough to make a good essay. I should have looked for sources that would have supported my stand.