Prime Minister Stephen Harper supports the death penalty, in some cases.
But he wouldn’t try to bring it back, even if he had a majority government.
So why bring it up at all?
No doubt Mr. Harper is floating the idea to re-solidify his base of support, talk about it now while there is time, before an election.
Of course, the Liberals are again accusing him of a hidden agenda.
Other countries have death penalty legislation, including the U.S., China, India, as well as Arab states like Iraq and Iran.
Between 1892 and 1961, the penalty for all murders in Canada was death by hanging. There were 710 executions in Canada between 1867 and 1962. The last was on Dec. 11, 1962, when two men were hanged in Toronto.
Canada abolished capital punishment in 1976, except for a few military offenses, such as treason and mutiny. But even those allowances were done away with in 1998.
Studies have shown that capital punishment doesn’t deter or control crime, not to mention how expensive it is.
Would it even lessen the burden on our over-populated prisons?
Probably not, if you look at the U.S., where is so rarely occurs.
But the idea of sticking a deadly needle into Clifford Robert Olson probably resonates with some victims, and voters.
We wonder, how would Mr. Harper serve capital punishment? Electric chair? Public stoning?
And who would be picked for such punishment? Paul Bernardo? Thomas Sophonow?
Possibly the only thing stopping the Conservatives from bringing back the death penalty could be their minority status, and that scares some people.
But we suspect those people already fear Mr. Harper, which he probably knows.
What he’s doing here is gearing up for a campaign on moral issues, to generate more voter interest and support. It’s easier to talk about the death penalty than, say, immigration.
So have no fear, the death penalty is not near, just a federal election date sometime this year.
– The News
