Quote... unquote: Jos Peter D'Souza on the death sentence and capital punishment

Criminal lawyer Jos Peter D'Souza has this to say in the RENEWAL:

Since the recent judgement in Goa (a death sentence) was delivered by a judge who professes the Catholic faith, it would be interesting to look into the stand of the church on the question of capital punishment....

And:

Most folks in Goa have forgotten about the last time there was a hanging at Aguada Central Jail. The hangman had to be brought in all the way from Calcutta. The hanging did not even cause a ripple in our society. Murders and rapes continued. A full generation has passed. This time round, things are different. No longer are people willing to be silent spectators when there is a dead man walking. The Church here in Goa, especially, will be expected to take up the debate. After all, it has been vociferous on various social issues, and this is a matter of life and death. The question is, will it.

Peter, one of the young Goans who returned from Mumbai in the 'seventies, and is now a prominent lawyer based in Mapusa (handling a number of narcotics cases in recent years), suggests that the Church hates the sin, but never the sinner. He writes: "Abolition of the death penalty is further testimony to our conviction that God is indeed the Lord of life." He cites the statement on death penalty which came from the Catholic Bishops of the United States in 1980.