Philippine house passes death pelty bill

Manila, March 7: The Philippine House of Representatives on Tuesday passed a controversial bill to restore death pelty in the country. President Rodrigo Duterte, who took office in June last year, has pushed for the reimposition of the capital punishment, Xinhua news agency reported. According to Duterte, it is an effective deterrent against heinous crimes such as drug-related offences. The approval came on third and fil reading, much to the displeasure of those opposing the measure. A total of 216 voted in favour, 54 against and one abstained, approving the bill eight months after it was filed. From an initial list of 21 crimes that included rape, treason and plunder, the House leadership decided to limit death pelty to drug-related crimes and offences. “We agreed the bill will only be limited to drug-related heinous crimes,” Oriental Mindoro Representative Reyldo Umali, chair of the House Justice committee, said last week. However, Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez did not discount the possibility that the crimes origilly stipulated in the bill he proposed months ago could be restored in the bill in the bicameral conference committee. (IANS)