Can justice coexist with mercy?
Justice: the quality of being fair and just. Mercy: leniency and compassion shown towards the offender. In definition, these two are completely different. Therefore, many people think that justice cannot coexist with mercy. I do agree with them.
I would like to tackle the question by asking what is the purpose of the law? The law is to make sure that the people who commit crimes get their punishment so as to maintain peace and security in the country. Justice is the result of law where the offenders get their just punishment according to the severity of the crimes. Before a sentence is passed, the judge would have considered the mental state, the need for self–defence and the circumstances leading to the crime. This is part of being just.
Showing mercy is different, it is giving the person a second chance in life after he has committed a crime. It may be because he realized what he has done is wrong. If there was mercy in giving the punishment, then the law would lose its purpose. For example, if we give a lighter sentence to one culprit, then we have to do the same for all the rest. If this continues, no one will get a tough sentence because everyone will just apologise and say they regretted what they have done. There is no way to give a tougher sentence because people will argue that it is not fair that others get a lighter sentence and he gets a tougher one.
I would like to quote the case of Vui Kong to support the argument that mercy cannot coexist with mercy. Vui Kong was caught for drug trafficking in 2008 when he was 19 year old. He was sentenced to death. While Vui Kong was serving his jail sentence, he repented.
He used to be a wayward teen who cared for no one but himself. But testimonies from those who were closest to him, including prison guards and family members, indicated that Vui Kong has matured and realized his mistakes. He started to learn English and Chinese during his term in the prison. He also learnt to meditate and even became a Buddhist.
Vui Kong has said that if he was given a second chance, he would dedicate the rest of his life to helping young people like him to stay away from crime.
After reading about his story, Mr Andre Loh, a Singaporean, wrote a letter of plea to President SR Nathan to ask for mercy. Many Singaporeans also signed online petition not to hang him.
I have extracted the following paragraph from Mr Loh’s letter to Mr Nathan, “I am certain that Vui Kong, if given to mentorship under someone such as Mr Lim – who by the way has said he is willing to take Vui Kong under his wings – will be an invaluable asset to the Government’s strategy to curb the inflow of drugs into Singapore.”
In this case, the government stood firm. I agree with the outcome because we should always think before we act. Vui Kong knew what was the punishment for drug trafficking and if he still did it for the greed of money, he had to pay a price for it.
If we start to be lenient, people will act rashly. What is there to deter someone from doing wrong ? What will become of the society ?
No comments:
Post a Comment