The death penalty is often a hotly debated topic here in America. In more forward thinking countries in Europe no such things exist. In fact, I personally believed the death penalty to be one of the contributing factors to instability and a deterrent for growth in a country. China, Japan, and other Asian countries may be able to rebuttal that notion though as their populations, economics, and military strength have grown over the years.
Needless to say though, as The Guardian article states, "The Amnesty International report...showed the death penalty has been maintained, and even re-emerged, in law and practice across the Asia-Pacific." What I found particularly striking was even some economic crimes were deemed punishable by death. I'm sure we could find some schmucks on Wall Street would be deserving of such a punishment...but I digress. The article goes on to maybe suggest terrorism as a catalyst for the increase in popularity of capital punishment in Asian countries. It's also important to note that while Asia has the most executions in the world, China more specifically executes more people than all of the other countries in the world.
So why might this region be so execution hungry? Are Asian teenagers growing up with Call of Duty and the dream of eventually joining a firing squad? I'm sure that's hardly the case obviously, and the answer may be found in something deeper whether that be a social norm formed from religion, history, culture, or perhaps a combination of all of the above. Regardless, if Asia wants to maintain its image as a front runner in global prosperity it should clean up its act regarding capital punishment.
Source(s):
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/25/asia-pacific-countries-most-prolific-users-of-death-penalty-amnesty-report-shows
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