Philippines takes big step back towards death penalty

Manila : Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte's campaign to bring back the death penalty for drug-related crimes has cleared a major hurdle, with supporters backing it in congress but critics denouncing the planned killings as "inhumane".

The death penalty bill, along with a proposed measure to punish children as young as nine as adult criminals, are key planks of Duterte's controversial drug war that has already claimed more than 6,500 lives.

A majority of politicians in the lower house of congress passed a second reading of the bill on Wednesday night, clearing one of the biggest obstacles in proponents' plans to make the deathpenalty legal by May.

A third and final reading still needs to be held next week, although with no more debates both sides agree passage is a formality. Then the Senate, which is similarly dominated by Duterte's allies, would pass a counterpart bill.

"We have hurdled the most difficult part," congressman Reynaldo Umali, a sponsor of the bill, told AFP.

Opponents voiced anger the Philippines would bring back the death penalty, 11 years after it was revoked, highlighting among many concerns a corrupt justice system that would lead to innocent people being executed.

"The decision is inhumane, shameful and blatantly disrespectful," Father Jerome Secillano, executive secretary for public affairs at the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, said in a statement sent to AFP.

"Let me reiterate this, criminals should be punished and victims should be aided, but the punishment should not be death. Due to our flawed and dysfunctional criminal justice system, there is a great chance that innocent people may become victims of wrongful convictions."

The Catholic Church, which counts 80 percent of Filipinos as followers, had led the opposition to abolish the death penalty in 2006. 

Secillano and opposition lawmakers also criticised the tactics used to ensure the bill was passed, such as curtailing of debates and only allowing a vote by voice so lawmakers would not be specifically identified as having supported it.

The speaker of the house also threatened to strip lawmakers of committee leadership positions if they voted against the bill.

"This is a chamber of puppets and bullies," congressman Edcel Lagman, a longtime opponent of capital punishment, said after his efforts to block the bill were voted down.