By AsiaNews
August 2 2022
Faced with the execution of the prisoner Tomohiro Kato – which took place in the same hours as those of the Burmese dissidents – the Justice and Peace Commission of the Japanese episcopate warned: “The violence of the death penalty can never build a peaceful society. It is barbaric. that goes against the times and creates new violence “.
Tokyo (AsiaNews) – The past week has just been marked in Asia by the execution of the death sentences of four political opponents in Myanmar , the first ever executions of death sentences in the country in more than thirty years. But in these same days, also in Japan, the authorities carried out the death sentence of Tomohiro Kato, a man who in 2008 had stabbed seven people to death. While in Singapore the release of the pandemic coincided with a dramatic number of executions: 5 in the last 5 months .
In this context, it seems significant to us to relaunch the note released by the Justice and Peace Council of the Japanese Catholic Church which – starting from the local case – proposes a broader reflection on the Church’s magisterium regarding the death penalty.
“We express our deep pain and our strong protest – reads the text – against the execution of Tomohiro Kato, 39, detained in the Tokyo detention center on July 26, 2022. His precious life, in fact, was carried away by the state “. The Council recalls that in 2016, on July 26, Japan found itself mourning the victims of an assault on a disabled facility in Sagamihara, which left 19 dead behind. It was “an unprecedented episode of murder and injury. We prayed for the victims and renewed our belief that there is never a life that is not worth living. “Two years later, also on July 26, 2018, six death row inmates linked to the terrorist group Aum Shinrikyo came. all executed together.
“The Catholic Church, in the light of the Gospel revealed by Jesus Christ – continues the Justice and Peace Council – firmly believes that the life of every person is precious and that, however serious a person’s sin may be, his dignity does not never fail. In light of its mission to protect all life, it not only teaches that the death penalty is an unacceptable attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person, but also expresses its determination to work for its abolition around the world.
The document also recalls how in recent days “for the first time in decades” the death penalty has been carried out in Myanmar and how this fact has been condemned by the international community. “As the Japanese government has declared – writes Justice and Peace – there is a serious concern that this ‘will lead to further isolation’. However, we are ‘gravely concerned’ that, while it was still speaking, the Japanese government took the same path and committed an outrageous act of self-degrading its international position. The violence of the death penalty can never build a peaceful society. It is a barbarism that goes against the times and creates new violence ”.
“Having learned from Jesus Christ the truth that every life is precious – concludes the text – we nourish the hope of conversion, forgiveness and true reconciliation. Because even if it is difficult, it is by no means impossible. In unison with Pope Francis and the Catholic Church around the world, and uniting our hearts and minds with people of good will who respect human rights around the world, we will continue to push for the abolition of the sentence. of death, a cruel and compassionate punishment, and for an immediate moratorium on executions ”.
– AsiaNews
