Estrada pardon
Posted by: Fats in: Dialogues, Fatima Lasay & Trevor Batten > Media and Process
From BBC News-Asia Pacific:
“Given all the allegations of corruption against Arroyo, I think that she is the wrong person to use the wisdom of executive clemency.
It is not a question of whether it is right or wrong to pardon Estrada - she is the wrong person to do it.
Any criminal must be punished for their deeds in accordance with the law. But the law also favours mercy as well as justice, and that mercy is especially biased towards the poor, the underclass.
When President Arroyo’s own pardon powers were being awaited by poor female prisoners over the age of 70 last year, she took so long that some of these women died before she could pardon them. And some of these women were in prison for crimes as small as smoking pot.
But it took her only six weeks to pardon a rich, powerful and immensely popular man, who has been convicted for plundering the nation.
A pardon is more an act of grace than an act of law. But when you give the wrong person the right means then the right means will turn out the wrong way.
Some people of power - and mercy - have learnt to tactically use what is right and corrupt it for their own private gain.”
