Fear is indeed the most effective way to eradicate crime. In fact, this system is used in almost every country where punishment for crimes is carried out. The one thing other than conscience that is most likely to deter a potential criminal from perpetrating a crime is the fear of getting punished by law. Imprisonment, caning and death penalties are some of the harsher forms of punishment, and inflict pain, either physically or psychologically on the criminals. However, to completely eradicate crime, much harsher punishment must be meted out even for small acts of crime. That is why even in modern times, crime is still happening despite the presence of fear.
One example of near complete crime eradication is in the country of Wallachia during the reign of Vladislav III or Vlad the Impaler, the figure that inspired the Dracula novel. He enjoyed cruel torture methods to punish criminals and political enemies. His name, “Vlad the Impaler” was derived from his favourite form of torture, impalement. Due to his cruel acts of torture, crime rates were extremely low during his reign. It was even said in an old Romanian story that Vlad once left a golden cup in the middle of the street. When he returned the next day, the cup was still there, as people, afraid of his cruel forms of torture dared not to take the cup. This example shows that fear is indeed the most effective way to eradicate crime, but the consequences would be far too great, at the cost of basic human rights. Thus, even though fear instilment is effective, it is not feasible.
By saying that the most effective way to eradicate crime is by instilling fear, one may also say that minimising the temptations to commit crimes is another good way to eradicate crime. In fact, both methods are nearly impossible to achieve, especially in today’s context, where there are strong emphasis on human rights.
From the above example, many would probably feel that Vladislav III was a criminal himself. As such, who determines how and who to instil fear? There is no real difference between crime and threat which instils fear. The above example also shows that the best way to instil fear is through cruelty, which is an intolerable concept in modern day society. Thus, even though instilling fear is indeed the most effective way to eradicate crime, it is impossible to achieve.
With regards to Hui Min’s entry, I do agree with her stand, that the police should not have unlimited powers when dealing with crime. In my opinion, no one can be granted unlimited powers. Afterall, who determines or grants such power? If the police has unlimited powers, what would be the difference between such a system and a military government? Evil intentions are present in every human beings and thus, no one should be granted unlimited powers no matter how perfect he or she may seem to be.
-Jia Hao
0 comments:
Post a Comment