Palace: Antique case will not revive death penalty

MANILA, Philippines - As it braced for new calls to revive the death penalty over the gruesome rape-slay case of a 16-year-old girl in Antique province, Malacañang stood firm Friday on its "pro-life" stand. Press Secretary Cerge Remonde said President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo will remain a "good daughter of the (Catholic) Church" and will reject calls to bring back capital punishment. "Expected natin na mangyayari yan. Pero we stick by our stand, lalo na si Pangulong Gloria, isang good daughter of the Church [We expect such calls to come. But we stick by our stand, especially Mrs. Arroyo, who is a good daughter of the Church]," he said in an interview on dzXL radio. Mrs. Arroyo abolished the death penalty in June 2006, shortly before visiting Pope Benedict XVI in the Vatican. Remonde said that in the wake of the rape-slay case, the government will just improve its law enforcement work. "Lalo sa usaping yan, we stick to the policy no death penalty tayo, let's just improve our law enforcement [We will just stick to the policy of no death penalty. Let's just improve our law enforcement]," he said. A 16-year-old girl was brutally killed in Antique province last January 31. A suspect arrested for the crime reportedly admitted killing her but denied raping the victim. He surrendered to the authorities and admitted hitting the girl in the head with a hard object after he first mauled the girl's male companion. The suspect, who was not identified, said he has an old grudge with the girl's companion. He said he hit her and took her cell phone so that she would not inform the police. But despite the semen found in the victim's vagina during the autopsy, the suspect denied that he had sexually abused the girl. The girl was rushed to the Antique General Hospital last January 31 but was pronounced dead on arrival. Her male companion survived. Malacañang directed the Philippine National Police (PNP) to immediately solve the said rape-slay case. - GMANews.TV