Any crime in the society will flourish if the deterrence or punishment for that particular crime is not strong and effective. Crimes always boom in the face of less harsh punishments and penalties which provide the initiative to criminals to continue their work. Child trafficking and abduction have been carried out in almost all countries and regions of the world, especially those where poverty and high population rates have existed. Even though there is ample awareness on the matter today, a large number of babies and children are abducted and sold off to various people in lieu of a handsome amount of money. For some criminals, this is a routine business and for others, it is something they do in a time of need like instant cash or other benefits (AFP). China is one of the most populous countries of the world, and it faces the crime of child abduction. Many lawmakers have decided to employ the death penalty in order to curb the issue. Although the existence of the death penalty poses a major threat to the lives of the victims, it is the only way to curb a lot of child abductions each year. In my opinion, child abduction is a crime which deserves to put the people responsible for being sentenced to death. As the crime happens on such a large scale, it must be stopped by strict deterrence and punishment which can help to solve the crime (Death penalty worldwide.org.). Every serious crime that affects a large number of people needs to be curbed by serious measures and these need to be implemented by strong policies . Hence, the death penalty has to be implemented to stop the growing crime rate. Currently, the punishment for child abduction is about five to ten years imprisonment with a fine paid as compensation. In more serious cases, the imprisonment can be ten years or more, and they can also impose the death penalty. For example, a gang that trafficked over 200 children was caught in 2015, and all were sentenced to death. (Shangaiist).
Firstly, the death penalty needs to be implemented so that the crime rate can go down. In countries where the death penalty has been abolished, the crime rates of murder remain high. However, reports have now indicated that annually, about 70,000 children are kidnapped in China. These children are being sold on the black market, and the safety of the little children has become a societal challenge. China saw a drop in the rates of child abductions in the 1960s however; they were on the rise again in the 1980s (Danning). On the whole, child trafficking is taking place on a global level, and it is an international crime that is affecting millions of children. However, this problem was ignored in China in the meantime. The government and the legal system are constantly invoked in order to solve the problem. This is because out of the 70,000 abducted children in totality, only about 0.01% of them are returned back to their families (AFP). This shows the ineffectiveness of the law enforcement agencies and their inability to tackle the problem with assurance. Not only are these children never returned to their parents, but their parents are also those who are poor and underprivileged (Teifenbrun). The backdrop here conveys an image of helplessness and despair because the parents cannot do much in order to look for their child (Maclang). If the death penalty is implemented, it will help get rid of entities responsible for child abduction and lower the crime rate.
Moreover, the death penalty should be implemented because it will prove the criminal justice system is fair and honest. If the crime abduction does not go down, it means the system is not doing its job. Therefore implementing the death penalty will prove the effectiveness of the law.
The death penalty is important and effective because it can serve as a means of deterrence and prevent future crimes of child abduction. There are various crimes such as murder, capital murder or mass murder, kidnapping, drug crimes, rape and assault accompanied with kidnapping- all these crimes are punishable by death. In the olden times, people were sentenced to death in the gallows in front of everyone so that their death would serve as a means of preventing others from doing the same. This has been an effective measure that saved the lives of many because if people are aware that they will be caught and out to death, then they will definitely not commit any such crime. (Death Penalty Worldwide). Child abduction is a serious crime that threatens families and endangers the lives of innocent children. This is because the children who are abducted from poor families are not guaranteed a safe life, and they are not even cared for because they are not going to receive a hefty ransom. On the other hand, little children abducted from poor families are not even compensated in any way, and they are misused in the worst manner. They are usually sold off for the worst of societal evils like begging, slavery and prostitution. This makes them live horrible, degraded lives and they are forced to live this way because all opportunities in their lives are blocked. (Maclang). Moreover, many Chinese children that are abducted are mostly killed off or if they manage to run away, die by any means. Many of them cannot be caught, and they are not returned to their parents, as in the case of kidnapping.
The death penalty should also be implemented as it is less expensive than keeping a criminal imprisoned for life. The cost keeping someone in prison is cut off if the death penalty is imposed and justice is served immediately. There exist apprehensions such as these people killing off the victims and then escaping the clutches of law. The Chinese government reported that over 13,000 people were included in child abduction schemes and they were all guilty of abducting children of various ages. When a heinous crime is being committed at such a high rate, then it means that the punishment for the crime is not sufficiently effective. The only cure, in this case, is imposing the death penalty so that people actually learn and better themselves and eventually it will bring the child abduction rates down (Danning). Imposing the death penalty is important so that the image of the law enforcement agencies and judiciary are improved. This is because people get furious when there are rampant cases of children and babies getting abducted and being involved in a profitable business such as abduction. People always blame the law enforcement agencies because it is their responsibility to make the criminals subject to punishment and deterrence. (Danning). But if these gangs can continue their dirty work even after facing 3-5 years in prison, then there is no need of imposing such a punishment. Hence, when China imposed the death penalty in 2009 and ended the lives of those criminals who had been destroying the lives of young children, public anger simmered down. (Yan). Since this incident, the Chinese government accelerated the rate of imposing the death penalty (Xinhua). Imposition of the death penalty results in quicker justice, less capital and money going into serving a life sentence and helping people of the affected families get justice immediately.
When the death penalty was imposed in 2014, there was a significant drop in death penalties in China. The law enforcement agencies declared that imposing these punishments was important because these crimes violate the rights of women and children. In this case, there are people who become more aware of the fact that if they are caught, then they have a sure ticket to the death penalty (N.a). Therefore, imposing the death penalty would mean that more security is provided to the children of the country. Although there are views that the death penalty is going to worsen the condition and make it more difficult for the police to capture these criminals, the death penalty is still needed. The world sure is abolishing the death penalty and going towards a safer environment, but the population situation in China makes it problematic for the country to control the situation. Therefore, if China keeps this situation in control through the death penalty, then they can abolish the punishment after the crime rate goes down (Zeldin).
Conclusively, the abduction of children in China is a major crime and social problem. Children and babies, boys and girls are abducted and kidnapped and sold off to other families or led into begging and slavery. Currently, 70,000 children in China are being abducted. This means the current punishments are not effective enough, and the government needs to take stricter measures. One way is by imposing the death penalty. The death penalty is effective because it will help in bringing down the crime rate. It will serve as a means of deterrence and serve as a means to ending many other crimes. The countries which have banned the death penalty experience high crime rates of murder and kidnapping. Hence, it will help to prove that the criminal justice system is fair and just in dealing with crimes that harm the society as a whole. When the judiciary takes strong measures against such criminals, abduction rates will plummet as a result. Thus, it will be effective in serving to control child abductions. Social media and networking websites will help to spread awareness to the public and the Chinese public to raise their voice against the issue so that the death penalty is imposed for every person responsible for child abduction, which will help to prevent the crime in the future, putting an end to child abduction.
Work Cited
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