HAS THE NATION been convinced that the extrajudicial execution of suspected drug pushers and users is proper and necessary– or have Filipinos been simply intimidated by President Rodrigo Duterte to just look the other way?

That would be an interesting, and urgent, question for media and survey outfits to explore. We hastened to add “urgent” because we are disturbed seeing the overload of TV videos of drug suspects in poor areas lying lifeless after allegedly battling policemen.

To lead us out of the confusion over the indiscriminate killing of both suspected drug-pushers and their victims (the users) by policemen apparently emboldened by the “Punisher” hissing “I will kill you!”, we thought of turning to the Holy Father for moral guidance.

In a message to the World Congress Against the Death Penalty in Oslo last June 21-23, the Pontiff said (translated from Spanish):

“(The death penalty) is an offense to the inviolability of life and to the dignity of the human person… It likewise contradicts God’s plan for individuals and society, and his merciful justice. Nor is it consonant with any just purpose of punishment.”

President Duterte, a lawyer and former prosecutor, calls the executions “retribution” — a term closer to vengeance than to justice. The gunning down of the suspects in a criminal case could even be injustice itself, as the accused were presumed innocent when executed.

Maybe Mr. Duterte has not seen or heard the weeping family members of some suspects gunned down while under police custody? Why the double standards of narco-generals getting due process while poor suspects get the bullet (with the worn-out excuse that they drew a gun or grabbed a cop’s pistol)?

It is odd that no forensic findings have been disclosed showing that some of the slain suspects piled up since President Duterte took over on June 30 have been positively found to have fired a gun? That is what happens when the police investigate their own.

This is not to condone the narcotics scourge destroying the country or the fact that some police officers and politicians are protecting drug lords. This is merely to point out that the President is sworn to execute the law and give justice to every man, that due process is still in the books.

In his message, Pope Francis said that capital punishment (which summary execution actually is) does not render justice to victims, but instead fosters vengeance. The commandment “Thou shalt not kill” applies both to the innocent and to the guilty, he added.

He said: “Rendering justice does not mean seeking punishment for its own sake, but ensuring that the basic purpose of all punishment is the rehabilitation of the offender. The question must be dealt with within the larger framework of a system of penal justice open to the possibility of the guilty party’s reinsertion in society. There is no fitting punishment without hope!”

• AsPac Pony League starts tomorrow

THE ASIA Pacific division championships of the Pony League will reel off tomorrow at the Alabang Country Club in Muntinlupa City.

The series running July 11-16 will see the Philippine team compete against Indonesia, Japan, Korea and Taiwan. DECA Homes, the mass housing development arm of 8990 Holdings Inc., is supporting the championship matches under a sponsorship agreement with Pony Baseball Inc.

A transition league for baseball players who have graduated from the Little League, the Pony is designed for athletes aged 13 to 14. It began in the US in 1951 and now boasts of around 500,000 participating players annually.

Januario Jesus Atencio, president and CEO of 8990 Holdings, said: “Sports like baseball provide an environment where our children can realize the value of teamwork, respect for authority and for each other, and most importantly, understand the context of winning through the game.

“In this way, sports become a real tool to mold the nation’s youth. This is congruent with our company’s mission to provide a level of family life that attracts happiness, togetherness and growth.”

The Philippine team is a mix of 13- and 14-year-old athletes from Batangas, Laguna, Marikina, Muntinlupa, and Cavite — all selected from 35 aspirants who went through try-outs that started in December last year.

Leading the team are head coach Eduard Tuazon from the De La Salle Zobel Baseball Club and asst. coach Ricardo “Iking” Jimenez, team manager of the Dumaguete Unibikers.

Team manager Manny de Castro said: “This tournament is very important for us because it will allow us to represent the Asia Pacific region in the World Series. We are confident we will put up a good fight during the championships. Our players have been practising three times a week since the first try-outs in December.”

In preparation for the big match, the Philippine team also joined a pocket tournament last summer where they clinched the championship.

The teams will compete in an elimination round, leaving only four teams going against one another in the semi-finals, before qualifying for the finals where only two Pony teams tough it out for the title.

The series will also feature a Southeast Asian match to choose the regional champion. The overall champion of the Asia Pacific Zone qualifies for the Pony League World Series to be held in Virginia, US, this August.

“We feel very honored that the league has chosen the Philippines as the venue for this year’s Asia Pacific zone championships,” De Castro said. “We would not have done it without the support of sponsors such as 8990 DECA Homes.”