THE PHILIPPINES. EVANGELICALS TO ABANDON ARROYO OVER ABOLITION OF DEATH PENALTY

a Catholic Church prelate said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo may lose the support of the Philippine Council for Evangelical Churches (PCEC) and other religious groups and organizations in favour of capital punishment should she approve the abolition of the Death Penalty Law.
"We stand for what is true and right. We hope she (President Arroyo) would think twice before signing the bill into law," said Bishop Efraim Tendero, chairman of the PCEC. Various anti-crime groups such as the Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (Vacc), the Crusade Against Violence (CAD), and the Citizens' Crime Watch (CCW) also threatened to withdraw their support from Arroyo because of her "apathy and lack of concern." The Jesus Is Lord (JIL) Movement of Eduardo "Brother Eddie" Villanueva was also against the repeal of the death penalty law.
"How can we cultivate life, as claimed by those opposing the death penalty, when we ignore the crimes against life? If we keep on insisting Christian forgiveness then maybe we should also remove the lifetime sentence," Tendero said.