| The Council of Islamic Ideology (CII) has voiced opposition to hanging as the method for the implementation of the death sentence and proposed that a less painful method should be adopted. The Supreme Court had sought the council’s opinion on the issue through a letter dispatched by the office of the registrar, sources told Daily Times. The Supreme Court had also asked if carrying out the death sentence through an injection of poison was Islamic or un-Islamic. “The issue was discussed during the last meeting of the council in December 2006,” the sources said. The CII members agreed that the method to implement the death sentence should be less painful. They also discussed the philosophy of crime and punishment in Islam. They were of the opinion that according to Islamic teachings, punishments were awarded as a deterrence and not to make criminals an example for others, the sources said. The members also reviewed other punishments given to criminals in Pakistan. |