Compo affects law, says judge

By DEMAS TIEN
THE Melanesian practice of paying compensation to restore peace in the society is affecting the purpose of criminal law which is to punish individual offenders, a senior judge says.
Waigani National Court judge Justice Panuel Mogish said the purpose of the criminal law was to punish individuals who committed offences.
Mogish said the court would not accept submissions from an offender that his relatives would pay compensation to a victim’s tribe in order to restore peace in the society.
He said compensation must be paid solely by the offender and not his or her relatives.
“In criminal law the aim is to punish the individual.
“It must be the offender to feel the pain of paying the compensation.”
Mogish also said the compensation, either in cash or kind, must be given directly to the victim and not to his or her tribe members because it would be used to rehabilitate the victim from the suffering sustained in an incident.
Justice Mogish made these comments yesterday after a prisoner indicated to the court that he paid a K3,000 cash compensation to a victim he had caused grievous bodily harm to.
The prisoner, Giro Pakil Gideon, 32, from Enga, was convicted yesterday after he pleaded guilty to stabbing a Peter Aki with a knife on his head.
The incident occurred on October 3, 2015, at Nine-Mile  in the National Capital District.
Gideon appologised to the court as well as the victim for his wrong doing and he sought the court’s mercy to give him a suspended sentence and put him on good behavior bond.
He also told the court that his relatives were prepared to do a traditional compensation  in the event that he was released from prison.
Justice Mogish reserved his decision on penalty.