THE ROLE OF PUBLIC OPINION IN SHAPING NEW CRIMINAL LAWS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhkosh.v4.i2.2023.3298Abstract [English]
It is public opinion that shapes new criminal law by affecting those who make new criminal law by those who seek changes to the criminal law through the legislature and, ultimately, by creating society’s approval for new legal reforms. Public opinion serves as a barometer with which to register the concerns and values of the population regarding the issues raised by rising crime rate, new forms of criminal behavior, detrimental activity of criminal groups and gaps in the existing legislation. The laws that politicians draft usually match with public expectation and widespread concerns and public sentiment is usually harvested through surveys, social movements or the media. For example, in many countries, there has been swift legislative response to public outcry against, for example, gender based violence or cybercrime. In addition, public opinion also serves to check laws because public opinion permits the laws to remain legitimate and to be complied with, because of the fact that laws that have no relationship with public opinion fail to establish compliance and resistance. In the end however, the reliance on public opinion opens itself to challenges such as biased by misinformation, media sensationalism and populist agendas that will lead to reactive student behavior rather than conducive law reforms.
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