An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Essentially, the government of Papua New Guinea wants a life for every irrationally claimed life.

The Parliament of Papua New Guinea is scheduled to resume in two weeks' time, and Prime Minister Peter O'Neill wants legislation to effect the death penalty law immediately introduced in a bid to curtail the rising incidences of irrational and violent crimes in the country, particularly those related to sorcery and witchcraft.

"Among the methods discussed include death by firing squad, which was considered more humane and inexpensive than other methods," Mr O'Neill said in a statement following a Cabinet meeting Wednesday.

Life imprisonment without parole will be handed down for convicted rapists.

The government is likewise mulling tough new punishments for drug and alcohol offences.Papua New Guinea wants a new maximum 20-year jail term for those making home-brew liquor as well as a ban on selling alcohol between 2:00 am and noon.

Marijuana and other drug cultivation, meanwhile, would be punishable by 50 years in prison. Drug consumption would have a maximum 10-year jail term.

"There will be maximum penalties that have never been seen before in this country," Mr O'Neill told Papua New Guinea media.

"We are serious about addressing this issue. We will regulate and pass laws that some people in our country may find draconian. But the people are demanding it."

Lying just south of the equator, 160km north of Australia, Papua New Guinea actually has a law calling for capital punishment listed in its books. But it has since been stopped implementing since 1954.

However, with the recent spate of high-profile crime and violence cases in the country, Papua New Guinea is forced to take drastic actions to clean up its image to the international community.

The federal government of Papua New Guinea claimed receiving more than 100 petitions from overseas human rights and other groups calling for urgent and immediate action on the spike in violence this year.

Just in April, two foreigners were gang raped while the number of burning of people related to sorcery and witchcraft has also risen in the country.

"I want to assure the country that we will review some of the legislation in respect of some of the behaviour that is now happening," Mr O'Neill said.

As expected, despite clamor for immediate resolution for the horrid cases of crime and violence, activitists and human rights groups condemn the implementation of the death penalty.

"Executing murderers is not to way to address the problem," Kate Schutze, Amnesty International's Pacific researcher, told Radio Australia.

"The death penalty is the ultimate denial of human rights, it's premeditated, cold blooded killing of a human being by the state. So in essence it's state sanctioned violence."