Indian-origin Tangaraju Suppaiah, 46, was hanged by Singaporean authorities on Wednesday after he was found guilty of conspiring to smuggle one kilogram of cannabis. Despite requests for clemency from his family, campaigners and the United Nations, his death sentence was carried out on Wednesday morning and a death certificate was issued to his family.
Supiah was executed despite requests from the United Nations Human Rights Office for Singapore for an “immediate reconsideration” as well as requests from British businessman Richard Branson to postpone the execution. Read more about the story here
according to a reports By the BBC, activists claimed that he was convicted on the basis of flimsy evidence and had minimal legal representation during his trial. On the other hand, the Singaporean authorities claimed that they were allowed a fair trial and punished those who questioned the courts.
Singapore has some of the strictest anti-drug laws in the world. It claims that these are a necessary deterrent to drug crime, which is a major concern throughout Southeast Asia.
Drug law in Singapore, the death penalty around the world
According to a report, under the Drug Abuse Act of Singapore, anyone who smuggles, imports or exports certain quantities of illegal narcotics is punishable by death. CNN,
Traffickers who possess methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine or cannabis in excess of a specified quantity face the death penalty. In Singapore, the limit for heroin is 15 grams or more. In comparison, first-time offenders risk a prison sentence of 5 to 40 years for trafficking 100 to 999 grams of heroin in the United States. If the behavior resulted in death or serious injury, long and heavy punishments could be given.
Officials from Singapore’s ruling party argue that the fear of the death penalty is vital to deter the city-state from engaging in drug trafficking in a region that is a global hub for the drug trade.
Officials from Singapore’s ruling party argue that the fear of the death penalty is vital to deter the city-state from engaging in drug trafficking in a region that is a global hub for the drug trade.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) said in May that the “scale and reach” of the methamphetamine and synthetic drug trade in East and Southeast Asia was “staggering”. Methamphetamine was the leading substance of concern in Singapore in 2021, according to a briefing note from the Asia and Pacific Amphetamine-Type Stimulants and Information Center (APAIC).
Seizures and methamphetamine use fell that year, but heroin seizures reached a new high, according to the APAIC, the report said.
According to BBC According to the report, the country’s strict drug policies and use of the death penalty put it at odds with advanced countries and others in the region. Malaysia, Singapore’s neighbor, abolished mandatory death sentences earlier this month, claiming they were ineffective as a deterrent to crime.
Meanwhile, cannabis is no longer illegal in many parts of the world, including Thailand, where its trade is encouraged.
Harm Reduction International (HRI), a non-profit, non-governmental organisation, says that Singapore is one of 35 countries and territories in the world that imposes the death penalty for drug offences.
The United States and South Korea are the only two OECD member nations to keep the death penalty for drug crimes, according to HRI, but they have not carried out such executions in the most recent five years, the BBC reports. Is.
Rights group Amnesty International says at least 579 people will be executed in 18 countries in 2021, 96 more than last year. But the uptick came after six years of a significant decline in the number of executions.
“While the global trend is clearly in favor of eradication, the increase recorded in 2021 should serve as a reminder that now is not the time to ease the pressure,” Amnesty wrote in a May 2022 report.
Three countries accounted for 80 percent of all reported executions in 2021: Iran, with 314 (up 28 percent), Egypt with 83 and Saudi Arabia with 65 (a 240 percent increase).
Amnesty’s figures do not include executions in China, which is considered the world’s biggest executioner, as well as in North Korea and Vietnam. All three countries keep their data secret.
Punishment for drug trafficking in India
Even in the 1950s, regulations existed to deal with illegal drug trafficking in India. The Opium Acts of 1857 and 1878, as well as the Dangerous Drugs Act of 1930. However, all three of these laws have since been repealed, and have been replaced by the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1985.
For a minor amount, rigorous imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to Rs.10,000, or with both. Less than commercial quantity but more than small quantity Imprisonment up to ten years and fine up to Rs. 1 Lac. For commercial quantities, the imprisonment shall not be less than ten years but may extend to twenty years, and the fine shall not be less than Rs. 1,00,000 but can be extended up to Rs. 2,00,000, according to A. reports By Legal Services India,
other strict policies
The 1980s “War on Drugs” in the US implemented strong drug policies, including mandatory minimum sentences for some drug-related crimes, resulting in an unusually high number of incarcerations in the country. Guardian, There are over 2 million individuals incarcerated in the United States as of 2016.
Iran’s drug policy is complex. It imposes harsher penalties for drug possession, which can lead to public discredit as well as perpetuate drug trafficking. Drug-related crimes account for more than 70% of all death sentences in the country. However, the country, which has one of the worst rates of drug addiction in the world, has won praise for progressive addiction-treatment initiatives such as government-backed clean needle programs.
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