Michael Garing’s family sends clemency petition to Singapore president

SINGAPORE: The parents of Michael Garing, who is scheduled to be executed in Changi prison tomorrow, have sent a clemency petition to the President of Singapore, according to Lawyers for Liberty.

Its advisor, N.Surendran said the petition dated March 19, was hand- delivered yesterday morning by Michael’s brother and other family members to the Istana.

“Singapore law does not prevent a fresh petition of clemency from being lodged with the President,” he said in a statement.

In the petition, Michael’s parents have asked for his life to be spared.

They said : “We humbly ask the President of Singapore for mercy and compassion to spare the life of our son Michael.”

The parents, Ensiring Garman and Garing Kanyan, also apologised to the family of the victim of the crime.

“We do not want to excuse our son’s offence, but we ask for mercy.

“Please commute his sentence to life imprisonment,” they said.

Lawyers for Liberty expressed its appreciation to the announcement yesterday by Malaysia’s Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad of his support and efforts for the commutation of the death sentence upon Michael.

“We hope the President of Singapore and the Singapore government will give very serious consideration to the parent’s clemency petition on behalf of Michael, and the appeal of Tun Mahathir and our government.

“Pending consideration of these matters, we respectfully ask that the Singapore authorities stay the execution planned for Friday,” Surendran said.

Michael, a Sarawakian, was convicted of murder in 2015 by the island republic’s high court and the conviction was affirmed by the court of appeal in 2017.

On March 18, Lawyers for Liberty said Michael’s family, who are from Kapit in Sarawak, had been given eight- day notice of the imminent execution.

They had been asked by letter to make the ‘necessary funeral arrangements’, it said.

Lawyers for Liberty is a human rights lawyers organisation that seeks to protect and promote human rights and civil liberties for all including those most at risk – human rights defenders, students, grassroots activists, opposition politicians and members of Parliament, and ordinary Malaysians who have asserted and demanded their rights. — Bernama