Man executed over cannabis delivery
HONG KONG Singapore on Wednesday executed a man accused of co-ordinating a cannabis delivery, despite pleas for clemency from his family and protests from activists that he was convicted on weak evidence.
Tangaraju Suppiah, 46, was sentenced to death in 2018 for abetting the trafficking of one kilogram of cannabis. Under Singapore laws, trafficking more than 500 grams of cannabis may result in the death penalty.
Tangaraju was hanged this week and his family was given the death certificate, according to a tweet from activist Kirsten Han of the Transformative Justice Collective, which advocates for abolishing the death penalty in Singapore.
Although Tangaraju was not caught with the cannabis, prosecutors said phone numbers traced him as the person responsible for co-ordinating the delivery of the drugs. Tangaraju had maintained that he was not the one communicating with the others connected to the case.
At a United Nations Human Rights briefing this week, spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani called on the Singapore government to adopt a “formal moratorium” on executions for drug-related offences.
“Imposing the death penalty for drug offences is incompatible with international norms and standards,” said Shamdasani. Singapore authorities say there is a deterrent effect, citing studies that traffickers carry amounts below the threshold that would bring a death penalty.
The island-state’s imposition of the death penalty for drugs is in contrast with its neighbours. In Thailand, cannabis has essentially been legalized, and Malaysia has ended the mandatory death penalty for serious crimes.
Singapore executed 11 people last year for drug offences. One case that spurred international concern involved a Malaysian man whose lawyers said he was mentally disabled.
The Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network condemned Tangaraju’s execution as “reprehensible.”
Relatives and activists had sent letters to Singapore’s President Halimah Yacob to plead for clemency. Tangaraju’s niece and nephew appealed to the public to raise concerns to the government over Tangaraju’s impending execution.
An application filed by Tangaraju this week for a stay of execution was dismissed without a hearing.
Critics say Singapore’s death penalty has mostly snared low-level mules and done little to stop drug traffickers and organized syndicates.
But Singapore’s government says that all those executed have been accorded full due process under the law and that the death penalty is necessary to protect its citizens.