It’s a brutal, lawless act, says group lawyer
JOHOR BARU: Malaysian Prabu Pathmanathan’s execution in Singapore has been described by his family’s lawyer as a lawless act that disregarded the due process.
Lawyers for Liberty adviser N. Surendran said yesterday the execution was an unlawful and brutal act carried out in breach of due process and in defiance of appeals made by Malaysia.
“Late last night (Thursday), the Singapore President’s Office delivered a letter to Prabu’s family in response to their clemency petition.
“The letter stated that ‘the clemency process has concluded’ and ‘we are unable to accede to your request’.
“This rejection is unlawful under the Singapore Constitution, as there is no bar to the filing of a fresh clemency petition. It is a flagrant breach of due process for the Singapore president to reject the family’s petition without even considering it. It was, thus, a lawless act,” Surendran said.
Prabu, who was convicted of drug trafficking in 2014, was hanged in Changi Prison at dawn yesterday. The family claimed his body and cremated it in Singapore.
Surendran questioned Singapore’s haste in carrying out the execution, saying Prabu and his family were given less than a week’s notice that he would be executed.
“Was this an underhanded method by Singapore authorities to execute Prabu secretly and to prevent representations from being made or court applications being filed?”
Surendran said it was disturbing that the Singapore government was prepared to disregard basic procedures in their rush to execute the young Malaysian.
“We understand that Malaysian ministers had spoken directly to Singaporean leaders in a bid to halt the execution, but to no avail.”
Surendran said Prabu’s parents and siblings were devastated by the execution of their son and brother.
“They wish to thank the Malaysian government and everyone on both sides of the Causeway for their support and prayers over the past few difficult days.”
On Dec 31, 2014, Prabu, 31, was sentenced to death for allegedly trafficking 227.82g of diamorphine, or heroin, into the island republic.
In an earlier report, Surendran said there were doubts surrounding Prabu’s conviction as the drugs were found in a vehicle driven by another person, and not Prabu.
It is also alleged that the confession obtained from Prabu by the prosecution was made under duress.