Singapore Resumes Hanging of Death Row Inmates

This is the first death sentence to be executed in Singapore in more than two years, after it was stopped due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Singapore last executed the death penalty in November 2019.

Kahar’s sentence was carried out despite activists, including the United Nations Human Rights office, calling on Singapore authorities to reduce his sentence to life in prison.

Anti-death penalty activist Kirsten Han and a few others held prayers outside the prison for Kahar before his execution. Activist group calling for reform of Singapore’s justice system Transformative Justice Collective said the families of seven other death row inmates were also recently notified that their sentences were about to be executed.

The next death row inmate likely to be executed by Singapore is Malaysian citizen Nagaenthran K. Dharmalingam, 34 years old. Nagaenthran was sentenced to death in 2010 for trying to smuggle 42.7 grams of heroine into Singapore.

This man’s IQ is 69, an internationally recognized level of intellectual disability, but the Singapore court ruled that Nagaenthran was aware of his behavior when he broke the law. After Nagaenthran was assessed by an independent panel of psychiatrists, the Singapore court rejected the death row inmate’s appeal.

“There is no reasonable evidence of any cognitive impairment of the appellant when committing the offence,” presiding judge Sundaresh Menon ruled on March 29.

In November 2019, Singapore issued a statement emphasizing the sovereign right to apply the death penalty to drug traffickers and asked other countries to respect its laws.

“Singapore’s law is equal to everyone, regardless of domestic or foreign crime. Foreigners who break Singapore law must accept punishment and cannot expect to be treated differently,” the statement reads. .

The death penalty is an important part of Singapore’s anti-drug strategy and is seen as an effective deterrent when combined with other sanctions.