STATEMENT BY THE PERMANENT MISSION OF SINGAPORE IN RESPONSE TO THE STATEMENT OF SPOKESPERSON FOR THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS RAVINA SHAMDASANI ON SCHEDULED EXECUTIONS IN SINGAPORE

28 April 2023

STATEMENT BY THE PERMANENT MISSION OF SINGAPORE IN RESPONSE TO THE STATEMENT OF SPOKESPERSON FOR THE UNITED NATIONS HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS RAVINA SHAMDASANI ON SCHEDULED EXECUTIONS IN SINGAPORE

1. We refer to the statement “Singapore: Imminent Execution” issued on 25 April 2023 by the Spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Ravina Shamdasani.

Full Due Process and Fair Trial

2. The statement raised “concerns around due process and respect for fair trial guarantees” in the imposition of the capital sentence on Tangaraju s/o Suppiah (“Tangaraju”). We wish to clarify the following:

1. All persons sentenced to capital punishment in Singapore are accorded full due process under the law. 

2. A capital sentence is imposed only after a rigorous legal process with stringent safeguards. For example, all persons facing capital charges are ensured legal representation for the entire duration of the trial and appeal. 

3. The High Court cannot record a guilty plea in relation to a capital charge unless the Prosecution proves beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused committed the offence. 

4. As a further safeguard, every capital sentence imposed must be examined and confirmed by the Court of Appeal – Singapore’s apex court, regardless of whether the convicted person appeals against the conviction and/or sentence. 

3. Tangaraju was accorded full due process under the law. He was tried in the High Court and was convicted of abetting the trafficking of 1,017.9 grammes of cannabis before being sentenced to capital punishment. Singapore’s Misuse of Drugs Act provides for capital punishment if the amount of cannabis trafficked is more than 500 grammes. The amount of cannabis that Tangaraju had conspired to traffic was more than twice this amount. Subsequently, Tangaraju appealed against his conviction and sentence to the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal dismissed his appeal. Throughout the process, Tangaraju had access to legal counsel.

4. Several petitions to the President of Singapore for clemency were submitted but were unsuccessful. Tangaraju subsequently filed two separate applications to seek permission to review the Court of Appeal’s decision, but they were both dismissed for having failed to demonstrate any legitimate basis for the exercise of the Court’s powers of review.

Capital Punishment has Deterred Serious Crimes

5. In Singapore’s experience, capital punishment has proven to be a strong deterrent against serious crimes. For example:

1. In 1961, capital punishment was introduced for kidnapping. The average number of cases fell from 29 cases per year between 1958 to 1960 to two or fewer cases annually in all but two years since 1961. 

2. In 1973, capital punishment was introduced for firearms offences. The number of such offences immediately fell by 39% (from 174 cases in 1973 to 106 cases in 1974) and continued to decline in the subsequent years. Today, firearms offences are very rare in Singapore.

6. Capital punishment also has a strong deterrent effect against drug trafficking. For example:

1. When mandatory capital punishment was introduced in 1990 for the trafficking of opium, the average net weight of opium trafficked into Singapore in the four-year period that followed fell drastically by 66% from the four-year period that had preceded its introduction. 

2. A study conducted by the Ministry of Home Affairs in 2018 found a very high level of awareness of capital punishment among convicted drug traffickers, which had influenced their drug trafficking behaviour. For instance, one of the traffickers in this study said he knew that he would be jailed for trafficking a small amount but at risk of capital punishment if he was caught with a larger amount, and he consequently trafficked below the threshold amount.

7. A 2021 study which surveyed over 7,200 people from countries in the region, from which most of the drug traffickers arrested by Singapore originate, had the following key findings:

1. 87% believed that capital punishment makes people not want to traffic substantial amounts of drugs into Singapore; and 

2. 83% believed that capital punishment is more effective than life imprisonment in discouraging people from trafficking drugs into Singapore.

The Severe Harm Caused by Drugs

8. The Spokesperson’s statement glossed over the serious harms that drugs cause. This is regrettable.

9. Drug abuse is a pervasive problem with severe consequences, not just for individuals but also for entire societies. The use of drugs has been linked to a host of social, economic, and health-related issues, including increased crime rates, lower productivity, and a greater burden on healthcare resources. For example:

1. The World Drug Report 2022 reported that drug-use disorders resulted in an estimated loss of 18 million years of ‘healthy’ life due to disability and premature deaths. 

2. In the United States, more than 100,000 persons died from drug-involved overdose in 2021. According to the United States’ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the economic costs of opioid use disorder and fatal overdose were estimated at $471 billion and $550 billion respectively for the year 2017.

10. Singapore cannot afford such a high cost to our society and our people.

11. Countries have the sovereign right to choose the approach that best suits their own circumstances. We shall continue to implement evidence-based measures that have worked well for us in the fight against drugs.