Singapore: Drugs 'courier' to be executed tomorrow because of ...

Pannir Selvam Pranthaman, 37, was convicted of importing 51g of heroin into Singapore, where he was sentenced to the mandatory death penalty in 2017.

The judge found that he was a ‘courier’, involved only with the transport of the prohibited substance. While under sentence of death in Singapore, Mr Pranthaman has written songs and poems that speak of the anguish, hope, and prayers of those on death row, many of which have been shared with the public through the Sebaran Kasih NGO founded by his sister, Angelia Pranthaman.

Despite the fact he was found to be a courier, because the prosecution did not provide him with a ‘certificate of substantial assistance’, the judge had no option but to impose the mandatory sentence of hanging.

This process violates the right to a fair trial, as it placed the decision between a life-or-death sentence in the hands of the prosecution – which is not a neutral party in the trial and should not have such powers, and as it breaks down the clear separation that must exist between prosecution and the court.

Additionally, the conviction was reached with reliance on a legal presumption of knowledge of the drugs under the country’s Misuse of Drugs Act. When these legal presumptions are invoked, the burden of proof is shifted onto the defendant to be rebutted on a balance of probabilities. Legal presumptions of guilt are contrary to customary international law and other fair trial guarantees under international human rights law that mandate that the burden of proving the charge rests on the prosecution.

Chiara Sangiorgio, Amnesty International’s death penalty expert, said: “The alarming pace of executions carried out in Singapore since October shows a chilling determination on the part of the government to pursue hangings.

“This includes for offences, such as transporting drugs in Pannir’s case, that must not be punished by death under international restrictions on the use of the death penalty.

“This is beyond reproachable and leaves Singapore among a handful of countries known to have executed for drug-related offences in recent years.

“We urge the Singapore government to immediately end its unlawful resort to the death penalty and immediately establish a moratorium on all executions as a first critical step towards abolition.

“We also urge the international community to step up pressure on the government of Singapore and help prevent yet another unlawful execution from taking place. There is still time to change course and prevent this cruel and senseless execution from happening.”