Singapore executes convicted drug trafficker despite International pleas for clemency

Singapore has executed a 46-year-old man convicted of conspiring to smuggle one kilogram of cannabis, despite international appeals to abolish capital punishment.

Tangaraju Suppiah was put to death at Changi Prison Complex, after being convicted in 2017 for abetting a conspiracy to traffic 1,017.9 grams of cannabis.

The execution comes despite a plea by the United Nations Human Rights Office to “urgently reconsider” the hanging, and calls by British businessman Richard Branson to halt it.

Branson, a member of the Global Commission on Drug Policy, had written a blog post earlier in the week, alleging that Suppiah was innocent and not near the drugs at the time of his arrest.

However, Singapore’s Home Affairs Ministry responded by saying that his guilt had been proven beyond a reasonable doubt.

Singapore has some of the toughest anti-narcotics laws in the world and insists the death penalty remains an effective deterrent against trafficking.

Tangaraju’s family had pleaded for clemency while also pushing for a retrial. The execution was the first in six months and the 12th since last year in the city-state.

Singapore resumed executions in March 2022 after a hiatus of more than two years.

The United Nations has consistently said that the death penalty is incompatible with international human rights law, which only permits capital punishment for the most serious crimes.