Singapore hangs man despites global outcry over 1 kg of cannabis
Singapore, April 26: On Wednesday, Singapore hanged Tangaraju Suppiah, a 46-year-old prisoner convicted of conspiracy to smuggle one kilogram of cannabis.
The execution took place despite a plea by the United Nations Human Rights Office for Singapore to ‘urgently reconsider’ the hanging and calls by British tycoon Richard Branson to halt it.
"Singaporean Tangaraju Suppiah, 46, had his capital sentence carried out today at Changi Prison Complex," a spokesman for the Singapore Prisons Service said.
Also Read: Know what Canadian woman feeds to her baby to cut down grocery bills?
Tangaraju was convicted in 2017 of "abetting by engaging in a conspiracy to traffic" 1,017.9 grams (35.9 ounces) of cannabis, twice the minimum volume required for a death sentence in Singapore. He was sentenced to death in 2018 and the Court of Appeal upheld the decision.
Branson had written Monday on his blog that Tangaraju was "not anywhere near" the drugs at the time of his arrest and that Singapore may be about to put an innocent man to death. Singapore's Home Affairs Ministry responded Tuesday that Tangaraju's guilt had been proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
The ministry said two mobile phone numbers that prosecutors said belonged to him had been used to coordinate the delivery of the drugs.
Despite international calls for Singapore to abolish capital punishment, the Asian financial hub has some of the world's toughest anti-narcotics laws and insists the death penalty remains an effective deterrent against trafficking.
The UN's Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights disagrees, saying the death penalty has not proven to be an effective deterrent globally and is incompatible with international human rights law, which only permits capital punishment for the most serious crimes.
Tangaraju's family pleaded for clemency while also pushing for a retrial, but Wednesday's execution was the first in six months and 12th since last year in the city-state. Singapore resumed executions in March 2022 after a hiatus of more than two years.
Also Read: AAP's Shelly Oberoi elected as Delhi Mayor again; BJP's Shikha Rai backs out
- With inputs from agencies
