Martes, 18 de febrero, 2025
Amnesty International Malaysia is greatly alarmed at the scheduling of the execution of Malaysian Pannir Selvam Pranthaman in Singapore on Thursday 20 February.
The violations of human rights protections seen in his case would render the execution arbitrary and unlawful under international law and standards. We join his family and many others in urging the authorities of Singapore to immediately halt plans to carry out the execution; and the Government of Malaysia to make every effort to intervene and help spare Pannir Selvam Pranthaman’s life.
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.”
Pannir Selvam Pranthaman was convicted of importing into Singapore 51.84g of diamorphine (heroin) and 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, Pannir has shown great resilience and channeled his energy into creativity, writing heartfelt 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.
Use of the death penalty unlawful and arbitrary under international law and standards
While we oppose the death penalty unconditionally and in all cases, we are deeply concerned that the numerous violations of human rights safeguards present in Pannir’s case would render his execution arbitrary and unlawful under international human rights law and standards. He was sentenced to death for drug-related offenses, which do not meet the threshold of the “most serious crimes” to which the use of this punishment must be restricted under international human rights law and standards. The death penalty was also imposed as a mandatory sentence, contrary to international law and standards, which meant that the judge could not take into account the circumstances of the offence or of his background.
Because of a unique feature in Singapore’s system, he was found to be a “courier”, but as 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 Misuse of Drugs Act. When these legal presumptions are invoked, the burden of proof is shifted onto the defendant to be rebutted to the higher legal standard of “on a balance of probabilities”. Legal presumptions of guilt violate the right to be presumed innocent –a peremptory norm of 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.
Urgent need for interventions from Malaysia to stop the execution
As we are gathered in Parliament today to highlight Pannir’s case, we reflect on the many flaws and arbitrariness of the death penalty, as well as the heavier burden that it poses on those from disadvantaged backgrounds. These arguments echo those that dominated debates on the repeal of the mandatory death penalty in this same building just two years ago and triggered a process that has transformed the use of the death penalty in our country. We must harness this progress to advocate against the use of this cruel punishment everywhere – the death penalty does not make us safer.
As the current Chair of ASEAN and a neighbouring country with strong ties to Singapore, the government of Malaysia must urgently intervene in Pannir’s case. With effectively just more than two days before the execution, the Government must not to spare any efforts to stop this unlawful and arbitrary execution from taking place, as a first critical step.
Amnesty International has been gathering appeals globally on behalf of Pannir Selvam. In the last four months, Amnesty International Malaysia has collected over 1000 petitions signed by civil society and the members of public asking the Malaysian government to urgently intervene to secure the commutation of Pannir Selvam’s death sentence.
Relentless pursuit of executions
Between 1 October 2024 and 7 February 2025, the authorities of Singapore carried out nine executions, including eight of individuals convicted of drug trafficking. Singapore is one of only five countries where Amnesty International confirmed drug related executions in 2023.
As of today, 113 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes and 144 are abolitionist in law or practice. We renew our appeal to the Singapore authorities to immediately halt Pannir’s execution and establish a moratorium on all executions, as first critical steps towards full abolition of the death penalty.