British writer Alan Shadrake to be jailed for book on death penalty in Singapore

Alan Shadrake (left)

A British writer is set to serve a 6-week jail term for insulting Singapore's judiciary in a book about the death penalty in the city-state after a court on Friday rejected his appeal against the sentence and a fine.

The Court of Appeal allowed Alan Shadrake, author of Once a Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock, to undergo a medical check before starting his prison term on Wednesday, said his lawyer M Ravi.

In his book Shadrake, 76, accused Singapore's courts of succumbing to political influence and of favouring the rich over the poor, basing his allegations on interviews with a former executioner, human rights activists and police officers.

In addition to the jail term, Shadrake was fined 20,000 Singapore dollars (15,400 US dollars).

Based in Malaysia, Shadrake was arrested in Singapore in July following the launch of his book in the city-state.

Human Rights Watch condemned the court's decision.

'The prosecution of Alan Shadrake for doing nothing more than calling for legal reform is a devastating blow to free speech in Singapore,' its deputy Asia director Phil Robertson said in a statement.

In its November 3 decision, Singapore's High Court said 'Shadrake's technique is to make or insinuate his claims against a dissembling and selective background of truths and half-truths, and sometimes outright falsehoods.'

The prosecution had sought a longer jail term, arguing that Shadrake's book contained statements 'to challenge the rule of law by attacking the Singapore judiciary.'

Source: Deutsche Presse-Agentur, May 27, 2011

Singapore rejects British author Alan Shadrake's appeal

A British author of a book about the death penalty in Singapore, Alan Shadrake, has lost his appeal against a 6-week jail sentence.

The 76-year-old, convicted of insulting the judiciary, will undergo medical tests before beginning his sentence.

His book, Once A Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock, alleges a lack of impartiality in the implementation of Singapore's laws.

Singapore has a history of sensitivity to how it is portrayed.

Mr Shadrake was sentenced by the High Court last November and was fined S$20,000 ($16,150; £9,900).

"We affirm the sentence imposed by the judge," said Justice Andrew Phang of the three-member Court of Appeal panel.

The New York-based Human Rights Watch said the ruling was a "major setback for free expression in Singapore".

The rights group said the charges should be dropped.

"The prosecution of Alan Shadrake for doing nothing more than calling for legal reform is a devastating blow to free speech in Singapore," said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

"More broadly, until the government releases its iron grip on basic freedoms, the Singaporean people will remain all the poorer."

The Singapore government says it has the right to ensure what it sees as accuracy in any reporting of the young state.

Malaysia-based Shadrake was arrested last July when he visited Singapore to launch his book.

The book contains interviews with human rights activists, lawyers and former police officers, as well as a profile of Darshan Singh, the former chief executioner at Singapore's Changi Prison.

It claims he executed around 1,000 men and women from 1959 until he retired in 2006.

"I think I've been given a fair hearing," Shadrake told the media after the verdict was issued last year.

Separately, Shadrake is being investigated by the police for criminal defamation; his passport is being held by the police.

Source: BBC News, May 27, 2011

Related article: "Death penalty book author Alan Shadrake defiant in Singapore", AFP, July 30, 2010

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