Malaysia pleads for
citizen as Singapore prepares to execute man convicted of murder Mahathir seeks
clemency for condemned man in Singapore
Barring a last-minute pardon or stay of execution by Singapore authorities,
Michael Garing will be put to death in the early hours of March 22.
The 30-year-old Malaysian is 1 of 4 men who went on an armed robbery spree in
the island republic in 2010 that ended in the murder of 41-year-old
Shanmuganathan Dillidurai.
Michael was given the death sentence for the crime. His family received
notification last week to make funeral arrangements for him.
The short notice has triggered 11th-hour efforts by human rights activists and
Malaysian politicians including Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad to make
representations to save his life.
The planned execution of its citizen in the neighboring country comes as
Malaysia moves towards abolishing the death penalty.
Singapore, in its bid to make the city state crime-free and safe, has kept its
ruthless approach to murder and drug smuggling and routinely executes
offenders.
The case has been closely followed in Singapore, which is known for having one
of the lowest rates of violent crime in the world.
The sharply diverging approaches to crime and punishment between the close
neighbors could lead to an awkward stand-off.
Speaking to the press after a parliamentary sitting on March 20, Mahathir said
he hopes Singapore extends clemency to the condemned man and joins Malaysia in
abolishing the death penalty, which is a contravention of international law.
“We are trying to save his life. As we know in Malaysia now, people think that
the death penalty is excessive," state news agency Bernama reported him as
saying. "We hope that other countries will also look at it that way.”
Malaysia’s Law Minister Liew Vui Keong said a letter would be sent to Singapore
President Halimah Yacob as she has the power to grant pardons or commute the
sentence of any convicted person.
"I just came to know about this and will work on it,” he told reporters on
March 19, adding that the government would "write to the president and see what
she has to say”.
Short notice for family
Prominent Malaysian human rights lawyer N. Surendran was scathing of the rush
to execute Michael after the condemned man's family from a small town in the
interior of Sarawak were given 8 days' notice by letter to make funeral
arrangements.
"The extremely short notice is disturbing and cause for concern. It gives the
family scant time to spend with Michael in his final days and to make
preparations,” he said in a statement.
"Michael was only 21 years old when he committed the crime. We accept that it
was a serious crime and that he must face punishment. But like any young person
who has committed a crime, Michael must be given an opportunity for
rehabilitation. By executing him, the state is answering his wrongdoing with an
even greater wrong.
"Singapore gains nothing by carrying out this execution, except to strengthen
the perception of indifference and callousness to human life. The death penalty
has never been proven to be a deterrent to serious crime. Killing Michael only
entrenches the culture of violence and will not make Singaporeans any safer in
their daily lives.
"We strongly urge the president of Singapore to exercise clemency and commute
Michael's sentence to life imprisonment. It is not too late to do so. We
further urge the government of Singapore to impose a moratorium on all
executions and work towards abolition of the death penalty."
Amnesty International has also urged Singapore to halt the execution.
Researcher Rachel Chhoa-Howard said: "No matter how heinous the crime, the
death penalty is a degrading and inhuman punishment. We denounce its use in all
circumstances.”
When their trials were held, prosecutors presented Michael and his accomplices
Tony Imba, Hairee Landak and Donny Meluda as part of a gang of 4 Sarawak
natives who carried out 4 violent robberies over a few hours in May 2010.
Their first 2 victims were construction worker Sandeep Singh, 24, and national
serviceman Ang Jun Heng, 19. They were both beaten and slashed with a machete.
A 3rd victim, Indian national Egan Karuppaiah, then 43, had both arms almost
hacked to the bone.
Their final victim was Shanmuganathan, who was knocked off his bicycle by Tony
and slashed repeatedly. He died after sustaining a fractured skull and a
severed jugular vein among other injuries.
Tony is serving life in prison, while Hairee Landak and Donny Meluda each
received 33 years in jail and 24 strokes of the cane.
Law minister Liew said the Malaysian government's stand was not new, noting
that it had made similar representation to the Singapore government last year
to spare the life a man convicted of drug smuggling.
Prabu Pathmanathan, 31, was executed at Changi prison in October 2018. He was
convicted of smuggling 228 grams of heroin into Singapore in 2014.
Malaysia previously mandated capital punishment for crimes ranging from murder
and kidnapping to drug offenses and treason. Drug offenses once accounted for
the largest number of executions in the country.
Source: ucanews.com, March 21, 2019
⚑ | Report an error, an omission, a typo; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece, a comment; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us:
deathpenaltynews@gmail.com.
Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! DONATE!
"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,
but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde
