Subject: Singapore - death penalty
Case SGP 220405 Death penalty The International Secretariat of OMCT requests your URGENT intervention in the following situation in Singapore. Brief description of the situation The International Secretariat of OMCT has been informed by the Asian Centre for the Progress of Peoples (Hotline Asia), a member of the OMCT network, of the case of Mr. Shanmugam Murugesu, 38 years old, who is due to be hanged on or before the first week of May 2005. According to the information received, Mr. Shanmugam was arrested on 29 August 2003 at Tuas Checkpoint, for trafficking about one kilogramme of cannabis into Singapore. He was prosecuted under section 7 of the Misuse of Drugs Act, Chapter 185, and sentenced to death after trial at the High Court in April 2004. Mr. Shanmugam's appeal was heard in the Court of Appeal, but dismissed on 26 October 2006. In Singapore, the death sentence is mandatory for drug offences, and the presidential clemency is the final mechanism for appeal. Information about the precise date of hanging is not made public. The International Secretariat of OMCT is gravely concerned for the physical and psychological integrity of Mr. Shanmugam Murugesu, and stresses that it is strongly opposed to the death penalty, particularly when administered automatically for such offences. OMCT emphasises that it considers the capital punishment an extreme form of cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment, as proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments. OMCT therefore urges the authorities in Singapore to immediately commute the death sentence of Mr. Shanmugam Murugesu. Action requested : Please write to the authorities in Singapore urging them to: i.=09take all necessary measures to guarantee Mr. Shanmugam Murugesu's physical and psychological integrity; ii.=09immediately commute Mr. Shanmugam Murugesu's death sentence; iii.=09guarantee the respect of human rights and the fundamental freedoms throughout the country in accordance with national laws and international human rights standards. Addresses =B7=09His Excellency S R Nathan, President, Office of the President, Istana, Orchard Road, Republic of Singapore 0922 , Fax: + 65 738 4673 =B7=09The Honourable Goh Chok Tong, Senior Minister, Office of the Senior Minister, Istana Annexe, Singapore 238823, e-mail: [email protected] =B7=09The Honourable Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister, Office of the Prime Minister, Istana Annexe, Singapore 238823, e-mail: [email protected] =B7=09The Honourable Wong Kan Seng, Minister of Home Affairs, New Phoenix Park 28, Irrawaddy Road, Singapore 329560, e-mail: [email protected], Fax: +65 6734 4420 =B7=09Minister of Law, Prof. S. Jayakumar, Ministry of Law, 100 High Street, The Treasury #08-02, Singapore 179434, Fax: + 65 6332 8842 =B7=09Attorney General Chan Sek Keong, Attorney General's Chambers, 1 Coleman Street #10-00, Singapore 179803, Fax: + 65 6332 5984 =B7=09Chief Justice Yong Pung How, Supreme Court, Supreme Court Building, St Andrew's Road, Singapore 178957 =B7=09Ambassadeur Vanu Gopala Menon, ICC - Bloc G- Pr=E9-Bois 20 - CP 1910, CH-1215, Gen=E8ve 15, Suisse, e-mail : [email protected], fax: +4122 929 66 58 Please also write to the embassies of Singapore in your respective country. Geneva, 22 April 2005 Kindly inform us of any action undertaken quoting the code of this appeal in your reply. Organisation Mondiale Contre la Torture (OMCT) World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) Organizaci=F3n Mundial Contra la Tortura (OMCT) 8 rue du Vieux-Billard Case postale 21 CH-1211 Geneve 8 Suisse/Switzerland Tel. : 0041 22 809 49 39 Fax : 0041 22 809 49 29 E-mail : [email protected] http://www.omct.org
