“The world has watched
on as this theatre of cruelty played out, with this most tragic endings.
It did not have to come to this. The death penalty is never
the answer”
Words from Amnesty international UK director Kate Allen
pretty much sums up the sentiments of many concerning the execution of 8 drug
convicts in Indonesia on 29th April 2015.
Among the 8 who were executed by the firing squad, Andew Chan
and Myuran Sukumaran (allegedly the masterminds of a drug ring) were part of
the Bali 9, the name given to a group of 9 Australians who were convicted of
smuggling 8.3 Kg of heroine valued at around 4.1 million US dollars from
Indonesia to Australia. After serving nearly 10 years in Indonesian prison, the
lives of these 2 young men ended tragically for a foolish decision they made in
an attempt to make quick bucks.
Executions of drug
smugglers are becoming more common. While Indonesia carried out only seven
executions of drug traffickers between 1999 to 2014, since taking office six
months ago, President Joko Widodo has overseen 14 executions as part of a fight
against drug addiction at home (Never mind that some of the recently killed
prisoners were smuggling drugs out of Indonesia, rather than into it).
Although 32 countries impose death penalty for drug smuggling,
only 6 countries –China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Vietnam, Malaysia and Singapore- routinely
executes drug offenders and soon Indonesia is going to join the ranks of these
countries following its recent executions.
Did these 8 and similarly several others deserve the death
penalty? There is a scant research on whether the death penalty deters drug
trafficking. Experts who have considered
the issue of the death penalty as a punishment for murder, and some cases drug
offences, around the world, say there is not enough evidence to conclude that
the death penalty deters.
Ironically the trade in narcotics has its upside for law
enforcement. For poorly paid police, extracting bribes from tourists caught
taking drugs is a big business. The incentives for them to crack down on drugs
are therefore skewed. The threat of capital punishment exerts fear on drug
offenders and therefore increases the bribes that can be extracted. Drug
kingpings are seldom charged, let alone put to death. Rather it is the lowly
traffickers and drug users who suffer the most grievous of punishments.
Abolishing the death penalty will go a long way to improving
law enforcement and governance in Southeast Asia, thereby diminishing drug
trafficking, which is the ultimate aim of governments that enforce the death
penalty. If the region is serious about tackling drug trafficking it would be
wise to abolish the death penalty.
