Is the death penalty for drug traffickers justified?

 “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 29^th 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.