Richard Branson again puts spotlight on SG for 'draconian' death penalty 

British entrepreneur and founder of the Virgin Group Richard Branson has once again spoken up against an upcoming death penalty sentence that is due to be carried out this week in Singapore. 

In a post on Virgin's site, Branson spoke up about the case of Tangaraju Suppiah who was sentenced to death in 2018 for conspiring to smuggle a kilogram of cannabis into Singapore. The case has been widely spoken about by local and international activists particularly because the evidence condemning Suppiah is thought to be insufficient according to the public.

Branson began his post by saying that he has long spoken up against the death penalty and its use around the world before stating that in the coming days, Singapore is planning to carry out yet another execution.

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"If the state gets its way, [Suppiah] will be hanged on Wednesday at Singapore’s Changi Prison, convicted under more than dubious circumstances for conspiracy to smuggle about one kilo of cannabis,' he wrote before saying that Singapore "may be about to kill an innocent man".

Branson continued by saying that Suppiah's case is "shocking on multiple levels" in reference to the fact that Suppiah was allegedly not "anywhere near these drugs" at the time of his arrest. 

"This was largely a circumstantial case that relied on inferences. Investigators and prosecutors acted on the fact that his mobile numbers were stored on the actual drug traffickers’ phone, interpreting phone records and text messages as 'proof' of his involvement," said Branson. 

"Tangaraju’s alleged co-conspirator – who was actually caught in possession of the drugs – pleaded guilty to a non-capital offence. The other three people connected to the case were “discharged not amounting to an acquittal” by the prosecution," he continued. 

Branson noted that Singapore, as in other countries, sets a high bar for criminal convictions, and the standard of proof required is to establish culpability “beyond a reasonable doubt.”

"Even setting aside my fundamental opposition to the death penalty and the grave injustice of killing people for non-violent drug offences, it appears to me that [Suppiah's] conviction didn’t meet that standard at all," 

He said:

The country’s government has repeatedly claimed that its draconian laws serve as an effective deterrent of drug-related crime. 

He continued by saying that Singaporean authorities have "repeatedly failed to provide any tangible evidence for that assertion."

Branson also noted that in Singapore, the spotlight has been on capital punishments due to its "disproportionate use on minorities, an obsession with small-scale drug traffickers, and the widely reported harassment of human rights defenders and capital defense lawyers."

Calling on the Singapore Government to "pause" to review the case and to grant a reprieve, Branson added that Singapore is an "otherwise wonderful country" and noted that it is sad to see " some of its policies harking back to colonialism, and even reminiscent of medieval times." 

Australian MP Graham Perrett speaks up

Branson is not the only international public figure to have condemned the upcoming execution of Suppiah. Recently, Australian MP Graham Perrett took to Facebook to speak out about the case. 

He wrote:

Singapore has a strong reputation as a rule of law country, so this concerning omission is not normal.

Perrett went on to say that he is concerned that the planned execution of Tangaraju violates international law standards. "Article 6, paragraph 2 of the ICCPR is clear that the application of the death penalty by retentionist countries is restricted to the 'most serious crimes'. This does not extend to drug offences, and it is particularly concerning that it is being applied for such a minor offence as an attempt to traffic cannabis," he said before appealing to the public as the co-chair of Parliamentarians Against the Death Penalty to reach out to the Singapore High Commission in Canberra to stop the execution. 

Not the first time

This is not the first time that Branson has brawled with the Singapore government over its death penalty laws. Just last November, the Singapore government went on the offensive by calling out Branson for declining an open, live, televised the debate with the government regarding his views on the death penalty.

Calling his reasons “lame” and saying that they “do not hold water”, the Ministry of Home affairs (MHA) re-emphasised that Branson has been “publicly peddling falsehoods about Singapore”, using his celebrity status to campaign to change Singapore’s position.

“If his facts are wrong, it is important this be publicly exposed. If Branson is convinced he is correct, he should take up our offer of a debate, and not offer lame excuses to opt out,” MHA said.

According to Branson’s earlier statements, the British Mogul said that the debate would reduce a “nuanced discourse into soundbites”. As such he declined the debate on penalties imposed on drug traffickers in Singapore – an area that MHA claimed Branson has been “making untrue statements about” for “some time now”.

On Branson’s suggestion that the Singapore government engages Singaporeans instead of him on the death penalty, MHA said that in 2022 alone, the government had engaged in discussions on the death penalty with thousands of Singaporeans. It added that in Singapore, important matters are discussed in Parliament by MPs, as elected representatives of the people. The discussions reflect not just the Government’s view, but the different perspectives of Singaporeans, and the death penalty has been discussed in Parliament several times in recent years.

MHA added that it is also not for Branson to tell the Singapore government who in Singapore it should talk to, and that some of the names he shared are “quite clearly among those who have been feeding him misinformation and untruths”. On Branson’s point of Singapore looking outward to what happening in the UK, US, Europe, and other parts of the world, MHA said it does so, and what it sees is “the high rates of drug abuse and drug related crime, and the countless lives lost and families destroyed.”

“Singapore is not completely free from the drug menace either, but our drug situation is under much better control. We adapt what works to our own situation, and avoid practices that have failed […] We ask only for our right to choose our own path, to continue keeping Singapore and Singaporeans safe. The elected government of Singapore is fully capable of taking our own decisions, explaining them to Singaporeans, and getting support for them, including at the polls,” MHA added.

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