I hear Singapore hung two more people this morning for drug trafficking.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/young-tochi-hanged-for-heroin-smuggling
/2007/01/26/1169594481223.html
I was in favour of the death penalty when I was still in Singapore and Malaysia, but ever since I came over to Australia, I'm convinced that the death penalty is barbaric and inhumane. I don't think that implies I became "Westernised" or anything like that, but I believe life is precious and no one deserves to have his/her life snuffed out just like that. Furthermore, if that person wanted to rehabilitate him/herself, there's no way that can possibly happen. The death sentence, once being performed, there's simply no U-turning back.
That is not to say I don't acknowledge that the drug problem is a serious one. Yes, it is and it is something that governments should tackle head-on. But surely there are better ways to do that than to impose mandatory death sentences? The Singapore system is such that there's no room for judges to make any discretion of any extentuating circumstances, cos the law automatically provides for the gallows once u traffic 15 grams of heroin, so on and so forth. Besides, the person doing the trafficking is more often than not just a drug mule. Hanging the trafficker but not going after the masterminds = not solving the problem at all.
And by the way, the Australian government under John Howard is not doing a good job in reflecting our opposition against the death penalty either. When you oppose it, it's a matter of principle. You don't just simply select and choose who you think deserves to die "more". The Howard government, especially Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and Attorney-General Philip Ruddock is probably very guilty of double standards, when they are vocal about death sentences for Van Nguyen (the Australian dude who also was hung at Changi Prison in Dec 2005), and the impending death sentences for some of the Australian Bali 9 drug-traffickers. BUT yet they are conspicuously silent when the perpetrators of the Bali 2002 bombings were sentenced to death, or even more recently, Saddam Hussein's execution.
The bottom line is, I reckon, you don't return an eye for an eye because revenge will then be an endless cycle, and I feel every life is precious to God. Yes, even Saddam Hussein's, despite his crimes against humanity.