All that live must die
There's been a great to-do lately about the young Australian sentenced to death row in Singapore.
There were the requisite demonstrations in front of the state library in Melbourne, angry letters to the press and scathing articles about the barbarism and inhumanity of the Singaporean justice system.
Online, various bloggers such as Mr Wang and Singabloodypore made their comments and others began angry impassioned debates on their comments pages.
The oddest thing that struck me about the whole affair? The fact that the Australians I spoke to and who commented, really believed that they could change matters with their campaigns and letters and leaflets.
The Singaporeans were merely resigned. Even those who did oppose the death penalty were careful to be quiet about it and to make it clear that they could do little to change things.
There's something rotten in both the countries, if you ask me.
Australia has definitely got fairly awful drug problem going on amongst their youth, both in consuming and trafficking. There have been so many cases just this year alone, although only one was turned into a media circus. Obviously some measures (draconian or not) have to be taken before it becomes even more rampant than it is now. There is also a distinct possibility, that unlike Singapore, their drug laws are far too lenient.
And Singapore? A country where social and legal change come dropping slow. Our legal system is literally decades behind everyone else in terms of social reform and I'm not just talking about the death penalty. It is true that we inherited our legal system from the British, as did Australia, but arguably, in certain areas of legal reform, they're streets ahead of us.
Among my friends, I take the stand that the guy broke the law and should pay according to the law.But deep down,I feel enormously sorry for him.
I've never really supported the idea of the death penalty for anyone, mainly because of its irreversibility; any mistakes made by the system, the DPP or the police and a man will die just like that. (Yes, I do realise that it's a very simplistic view of things)
And death has this awful finality to it.
I suppose it helps keep out streets safe and all that. But I look at the face of the young man about to die and I sometimes wonder, if the price we pay is too high.
But perhaps it would serve to remind the world(and I); that in Singapore, there are no second chances.
There were the requisite demonstrations in front of the state library in Melbourne, angry letters to the press and scathing articles about the barbarism and inhumanity of the Singaporean justice system.
Online, various bloggers such as Mr Wang and Singabloodypore made their comments and others began angry impassioned debates on their comments pages.
The oddest thing that struck me about the whole affair? The fact that the Australians I spoke to and who commented, really believed that they could change matters with their campaigns and letters and leaflets.
The Singaporeans were merely resigned. Even those who did oppose the death penalty were careful to be quiet about it and to make it clear that they could do little to change things.
There's something rotten in both the countries, if you ask me.
Australia has definitely got fairly awful drug problem going on amongst their youth, both in consuming and trafficking. There have been so many cases just this year alone, although only one was turned into a media circus. Obviously some measures (draconian or not) have to be taken before it becomes even more rampant than it is now. There is also a distinct possibility, that unlike Singapore, their drug laws are far too lenient.
And Singapore? A country where social and legal change come dropping slow. Our legal system is literally decades behind everyone else in terms of social reform and I'm not just talking about the death penalty. It is true that we inherited our legal system from the British, as did Australia, but arguably, in certain areas of legal reform, they're streets ahead of us.
Among my friends, I take the stand that the guy broke the law and should pay according to the law.But deep down,I feel enormously sorry for him.
I've never really supported the idea of the death penalty for anyone, mainly because of its irreversibility; any mistakes made by the system, the DPP or the police and a man will die just like that. (Yes, I do realise that it's a very simplistic view of things)
And death has this awful finality to it.
I suppose it helps keep out streets safe and all that. But I look at the face of the young man about to die and I sometimes wonder, if the price we pay is too high.
But perhaps it would serve to remind the world(and I); that in Singapore, there are no second chances.
posted by adinahaes at 6:09 AM
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