Singaporean Norashari bin Ghous, 48, and Malaysian citizen Kalwant Singh, 31, were sentenced to death on Thursday at the Changi prison complex, the Singapore Prison Service told CNN via email.
In a statement on Tuesday, Singaporean authorities said Norashari and Singh, both convicted of drug trafficking and sentenced to the mandatory death penalty, had exhausted their appeals.
According to the Central Narcotics Bureau, both men were sentenced to death in June 2016. Singh was convicted of possession of 60.15 grams (2.1 ounces) of heroin and trafficking of 120.9 grams of the drug, while Norashari was found guilty of inciting a man to peddle 120.9 grams of heroin.
In Singapore, trafficking in a certain amount of drugs – for example, 15 grams (0.5 ounces) of heroin – results in a mandatory death sentence under the Misuse of Drugs Act, although the law has recently been amended to allow the convicted person to escape punishment. Death penalty under certain circumstances.
“Damages the image of Singapore”
Dharmalingam was arrested in 2009 for trafficking 42.7 grams (1.5 oz) of heroin and later convicted and sentenced to death in 2010.
The Singapore courts rejected numerous appeals to have Dharmalingan’s execution overturned, in which his lawyers argued that he should not have been sentenced to death because he could not understand his actions.
The case has again brought the city-state’s anti-drug laws under scrutiny, with human rights activists arguing that the mandatory death penalty for drug trafficking is an inhuman punishment.
Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for Research Emerlyn Gil on Thursday urged Singapore to immediately impose a moratorium on executions. “Singapore has once again executed people convicted of drug-related crimes in violation of international law, callously ignoring public outcry,” Gill said.
