Mandatory death penalty has not been an effective tool in fighting crime

SHAH ALAM - The mandatory death penalty has not been an effective tool in fighting crime.

Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform) Ramkarpal Singh said the effectiveness of the death penalty has come into question on whether or not it has served its purpose in reducing crime rates.

“For example reducing incidents of drug trafficking and so on.

“In fact, various studies and researches have found that this is not the case, it's not as effective.

“Hence, the reason why we have looked into abolishing the mandatory aspect of the death penalty is what we are at now,” he said.

He said this during Sinar Daily’s Wacana English Edition live show entitled “Working Towards Abolishing Mandatory Death Penalty”, which was aired on all Sinar Daily and Sinar Harian digital platforms, last night.

Ramkarpal added that this could mean that the government will be tabling the necessary bills in Parliament to give effect to the abolishment of the mandatory death penalty, meaning that the death penalty still exists in Malaysia.

"So, it's for the courts to decide whether or not it should be imposed or whether or not the lesser penalty of imprisonment should be imposed.

“Of course, it depends on the facts and circumstances of the cases,” he added.

Ramkarpal Singh was one of the guest speakers for the programme along with Suhakam Commissioner Ragunath Kesavan and Amnesty International Malaysia executive director Katrina Jorene Maliamauv.

The show was moderated by Meor Addelan.