Originally posted by crazy monkey:
where do you get the stats from ? 
The figures were most likely obtained from an Amnesty
International (AI) report "Singapore -- The Death Penalty: A Hidden
Toll Of Executions":
http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA360012004
Under Section 5 "Executions: The death toll continues to
rise":
"Singapore is believed to have the worlds highest per capita execution rate, relative to
its population. According to the UN Secretary-Generals
quinquennial report on capital punishment, for the period 1994 to
1999 Singapore had a rate of 13.57 executions per one million
population, representing by far the highest rate of executions in
the world."
As expected, the Singapore government has fired back in rebuttal,
claiming "AI has resorted to grave errors of facts and
misrepresentations, which seriously calls into question the
credibility of its Report":
http://www2.mha.gov.sg/mha/detailed.jsp?artid=990&type=4
Excerpt from the above rejoinder article:
Amnesty International's claim that the death penalty is a
violation of international human rights standards
"6 In pursuing its international political agenda "Amnesty
International opposes the death penalty worldwide in all cases
without exception." AI makes the sweeping statement that the death
penalty is a violation of international human rights
standards.
"7 We do not agree with this. There is no international consensus
on abolition of the death penalty. Key international instruments
that apply to countries with wide divergences in cultures and
values do not proscribe the use of the death penalty in their
texts. For example, even the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights provides that the death sentence "may be imposed
only for the most serious crimes".
"8 On the two occasions, in 1999 and 1994, that the European Union
attempted to get the United Nations General Assembly to adopt a
resolution that called for a moratorium on the death penalty with
the view towards its abolition, these attempts failed. This was
because a large majority of UN member states disapproved of the
EU's attempt to impose their views and systems on the rest of the
world. AI refers to the resolutions adopted in the UN Commission on
Human Rights that encourage states to stop executions. However, AI
failed to say that on at least seven occasions, a significant
number of countries disassociated themselves from those
resolutions. In 2003, 63 countries, or one-third of the UN's
membership, disassociated themselves.
"9 AI accuses Singapore of "running counter to the worldwide trend
towards abolition of the death penalty". But whether a country
should retain or abolish capital punishment is a question for each
country to decide, taking into account its own circumstances. Every
country has the sovereign right to decide on its own judicial
system. We do not live in a homogenous world. Within certain
universally agreed broad parameters, international norms call for
the respect of differences of views and beliefs. Singapore does not
seek to impose its views on others. We only ask that others do not
impose their views on us.
"10 Singapore weighs the right to life of the convicted against the
rights of victims and the right of the community to live in peace
and security. Taking into account our national circumstances, we
have made a considered decision to retain the death penalty. It has
worked for us, making Singapore one of the safest places in the
world to live and work in."
Rest in peace, Shanmugam.
