Automatic execution for drug smugglers is inhumane and disproportionate, a court in Singapore has heard, as a 21-year-old challenged his death sentence for bringing heroin into the country.Lawyers representing Yong Vui Kong, a 22-year old Malaysian, argued that the mandatory death sentence violates international standards and human rights laws. Singapore executes anyone found guilty of importing more than 15g of drugs. It is one of the few countries in the world to impose mandatory death sentences for drug offences.
"This is a young man, only 22, who committed a non-violent offence," said Saul Lehrfreund, co-founder of the Death Penalty Project, a London-based legal program that appeals against death sentences. Full Story
