The death penalty for drug offences
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International law restricts the death penalty, where it still exists, to the most serious crimes, and United Nations bodies have made clear more than once that drug offences do not belong to that category. Despite this, some states go on sentencing people to death and executing them for trafficking or possession of narcotics: in certain years these executions are a substantial share of the world total.
This page collects the news on death sentences and executions for drug offences.
Latest news
- JANUARY 28, 2000VietnamDEATH PENALTY
Ho Chi Minh City's People's Court sentenced to death...
Ho Chi Minh City's People's Court sentenced to death three narcotics traffickers, Tran Van Nghia, Nguyen Phuoc Duc and Nguyen Thanh Hai
- JANUARY 25, 2000IndonesiaDEATH PENALTY
The Tangerang District Court sentenced two Nepalese...
The Tangerang District Court sentenced two Nepalese nationals Nar Bahadur Tamang, 59, and Bala Tamang, 30, to death for drug trafficking
- JANUARY 14, 2000SingaporeDEATH PENALTY
Lee Chin Seah, an unemployed 42-year-old Chinese man,...
Lee Chin Seah, an unemployed 42-year-old Chinese man, was sentenced to death by the High Court for drug trafficking
- JANUARY 1, 2000ChinaDEATH PENALTY
Domestic consumption of drugs is becoming `more serious...
Domestic consumption of drugs is becoming `more serious with each passing day', according to an official white paper, which acknowledges that `the situation is grim for the anti-drug struggle
- JANUARY 1, 2000CubaDEATH PENALTY
The Penal Code presently in force provides for the...
The Penal Code presently in force provides for the death penalty for 112 offenses, 33 of which are common crimes
- JANUARY 1, 2000ThailandDEATH PENALTY
Capital crimes are: murder, drug offenses, rape, theft,...
Capital crimes are: murder, drug offenses, rape, theft, treason, kidnapping, arson, spying and hijacking
- JANUARY 1, 2000SingaporeDEATH PENALTY
Capital crimes are: murder, treason, offenses against...
Capital crimes are: murder, treason, offenses against the President, illegal possession of arms, and causing an innocent person to be executed by bearing false witness
- JANUARY 1, 2000BruneiDEATH PENALTY
The death penalty is mandatory for murder, unlawful...
The death penalty is mandatory for murder, unlawful possession of firearms and explosives, and drug trafficking (import and export of over 15g of morphine or heroin; possession of over 30g of morphine or heroin for the purpose of unauthorized trafficking
- JANUARY 1, 2000VietnamDEATH PENALTY
Vietnam's communist authorities impose the death penalty...
Vietnam's communist authorities impose the death penalty for a total of 29 different offences, including a string of economic crimes as well as murder, treason, drug trafficking, sexual offences against children and serious cases of armed robbery
- DECEMBER 13, 1999KuwaitDEATH PENALTY
On December 13, Kuwait's Court of Appeals sentenced...
On December 13, Kuwait's Court of Appeals sentenced Rameez Khan, a Pakistani, to death for heroin smuggling
- DECEMBER 1, 1999IndonesiaDEATH PENALTY
In December, at least 136 police were involved in drug...
In December, at least 136 police were involved in drug abuse and 6 were brought to a military court
- NOVEMBER 11, 1999IndonesiaDEATH PENALTY
On November 11, Zarina Mirafsur, a 27-year-old woman,...
On November 11, Zarina Mirafsur, a 27-year-old woman, was arrested together with 9 other suspects after an early morning raid at 5 apartments in a West Jakarta hotel
- NOVEMBER 1, 1999TajikistanDEATH PENALTY
In November, a record quantity of narcotics weighing...
In November, a record quantity of narcotics weighing more than 120kg was discovered and confiscated by Tajik customs men and staff of the Interior Ministry
- OCTOBER 28, 1999UzbekistanDEATH PENALTY
On October 28, a delegation from the Italian Senate...
On October 28, a delegation from the Italian Senate and Hands off Cain went to Uzbekistan to lobby for the resolution for a moratorium that the European Union was planning to present at the UN General Assembly
- SEPTEMBER 21, 1999BangladeshDEATH PENALTY
On September 21, 3 Pakistanis identified as Alef Jan,...
On September 21, 3 Pakistanis identified as Alef Jan, 37, Ibrahim Khan, 35, and Rais Khan, 27 appeared before a criminal court in Dhaka to face trial and possibly the death penalty on charges of smuggling heroin into Bangladesh
- AUGUST 25, 1999IndonesiaDEATH PENALTY
On August 25, the Director General of Correctional...
On August 25, the Director General of Correctional Institutions, Hasanuddin, said 16 convicts, including 3 women and 6 foreigners, were scheduled for execution in the near future after being convicted for premeditated murder or the production and traffick
- AUGUST 15, 1999MalaysiaDEATH PENALTY
On August 15, after an associate of jailed former Deputy...
On August 15, after an associate of jailed former Deputy Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said boxes of government documents were being held overseas to expose malpractice, Ibrahim Ali, a deputy minister in the Prime Minister's Department, said he would propo
- JUNE 25, 1999SingaporeDEATH PENALTY
On June 25, convicted drug traffickers Cheong Chuan...
On June 25, convicted drug traffickers Cheong Chuan Peng, 36, and Chua Gin Boon, 34, were hanged at Changi Prison
- APRIL 27, 1999KuwaitDEATH PENALTY
On April 27, a court sentenced 2 Iranians, Abdallah...
On April 27, a court sentenced 2 Iranians, Abdallah Abdel-Amir Nassari and Saed Mohsen Razij, to death for drug smuggling, while 3 others received life sentences
- MARCH 13, 1999Sri LankaDEATH PENALTY
On March 13, Sri Lanka said it would start carrying...
On March 13, Sri Lanka said it would start carrying out executions again, after a gap of more than 40 years, to curb rising crime
- MARCH 1, 1999Côte d’IvoireDEATH PENALTY
Also in March, a trader from Côte d'Ivoire was sentenced...
Also in March, a trader from Côte d'Ivoire was sentenced to hang for drug trafficking in Malaysia
- FEBRUARY 15, 1999CubaDEATH PENALTY
On February 15, President Fidel Castro said broader...
On February 15, President Fidel Castro said broader use of the death penalty was needed to save the island's socialist revolution
- JANUARY 1, 1999BruneiDEATH PENALTY
The death penalty is mandatory for murder, unlawful...
The death penalty is mandatory for murder, unlawful possession of firearms and explosives, and drug trafficking (import and export of over 15g of morphine or heroin; possession of over 30g of morphine or heroin for the purpose of unauthorized trafficking
- JANUARY 1, 1999MalaysiaDEATH PENALTY
The death penalty is provided for by various laws
The death penalty is provided for by various laws
- JANUARY 1, 1999SingaporeDEATH PENALTY
Capital crimes are: murder, treason, offenses against...
Capital crimes are: murder, treason, offenses against the President, illegal possession of arms, and causing an innocent person to be executed by bearing false witness