Singapore is waging a war on drugs; Death penalty an effective deterrent: Shanmugam

SINGAPORE – Singapore is fighting a war on drugs and thousands of people will suffer if the country does not fight or lose the war, Home Minister K. Shanmugam said.

Delivering a ministerial statement in Parliament on May 8 on Singapore’s drug control approach, he cited several drug-related crimes that resulted in people dying at the hands of loved ones who had abused drugs.

Citing statistics from the World Health Organization and the World Drug Report on lives lost to drug use, Mr Shanmugam said: “These are not just statistics, these are the lives of fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters , sons and daughters.

“That’s why I use the analogy of war. “I am talking about a war against those who profit from drug trafficking at the cost of hundreds of thousands of innocent lives.”

Shanmugam, who is also Law Minister, said he was delivering the ministerial statement as Singapore’s drug control policy has come under fire from people who help inmates abuse the legal process.

In 2019, Singapore changed its policy towards drug users. Now, those who only abuse drugs without committing other crimes are sent to treatment and do not get a criminal record.

But while Singapore tries to help abusers, it takes a tough stance against drug traffickers, Shanmugam said.

He said: “We have zero tolerance for those who destroy the lives of others for money.”

In the 51-minute statement, the minister painted a grim picture of how drug trafficking has affected the safety and lives of citizens in countries such as the United States, Sweden and Belgium.

He said that in the last decade there have been hundreds of shootings, fires and bomb attacks in Antwerp, Belgium, many of which were related to gang-related violence over a part of the cocaine trade.

Citing examples of how relaxed drug possession laws in San Francisco and Oregon led to higher numbers of drug overdose deaths, Shanmugam said such policies have a long-term impact on the next generation.

This is why the death penalty is an effective deterrent in the war on drugs, Mr Shanmugam said.

After it was introduced for trafficking more than 1.2 kg of opium in 1990, there was a 66 percent reduction in the average net weight of opium trafficked in the following four years.

The minister said that it is not easy for policymakers to decide to impose capital punishment.

“But the evidence shows that it is necessary to protect our people, avoid the destruction of thousands of families and avoid the loss of thousands of lives,” he said.