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Tuesday, August 3, 2010

What are you so afraid of?

A blogger writes after reading Alan Shadrake's book: 


Excerpts:

Are you afraid that people will read about Singapore’s investments in Burma and its alleged links to internationally known drug lords? (It’s already on the Internet, see
 here and here).

Are you afraid that people will make judgments about how Julia Bohl, a German citizen and known drug trafficker, had her sentence lessened after the amount of drugs she was found with was reduced after “further laboratory tests” (from 687 grams to 281 grams)?

Are you afraid that people will start questioning the sting tactics of the Central Narcotics Bureau, when an informant in the book alleges that sometimes small time drug mules are encouraged to smuggle larger amounts by undercover officers – amounts that lead to death by hanging if caught?

Are you afraid of international condemnation when it becomes public knowledge that there were cases when drug offenders with signs of significant intellectual impairment were not given special consideration?

Are you afraid of the scandal when it is revealed the son of a former High Court judge was arrested for consuming cocaine – in addition to the revelation that he managed to serve time at home with an electronic tag?

Are you afraid of public outrage when we read about the case of Vignes Mourthi, who was hanged largely based on the account of a key witness who was also concurrently being investigated for charges of corruption, rape and sodomy? (Only this key witness, a senior officer, was not tried till a year after Mourthi was hanged)

Are you afraid that when we read vivid descriptions of the hanging process, the agony of waiting as you hear the sounds of others being executed, the securing of arms and legs to ensure there is no struggling, the careful measuring required because “if you get it wrong the head would go one way and the body the other”, the suspension of bodies for 20 minutes to ensure death (or until the body stops writhing), the engorged faces, the swollen, protruding tongues, the bulging eyes, the neck covered with lacerations… we will be haunted by the thought of the approximately 1,000 times our renowned executioner Darshan Singh (now retired) has carried them out?

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