Continuing our series that draws from Dr Mai Sato’s article, let’s unpack why it’s a lie that there is strong support for the death penalty. Barring the fact that this claim comes from a survey done by the Ministry of Home Affairs–which is absolutely NOT unbiased or impartial–the survey questions on what the death penalty entails are vague and imprecise, and the survey results over-generalise the level of support. What the survey REALLY shows is that whatever “support” people have for the death penalty is not strong at all, and that people are not well-informed about the reality of the death penalty in Singapore.
When an IPS study surveyed Singaporeans on their level of knowledge on the death penalty (claiming later that Singaporeans were “relatively” in the know), the results showed that most Singaporeans think the number of executions carried out by the state is far lower than it actually is, and that they wrongly assumed the leniency of the death penalty toward mentally impaired individuals. Can we truly say that Singaporeans support the death penalty if they don’t even know what it looks like in reality?
Other non-government studies carried out by NUS and SMU have instead found that less than half of respondents supported the mandatory death penalty in all cases and even fewer when it came to drug trafficking. At best, the survey shows that many Singaporeans have a slight preference for the death penalty. But what all these studies point to is that most of these so-called “supporters” tend to be ambivalent about whether Singapore keeps or abolishes it, and that there would be no adverse outcry if the death penalty was removed.
The notion that Singaporeans are clamouring for the death penalty is a complete myth. What we see instead is a society that is ready for change–ready to embrace a more humane and ethical understanding of justice.
Minister K.Shanmugam has claimed that an “overwhelming majority of people” in Singapore support the death penalty, citing a 2021 survey by the Ministry of Home Affairs that states 66% of Singaporeans support the death penalty for drug trafficking.
These survey results are misleading. The support it claims to show is neither overwhelming nor well-informed.
Who actually agrees?
The 66% reported in the survey lumps together respondents who indicated “strongly agree” and “agree” without distinguishing their level of support.
If we refer to another study carried out by the Institute of Policy Studies (IPS), only 19% of respondents strongly agreed with the mandatory death penalty for drug trafficking.
Are people informed?
The IPS study claims that Singaporeans are “relatively knowledgeable” about the death penalty by asking them true/false questions about the death penalty.
But 87% of respondents incorrectly thought that fewer than five people have been executed yearly from 2016 – 2021.
70% of respondents also thought that death penalty is not imposed on individuals suffering from “certain mental illnesses”. Yet in 2022, Nagaenthran Dharmalingam was executed despite having been found to have an intellectual disability and severe ADHD.
Can Singaporeans meaningfully support the death penalty if they don’t know the extent to which it is used?
Asking the wrong questions
The survey asks respondents if they think the death penalty is “appropriate” for trafficking a “significant amount of drugs” without specifying what this means.
But what is considered “significant” to these respondents is not the same as what the law states.
For example, in Singapore, a mere 15 grams of heroin warrants the mandatory death sentence.
The survey also does not specify if “trafficking” can apply to individuals who unintentionally carry drugs, or have been coerced into doing so.
What the people support isn’t our status quo.
What do we actually think?
When we look beyond the questionable validity of these government surveys, we see different results.
A 2018 NUS study showed that less than half of the respondents supported the mandatory death penalty and only 32.7% supported the mandatory death penalty for drug trafficking.
At best, the flawed government surveys show a public preference for the death penalty, but not one that is strong.
It is possible for the public to have a preference for the death penalty and yet still be able to accept that the death penalty can and should be abolished.
As one 2016 study found, “There is unlikely to be any adverse outcry should the Government [remove the death penalty].”
The government likes to fearmonger that society will collapse without the death penalty. This is a lie meant to scare us into accepting things the way they are. Yes, change can be scary–but it is often necessary.
What the people support isn’t our status quo.
Transformative Justice Collective 