On 21 November 2024 and 28 November 2024, the night before the executions of Rosman and Masoud respectively (may they rest in peace and power), some Singaporeans held a vigil for them outside Change Prison, meters away from where these death row prisoners were about to be hanged.
15 citizens who participated in these vigils are currently being investigated by the police. 8 people who held vigil for Rosman on the eve of his execution. Some of them were called up in less than 24 hours for interrogations, the day Rosman’s family and friends were at his funeral.
The next week, on the eve of Masoud’s execution, 11 people held vigil for him. They, too, have since been called down for interrogations.
At both vigils, individuals had been sitting in silence before a photo of the prisoner, some candles and flowers, when the cops arrived and compelled them to disperse.
The Transformative Justice Collective condemns the police’s decision to disperse, and then interrogate these individuals who simply wanted to accompany and honour Rosman and Masoud from a distance in their last hours, before they were taken forever from their loved ones. The fact that we are deprived even the right to mourn, silently, is despicable.
One of the participants of Rosman’s vigil, Geok Choo, shared, “I think it is a natural reaction for people who disagree with the death penalty to feel the need to mourn an execution and to feel sorry for the ones who had their lives shortened. So, vigils are a good way to express compassion & humanity towards fellow human beings. I can’t comprehend why the need for police interrogation. Totally out of sync.”
Police officers who arrived at the vigil filmed the participants without their consent and tailed them even after they left the area. Furthermore, police officers turned up at the homes of two people who participated in Masoud’s vigil, without any prior phone calls or texts, alarming their family members.
We cannot continue to tolerate the criminalisation of peaceful gatherings, a fundamental civil right that we are Constitutionally guaranteed. The police interventions in these vigils are absurdly disproportionate, and frankly, an affront to human decency.
Another participant who was at Masoud’s vigil, Suraendher Kumarr, said, “When IO Sanjee from the Bedok Police Division called me, she asked to schedule an interview. I asked what it was for. And she said it was about “the gathering” that took place on 29th November midnight outside Changi Prison. What about the murder that took place inside Changi prison itself 6 hours later? Are they going to investigate that as well? Did “the gathering” harm someone? Maybe the concrete pavement I was standing on felt hurt for a while. But what about the premeditated murder inside their own prisons?”
When our government uses law enforcement to intimidate citizens and suppress even the silent mourning of these men in their final hours when they sit in solitary cells till prison guards come to walk them to the gallows – it should force us to question the purpose of these laws that proclaim to protect “public order” and “safety.” Contrary to keeping anyone safe, these laws are used in ways that spread fear, repress dissent and seek to silence principled actions and voices.
The right to free expression and assembly are crucial to confronting the true sentiment of the people – their frustrations, aspirations, pain and hope. It is also what fosters collective ownership over our present and futures, and allows us to hold authorities accountable. It is important that all of us can speak, think, and act without fear of reprisals.
The Transformative Justice Collective believes firmly in the need to legalise public assembly, as do at least 31 other grassroots organisations that signed The People’s Manifesto (2024), which starts with a chapter on rebuilding our democracy. Without democratic rights, no movement for progressive social change can go far. Democracy will not be handed to us on a platter by our rulers – we have to grab it. TJC stands proudly with those who held vigil for Rosman and Masoud. Such acts, such people, are the conscience of our society.
Transformative Justice Collective 