GENEVA – The UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions, Morris Tidball-Binz, has called on Singapore to immediately halt the planned execution of Malaysian national Pannir Selvam Pranthaman, scheduled for 8 October, and commute his death sentence. He emphasized that drug-related offences do not meet the “most serious crimes” threshold under international human rights law, which is strictly limited to intentional killing, and that the mandatory death penalty is inherently arbitrary. Executing Mr. Pannir Selvam would therefore constitute an arbitrary deprivation of life.
Pannir Selvam, 38, was convicted by Singapore’s High Court on 2 May 2017 for drug-related offences and sentenced to the mandatory death penalty. His appeal was dismissed in February 2018, and his clemency petition was rejected. He was granted temporary stays of execution in May 2019 and February 2025, but his post-appeal application for a further stay was dismissed on 5 September 2025. If carried out, this would mark the second execution of a Malaysian national in under two weeks.
The Special Rapporteur highlighted that there is no credible evidence showing that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than other forms of punishment, and that executions for drug offences neither protect public health nor public safety. Previous UN interventions raised concerns about the misuse of Singapore’s Drugs Act, its incompatibility with the right to life under international law, and the lack of fair trial and clemency safeguards.
Tidball-Binz acknowledged the Singaporean government’s responses to earlier interventions but reiterated his concerns regarding the mandatory death penalty, the “most serious crimes” threshold, and the need for proper fair-trial and clemency processes. He stressed the urgency of the matter, noting the irreversibility of the death penalty, and urged all authorities to ensure Mr. Pannir Selvam Pranthaman is not executed, warning that carrying out the execution would violate international human rights norms and constitute an arbitrary execution.
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