Singapore executes man for trafficking two pounds of marijuana

Tangaraju Suppiah died by hanging in Singapore on Wednesday after he was convicted of coordinating a cannabis delivery. The 46-year-old man was sentenced to death in 2018. Prosecutors said he communicated with two other men caught smuggling cannabis into the country. Suppiah had maintained his innocence. His family says he was not given a fair trial.

What are Singapore’s laws about marijuana? Anyone found trafficking more than one pound of cannabis could face the death penalty. Singapore executed 11 people on drug charges last year. On Tuesday, United Nations Human Rights spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani called for the government to stop executions for drug offenses. Authorities in Singapore say the death penalty is a deterrent for drug traffickers in the island state. Its neighbor, Malaysia, this month revoked its mandatory death penalty for some crimes, including drug-related charges.

Dig deeper: Read Addie Offereins’ report in Compassion about states that recently voted to legalize marijuana, and how the results reflect concerns about the long-term consequences of legalization.