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Commonwealth Lawyers Association makes last-minute plea to save Malaysian death row inmate in Singapore Pannir Selvam
KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 19 — The Commonwealth Lawyers Association (CLA) has issued an urgent appeal to the Singapore government to halt the execution of Malaysian Pannir Selvam Pranthaman, who is scheduled to be hanged tomorrow for drug trafficking.
Pannir, 36, was convicted in 2017 for acting as a drug courier and handed the mandatory death penalty under Singapore’s Misuse of Drugs Act. He had claimed to have cooperated with authorities by providing information on the actual trafficker but was denied a Certificate of Substantive Assistance that could have spared him from capital punishment.
His clemency application was also rejected by the President of Singapore, leaving Pannir with no further legal recourse.
In a statement today, the CLA called on Singapore’s President to exercise clemency powers under Article 22P(1) of the Constitution to commute Pannir’s death sentence, describing his case as deeply troubling.
“The mandatory death penalty for drug-related offences fails to meet the threshold of ‘the most serious crimes’ required under international human rights standards,” the CLA said, referring to Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
The association added that the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary, or arbitrary executions has long criticised mandatory death sentences, arguing they deprive judges of the ability to consider mitigating circumstances and disproportionately target individuals in drug-related cases.
“The death penalty should not be imposed for drug-related crimes,” the CLA said, adding that such cases raise serious questions about fairness and justice.
The CLA also reiterated its call for Singapore to align its practices with international human rights obligations and review its use of the death penalty, which remains mandatory for certain offences.
Pannir’s scheduled execution has reignited debates about the harsh penalties for drug-related crimes in Singapore, which continues to enforce strict anti-drug laws.
The CLA is an international non-profit organisation that advocates for the rule of law and ethical legal practices across Commonwealth nations.
