Singapore urged to end death penalty for drug offenses by UN experts

Independent UN Human Rights Council-appointed experts have called for an immediate end to Singapore’s use of the death penalty, labeling its application for drug-related offenses as “arbitrary deprivations of life.” The experts noted that the majority of executions in the country are tied to drug trafficking convictions under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

In 2025, drug-related offenses accounted for 15 of the 17 recorded executions. The experts criticized the mandatory nature of these sentences, which limits judicial discretion to assess defendants individually, and expressed concern over statutory presumptions that shift the burden of proof to the accused. They argued that under international law, capital punishment should only be reserved for the “most serious crimes,” defined as those involving intentional killing, a threshold they claim drug offenses do not meet.