In the past few years, large groups of death row inmates have jointly filed applications to the court after all avenues of appeal and clemency have been exhausted.
To deal with this situation, the new Post-Appeal Applications in Capital Cases Act (Pacc Act) will require death row inmates to seek permission from the Court of Appeal before filing further applications to delay their executions after they have exhausted their appeals.
The law was passed by Parliament in 2022 and is expected to come into force within a few weeks, said Mr Shanmugam.
Contrary to activists’ claims about weakening support for the death penalty, he said surveys conducted by the Ministry of Home Affairs showed that support for the punishment here rose in the last two years.
In 2021, 74 per cent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the death penalty should be used for the most serious crimes, including drug trafficking. Preliminary findings from a 2023 survey showed this rose to 77 per cent.
The 2023 survey found 69 per cent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that the mandatory death penalty is an appropriate punishment for trafficking a significant amount of drugs, up from 66 per cent in 2021.
Due to Singapore’s approach on drugs, Mr Shanmugam said the number of drug abusers arrested here every year has been halved since the 1990s.
But Singapore still faces a threat from drugs. The number of drug abusers arrested in 2023 was up by 10 per cent to 3,101, from 2,826 in 2022, according to statistics from the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) released in February.
The number of cannabis users arrested was the highest in a decade, jumping 17 per cent to 277 in 2023, from 236 in 2022. CNB director Sam Tee said then that liberal attitudes towards drugs globally have changed public attitudes here.
Mr Shanmugam said drug traffickers still try their luck because of the profits they can earn, as the street price for drugs is much higher in Singapore than in other parts of the region.
Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh had asked about new psychoactive substances (NPS) seized by the CNB and if there are specific communities consuming such drugs.
Mr Shanmugam said there has been a jump in NPS seizures, as they were previously not available but have now become easily available because they can be created fairly easily in larger quantities.
He added: “I don’t think there’s a clear correlation, but we have seen a slightly higher level of Chinese participation, as it were, the number of Chinese who take these NPS, compared with the ‘traditional drugs’, if I can “so refer to them.”
Mr Murali Pillai (Bukit Batok) had asked what was being done to ensure the younger generations understand and internalize Singapore’s strong anti-drug policy.
Mr Shanmugam said drugs are now pushed as “cool” to the young people through the media, online and their friends, in what he described as a “multi-faceted assault”.
He said that MHA and CNB have been trying many different ways to try and get their message across better and more clearly.
“There are all these glitzy arguments as to why ‘soft drugs’, cannabis, causes you no harm… It’s frequently glamorized, you can’t get away from it,” he said.
“How do we deal with it? You know, we don’t produce Hollywood movies. It’s very difficult to stand against this multi-faceted assault, but I think we have done a reasonably good job.”
Mr Vikram Nair (Sembawang GRC) had asked if there are any other gateway substances or drugs that the youth should be aware of.
Mr Shanmugam responded, saying some might refer to vaping as a gateway, but that the Ministry of Health would answer as to what steps they are taking.
Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Health Rahayu Mahzam had said earlier in the Parliament session that there was a lot of misinformation being spread that vapes were harmless.
She said: “The truth is that there’s a lot of data that suggests that they are gateway products to smoking as well as to drug use.”
She had been responding to a question from Mr Zhulkarnain Abdul Rahim (Chua Chu Kang GRC), who noted that there is a strong link between vaping and cannabis abuse.
Ms Rahayu said the Health Ministry would continue building knowledge and disseminating information on the issue.
To continue combating drugs, Singapore will mark Drug Victims Remembrance Day every third Friday of May from 2024. The first observance event will take place on May 17 at the Ngee Ann City Civic Plaza.
Said Mr Shanmugam: “We will be holding a candlelight display to remember the victims of drug abuse, not only from Singapore, but from all around the world.”
The event will be followed by roving exhibitions across different locations around Singapore from May to July.
He said: “I strongly encourage Singaporeans to visit the exhibitions, participate in these activities, to be aware of the global and local drug situation, and to show solidarity in our fight against drugs.”
