SINGAPORE, Sept 20 — A recent survey reveals that a larger number of Singapore residents now support the use of the death penalty for serious crimes such as murder, drug trafficking and firearm offenses.
According to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), which released the findings on September 19, 77.4 per cent of respondents in the 2023 survey either strongly agreed or agreed with the imposition of the death penalty for these offenses, an increase from 73.7 per cent in 2021.
“Respondents felt that the death penalty deterred the most serious crimes; that such crimes were serious and posed a danger to society; and that the death penalty was commensurate with the crime,” stated the MHA, in a report by the Straits Times.
The survey, conducted between April and June 2023, involved face-to-face interviews with about 2,000 Singaporeans and permanent residents aged 15 and above.
The sampling method used in both the 2021 and 2023 surveys was stratified random sampling, ensuring that the samples were representative of the national resident population.
There was a notable increase in support for the mandatory death penalty across various offenses.
For murder, 85 per cent of respondents supported the mandatory death penalty, up from 80.5 per cent in 2021.
Support for the mandatory death penalty for firearm offenses rose to 74.3 per cent, while 68.7 per cent supported it for trafficking significant amounts of drugs.
Among those who disagreed with the mandatory death penalty, 21.8 per cent preferred a discretionary death penalty, and 56.1 per cent opted for life imprisonment, with the remainder saying they did not know.
The survey also indicated that 87.9 per cent of respondents believed the death penalty was an effective deterrent against drug trafficking, an increase from 83.2 per cent in 2021.
New questions in the 2023 survey found strong support for retaining the mandatory death penalty in Singapore, with an average of 81.8 per cent of respondents endorsing it.
Meanwhile, with 76.4 per cent of those polled felt that replacing the mandatory death penalty with the discretionary death penalty would result in an increase in serious crimes, and 88 per cent agreed that the mandatory death penalty was a strong deterrent against the most serious crimes in the country.
“Nearly 85 per cent of respondents believed there are adequate safeguards to ensure that there are no wrongful executions,” the MHA highlighted, underscoring confidence in Singapore’s criminal justice system, while close to 90 per cent of respondents felt that accused persons in death penalty cases are subject to fair and rigorous investigations and trials.
