Malaysia’s lower house approved legal reforms on Monday that will abolish the mandatory death penalty for a range of offences. The amendments will apply to 34 crimes currently punishable by death, including murder and drug trafficking, of which 11 carry a mandatory death sentence. Although the country has maintained a moratorium on executions since 2018, courts have continued to send inmates to death row. Alternatives to the death penalty being considered include whipping and imprisonment for 30 to 40 years, according to Al Jazeera.
Lawmakers also agreed to remove capital punishment as an option for certain serious crimes that do not result in death, such as kidnapping and the discharge or trafficking of firearms. Deputy Law Minister Ramkarpal Singh argued that the death penalty is an irreversible punishment that has not proven an effective deterrent. He said, “We cannot arbitrarily ignore the inherent right to life of every individual. The death penalty has not brought the results it was intended to bring.”
Since gaining independence in 1957, Malaysia is now joining other countries that have abolished the death penalty.
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