British entrepreneur Richard Branson declined an invitation from the Singapore government to attend a debate over death penalty. Branson has been a long-time advocate against the death sentence and criticised the authorities for the hanging of Nagaenthran K Dharmalingam – a mentally disabled man who was given the death sentence for trafficking “small amounts” of heroin.
Branson has spoken out against the Singapore government since the hanging took place in April this year and the country’s interior ministry extended the invitation for a public debate.
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While the government assured Branson that he will be allowed to state his case, the billionaire said that he will not be travelling to Singapore and asked them to talk to local activists about the issue.
“They deserve to be listened to, not ignored, or worse yet, harassed,” Branson said.
“A television debate – limited in time and scope, always at risk of prioritising personalities over issues – cannot do the complexity of the death penalty any service,” he added in an open letter.
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The hanging in April has sparked a wider conversation in Singapore – a country where death penalty was not carried out for the last two years. Several activists have criticised the government for taking a hard stance on the topic and said that the invitation to Branson was a “diversion tactic”.
A number of countries around the world are currently re-evaluating their stance against the death penalty and even the United Nations have said in their official statements that the capital punishment has failed to impact the crime rates around the world in a “significant way”.
