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A Capital Punishment Trial in Modern Singapore

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Have you forgotten what 'enhanced' means? My poor old brain can only vaguely remember from Series 1, but it wasn't nice. Maybe you need to read the very small print in the Republic of Singapore Penal Code.

By the way, I read somewhere in said Code that calling the fine Republic a sh**hole is also a serious offence. Not that this should worrry you with what you are facing.
As I've said already, though not necessary, it would benefit a reader to have at least skimmed my earlier reporting on the criminal justice system in Singapore:
Thread: http://www.cruxforums.com/xf/threads/crime-and-punishment-in-modern-singapore.7649/

Archive: http://www.cruxforums.com/xf/resour...modern-singapore-by-praefectus-praetorio.724/

Specifically the interview I found in Death Penalty News (https://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.com/) from November 1918.

Death Penalty News

Striving for a World without Capital Punishment

Singapore: Preparing for Impalement Executions?

Published Sunday, November 1, 2018


[As a follow-up to our earlier exclusive on possible introduction of slow impalement as an alternative to long drop hangings in Singapore, we were able to conduct an interview with Major Mamat bin Osman, Commandant of Changi Prison Complex. If the new punishment is approved and implemented, Major bin Osman would be responsible for carrying it out. The major is a tall, stern looking man with black hair, greying at the temples. He maintained a rigid, military posture throughout the interview in his Prison office.]

Death Penalty News (DPN) Thank you so much Major, for granting us this interview.

Major Mamat bin Osman (MbO) You are very welcome. The Republic of Singapore wishes to be fully open and cooperative with all legitimate media, even those who oppose some of our basic principles.

DPN Thank you very much for that. Can we start by you telling us a little about yourself and your career?

MbO Of course. I am of Malay descent and, like many Malays here, I am a practicing Muslim. Singapore is a wonderfully multi-ethnic society with an open attitude toward all faiths.

DPN So we have seen, and admired!

MbO Thank You. Early on, I was attracted to the military life and for High School, I went to a military academy. After graduation at 19, I went into the army. Eight years later, rising through the ranks, I was a commissioned a Lieutenant. Three years later, at age 30, I was offered a transfer and promotion to the Perkhidmatan Penjara Singapura, that’s the Malay name for the Singapore Prison Service.

DPN Why would you want to leave the army for the prisons?

MbO I always had a great belief and respect for discipline. I had observed the superior way in which the army had maintained discipline and effectively punished wrongdoers. The Prison service at the time was in the midst of reform. Several scandals had occurred, and a new director had been appointed. He personally recruited me. After a long interview, I was convinced that this was a man I wanted to follow and his goals and mine were in sync. I accepted the transfer.

DPN Have you been happy with that decision?

MbO Most totally! You see, to me, the Prison service is not about punishment. That is only a tool. The two noble goals are first, to protect society by removing dangerous persons from the streets. The second goal is to teach those persons the error of their ways and to prepare them to be productive, trustworthy members of our society. The greatest rewards I have ever received have been to see criminals who formerly harmed others, be released and working for the good of their fellow man!

DPN That does sound rewarding. How long have you been in the Prison service?

MbO Twenty-One years. I am 51 and was promoted to major three years ago, when I took command of the Changi Complex.

DPN Congratulations on that. May we now discuss something on which you and we strongly disagree, the death penalty?

MbO Most certainly. Though I would say we don’t strongly disagree. I agree with you it is a tragedy anytime a human being is killed prematurely, whether on the street by a criminal or in Changi by the State.

[Part II of our interview with be published next Sunday]
 
HOLY SHIT !!!!!!! :facepalm:


Are you telling me BJ wouldn’t expect me to perform a BJ? :rolleyes:
BJ bears a strong resemblance to Boris Wilson in Palais-Royal Reno. If he's the same, he'll demand much more than a BJ!
 
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Death Penalty News

Striving for a World without Capital Punishment

Singapore: Preparing for Impalement Executions?

Published Sunday, November 8, 2018

[Part II of our interview with the Commandant of Changi Prison. Please see last Sunday's edition for the first part]

DPN What are your personal feelings on the death penalty?

MbO As I said, I find the deaths of criminals at the hands of the state, tragic. However, I will not go beyond that. I believe that my personal opinion is irrelevant and beside the point. As a officer of the Prison Service, I support the laws of my country and work with all my ability to carry out the legitimate orders of the courts. I am sorry if that doesn’t answer your question.

DPN That is a fair answer, Thank you. However, you do supervise the executions here?

MbO Yes, As Commandant, I have the responsibility for all activities here, including executions. We perform these on Fridays and use “long-drop” hanging. A scientifically calculated length of rope is chosen so that the fall will break the neck of the condemned and death will follow almost instantaneously.

DPN We must say that that sounds cold. How many executions have you supervised in your time here?

MbO It may be cold, but I assure you that I treat every condemned with the respect due another human being. I am not a statistician. I don’t keep count. I’m sure that the Ministry of Justice could give you the figures.

DPN They have. During the over five years you have served at Changi, you have supervised 231 executions, almost one a week. Does that sound right?

MbO It does.

DPN Have you ever had problems?

MbO My staff are dedicated professionals. Every execution has gone smoothly with no extraordinary suffering by the condemned.

DPN No Extraordinary?

MbO Other than the fear and then the reality of death.

DPN Though it is not our primary focus, we understand that you also administer judicial canings?

MbO Yes. Usually in private with ample witnesses, though sometimes public if ordered by the court.

DPN Isn’t caning a barbaric punishment?

MbO All punishment is barbaric in some way. When we, as a society, chose to punish a wrongdoer, we must select a punishment that the person finds very unpleasant. Otherwise, there is no punishment. I would argue that sentencing a person to decades in a prison cell is barbaric and often contrary to reform and rehabilitation. We have chosen to use a mix of monetary – fines, deprival of freedom – incarceration, and corporal – caning. The presence of caning in our mix of punishments allows us to usually release the convicted much sooner.

DPN But its an ancient and medieval system!

MbO Crime and human error is very ancient. It stems from deep in the selfish and immature nature of many people. It is only by ancient methods, that will impact that selfish and immature nature, that we can change their direction and move them from a life of crime to a productive life.

DPN Though we still don’t agree with you, we confess that you seem to have thought this through carefully.

MbO Twenty One years in the Prison Service had encouraged me to think about what I do.

DPN Can we now turn to the topic in the recent news, impalement as a punishment?

MbO Of course.

[Part III of our interview with be printed next week]
 
If you don’t mind, I’d rather not hear about that ... :confused:
Sorry, the truth will out.

Death Penalty News

Striving for a World without Capital Punishment

Singapore: Preparing for Impalement Executions?

Published Sunday, November 15, 2018 Part III

DPN Where do you stand on impalement?

MbO Again, I will not take a public stance on that. If we need an enhanced form of capital punishment for the “worst of the worst” – such as child rapists murderers, then that decision must be made by our democratically elected representatives and our senior jurists. My role is to implement their decisions.

DPN How would it be implemented?

MbO Now there is a place where I do have a role. My staff and I, at the request of the Attorney General Chambers, have initiated research into the history and methods of death by impalement. We have been invaluably assisted in this by members of the History Department at the National University of Singapore.

DPN Academic research into impalement??

MbO Oh Yes! The earliest known use of impalement as a form of execution occurred in The Code of Hammurabi, promulgated about 1772 BC. The earliest depiction is a relief on the palace walls of King Sennacherib of the Neo-Assyrian empire. These commemorate his victory against Judeans on 701 BC with a set of defeated soldiers being impaled.

DPN Wow! You have done your research.

MbO The object is to present a white paper to the elected representatives and jurists in order for them to know exactly what they would be ordering. The paper is complete and will be passed on in the next few days.

DPN can you share some of your findings?

MbO Yes. We have no secrets about this. We first state that the actual impalement for a slow execution would have to be anally for males and either anally or vaginally (or both) for females to be specified by the court. You seem disturbed. Do you want more detail?

DPN Yes, excuse us. We would like all the detail possible.

MbO Very Well. The next consideration we identified is the precise shape of the end of the pole, i.e. how sharp.

DPN Yes.

MbO Our medical experts recommended against very sharp. While the purpose is to slice through the path and through the internal organs, too sharp might result in too fast penetration and death. We therefore recommend a rounded tip, just smaller than a pencil eraser. It will not slice but rather tear painfully through tissue.

DPN Of course.

MbO Then we come to the maximum thickness of the pole, which will vary based on size and sex of the convict as well as, in the case of females, which orifice is to be penetrated.

DPN Which orifice?

MbO Oh yes! It is a well-known fact that the female vagina is far more elastic than either the female or male anus.

DPN [gulp] Really?

MbO Keep in mind that it is designed to expand, slowly, to allow the passage of a full-term baby’s head, which can easily be 5 to 6 centimeters in diameter. Therefore we recommend the standard vaginal pole to have a maximum diameter of 6.5 cm, 30 cm down from the tip. Standard anal would be 5 cm for both sexes. However, a small selection of thinner and thicker poles are recommended to best fit all possible sizes of convicts.

DPN A selected range to impale and rip open the “orifices?”

MbO That would be the wisest procedure. The poles of course will be fabricated of the finest stainless steel to ensure stability and minimal bending. We would use our standard supplier, Lambertz Maschinenbau GmbH in Germany.
With the poles decided, the only thing left is the suspension method.

[The conclusion of our interview, Part IV will be printed next week]
 
MbO Yes. We have no secrets about this. We first state that the actual impalement for a slow execution would have to be anally for males and either anally or vaginally (or both) for females to be specified by the court. You seem disturbed. Do you want more detail?

Uh oh, what does he mean by “or both”? :confused:
 
Yes, let’s get to the point :facepalm:
OK

Death Penalty News

Striving for a World without Capital Punishment

Singapore: Preparing for Impalement Executions?

Published Sunday, November 22, 2018 Part IV Conclusion

DPN You said, suspension method?

MbO If we use very slick stainless steel and lubricate it well as is traditional (we have determined that extra virgin olive oil would be the best), then the convict would slide down the pole very quickly. Remember, this is meant to be “slow” impalement. Also, if unsupported, the body could tilt and not sit upright. Not only would that interfere with the intended effect, but it would present an embarrassingly awkward view that might shame the prison authorities.

DPN We wouldn’t want to do that, would we?

MbO Definitely not. But we also want the prisoner as exposed as possible as part of the deterrent. Remember any such executions would be broadcast, countrywide.

DPN Really?

MbO Maximum deterrence of potential wrongdoers. What our researchers came up with is an inverted “Y” frame. Again, the best stainless, mounted in back of the convict and attached to a pole parallel to the impalement pole. This would also be made by Lambertz Maschinenbau. They are actually working on a draft design. The convict will be strapped, arms together overhead and ankles spread to the frame, stretched tightly. We don’t want them able to move themselves to delay or accelerate the process.

Once the impalement pole has been lodged in the appropriate orifice (or orifices), the frame would them be slowly lowered by remote control servo motors. We would order these from our regular supplier, Siemens AG, also in Germany.

DPN You seem to only use the best.

MbO Most definitely. That way there are no embarrassing surprises. Much thought has gone into the motion and speed of the motors. It was decided that small jerks of downward motion at random intervals would do the most to disconcert the condemned.

DPN Disconcert?

MbO Yes. Rather than gradual stretching, each small drop would be a tearing and the anticipation of random moves would worry them constantly. Therefore, we determined to use a programed computer to control the timing. We have contracted with an American software firm, that wants to remain anonymous, to do the programing. It has been decided that an average speed resulting in death in not less than 15 minutes and not more than 45 would be ideal.

There you have the full details. Can I answer anything else?

DPN No, [gulp] that is very complete. Thank you for your candor!

MbO I’m very glad to help. Can I give you a quick tour of the prison?

DPN Yes, that would be very nice.

[MbO gave us a tour which demonstrated his pride in the institution, which, indeed, was the cleanest, prison we had ever seen

So is MbO a monster? You’ve heard his words. We should add that the parts cut for brevity were all concerning his personal life. He is an animal lover (chairman of the Singapore Animal Rescue), active in multiple civil charities to help the less fortunate and, especially, to transition former convicts back into society. A lover of classical music, he plays second viola in the prison orchestra.

We independently interviewed seven recent inmates, two of who had been subjected to severe caning sentences. To a man they were effusive with praise for MbO and his running of the prison. Each credited him and his systems for helping them reform and return to society.

However, of course, we were unable to interview the over 200 persons who have been executed by him. Their voices are forever silenced.
 
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