By Phyllis Lee
The death penalty has always been a topic of heated debate in Singapore. The latest case occurred just two months ago, when 29-year-old Malaysian Prabagaran Srivijayan was hanged for being convicted for importing 22.24 grams of diamorphine into Singapore in 2014.
The night before his execution, about 15 people – including his family – gathered outside Changi Prison to hold a vigil for him. They had put up his photos amongst tealights, but the police came down and told them that they could not do so. And so, they compiled.
However, freelance journalist and activist Kirsten Han put up a Facebook post last evening, revealing that she received a summons to be present for the investigation of “an offence of Taking Part in a Public Assembly without a Permit”.
In her post, she recounted the incident, saying that two police officers had showed up at her door to personally hand her the letter yesterday. She then questioned whether such a simple and non-violent vigil was actually worthy of a police investigation.
When contacted by The Independent, Han declined to comment.