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Photo:
Human Rights Lawyer from Singapore looks for support in Germany.
Rodny Scherzer from Gaeufelden supports him in his fight against
death penalty.
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M
Ravi starts campaign against mandatory death sentence in
Germany
21 Jul
06
M Ravi and his fight for human right
Holger
Weyhmüller
Gaeubote
Gaeufelden, Germany
20 Jul 06
In Singapore it is
considered a crime to ask “Why” but this doesn't faze
37-year-old M Ravi. He is defending clients that face the death
penalty, as well as the political opposition of the government in
court and asks this important question: “Why?” At the
moment, the lawyer is touring the world to look for supporters
and has included Germany, where his campaign started in
Gaeufelden. The Gaeubote is
the first newspaper to talk to him.
One gram
can decide about life or death. Whoever is caught in Singapore
with 500 grams or more of Cannabis faces the gallows. One gram
less and an accused will escape the noose. This is the law in
Singapore. At least the law in most of the cases, because M Ravi
is aware of 6 cases where the accused – even carrying a
significant amount over the 500-gram limit didn't end their lives
at the gallows.
Why is this not the case for everybody,
the Singaporean asks. He doesn't only ask this question to
himself. He asks this question to the judges, to the state
attorneys and to the government. And he asks this question to the
public in the world.
He is supported by
Rodny Scherzer, who works in the management of Hewlett-Packard
and has become aware about the work of the human rights lawyer
through the Internet. In the year 2002, German girl Julia Bohl
faced trial in Singapore – a touching experience says Rodny
Scherzer. Then 20-year-old Bohl was carrying nearly 700 grams of
Cannabis in her luggage. Under normal circumstances she would
have been hanged for this but through a strong involvement of the
German government she escaped the death sentence and was
sentenced to a five-year prison term instead. She was released on
July 15, 2005 for good behavior. Her defense was done by
Singapore’s best lawyer, says M Ravi.
It is not only
the fact that Ravi is spreading the word across the world about
the Singaporean government's death penalty rule that makes things
dangerous for him. It is also the energetic and convincing way in
which M Ravi follows his path and the way he handles the pressure
from the government – he just ignores it. For a long time,
he has been facing the threat of suspension from his legal
practice, he says. Furthermore, he has been the victim of an
attack-campaign in Singapore's media where the subject of the
suicide of his mother has been repeatedly raised.
Since he
first decided to take on a death penalty case three years ago
when no other lawyer wanted the job because of the very low
possibility of success, many of his clients have left him. They
were worried that his fight against the death penalty and his
support for the opposition would negatively impact on their own
cases, Ravi says in the Hotel Aramis in Nebringen and smiles. The
political and legal system of the small country at the border to
Malaysia cannot be compared to a democracy, Ravi (who did part of
his studies in Cardiff, Wales) explains.
The political
system is more comparable to a dictatorship and provides very
serious penalties for rather small crimes. Who, for example, gets
a $1,000 fine for spitting chewing gum on the street? But this is
not what catches Ravi´s attention. It is the mandatory
death sentence given to anyone caught in possession of 500 grams
or more of Cannabis that concerns him as well as how convicted
people are treated prior to their execution.
For example,
photos of the convicted wearing nice cloths are taken 24 hours
prior to their execution. These photos are taken in several faked
situations, for example, posing whilst seated behind a desk like
a manager of a large company. Ravi says he is aware of a
particular case where these photos were given to the mother after
the execution, as if to tell her that this is what your son could
have been, a procedure that draws rage and anger in Ravi.
Execution and death penalty is one thing but doing it in this
particular way is incredibly cruel and inhumane. The case is well
documented in his book Hung at Dawn. The English version
of this book is being translated by Rodny Scherzer into German
and will be released in Germany in the near future.
Ravi
is also fighting another cruel aspect of death penalty. Once the
death penalty has been imposed, there is no way back. The present
President of Singapore has never granted presidential clemency.
“An innocent man can be hanged due to procedure” even
if new evidence turns up at the last minute. Clemency will not be
granted. Why is must it be like this, asks Ravi.
At the
moment, M Ravi is working on his third defense case of a
convicted drug smuggler who has received the ultimate sentence.
It is a Nigerian man named Amara Totchi. Ravi doesn't have much
hope of saving him from execution. Regardless, the Singaporean
lawyer, whose forefathers came from India, is taking up the
challenge and spreading the message globally to help this man,
and he is starting his campaign in Germany.
Why Germany?
Germany has taken a strong stand against capital punishment in
the case of Julia Bohl and has taken concrete action in that
case. The result of this action saved Julia Bohl's life, even
though she initially faced the mandatory death sentence. Germany
was successful in putting pressure on the Singaporean government.
The result was different in the case of Nguyen Tuong Van,
an Australia. The pressure of the Australian government in that
case was not sufficient, says Ravi. The Australian government had
protested but also stated that the execution would not have any
consequence in the relationship between the countries. The
Australian was executed in December 2005. Now M Ravi hopes for
support out of Germany and hopes for the start of a fruitful
relationship that ends in the abolition of the mandatory death
penalty in Singapore.
Note: The
SDP understands that reaction to the article has been
“tremendous”. Several people have pledged their
support for the campaign, including a group teachers.
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