Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department for Parliament and Law Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar says the Malaysian government has agreed to replace the death penalty with alternative punishment for 23 offences.
Among the offences is drug trafficking which currently carries a mandatory death sentence and there will be a moratorium on the execution of the 1,337 inmates currently on death row. Drug trafficking falls under Malaysia’s Dangerous Drugs Act 1952.
A memorandum will be presented to the Cabinet for approval before the amendments can be tabled at the next Parliament meeting. The decisions were made during meetings chaired by Wan Junaidi and on Sept 13, representatives from the Malaysian Attorney General’s Chambers, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Home Affairs, Malaysian Prisons Department, Royal Malaysian Police and other relevant agencies attended the meeting.
