An Australian, Van Tuong Nguyen, will be executed for drug trafficking
unless more attention is drawn to his plight. I believe that together we
may save the life of this man.
To this end, I have written an open letter to the President of the
Republic of Singa****e asking for clemency. The open letter, which
includes a dozen related e-mail addresses, is online:
http://www.joot.com/dave/writings/articles/capital-punishment.html
It is my hope that the interactivity of the Internet can save a young
man's life. Please read the above site and if you agree that a human
should not die for being caught with drugs, then I beg you to send an
e-mail asking the President of Singa****e for clemency on behalf of Van.
Sincerely,
Dave Jarvis
P.S.
I agree that this man should not see the light of day for a long, long
time. But ever? He has had two years to think about his impending
demise. He has shown nothing but remorse during his trials.
The death penalty itself should be reserved for murderers and rapists.
The argument that he should die because Australians would have died from
heroin usage is a bit of a fallacy. Just like he is to die from the poor
choice he made, so to would the Australians that decide, of their own
free will, to get hooked on heroin. Where's the difference? Both make
choices. Both die.
Nobody has ever forced me to take heroin. If someone is in a situation
where they are forced to take the drug, then, generally speaking, they
made a mistake a long time ago. Whether it was leaving home to walk the
streets (instead of getting help elsewhere; friends, therapist, etc.),
or doing drugs to impress their friends.
The point is that there are far more HUMANE ways of puni****ng a first
time criminal than execution. He could be made to work in anti-heroin
campaigns; he could be made to help manufacture replacement needles (to
prevent the spread of AIDS); he could be forced to work in any number of
related industries in effort to combat the use of heroin.
Moreover, he could be forced to identify the real bastards of the
operation -- the drug dealers themselves.
A few more thoughts on this.
There are other men and women who have received death sentences. Most
often they are being punished for rape, murder, or both. I have taken
the time to read his case and decided that his life is worth sparing. He
made a mistake and got caught.
To me, the getting "caught" part is most im****tant. The drugs never made
it to Australia. No harm was done to anyone. Not you, not me, certainly
not Van (yet). This was his first offence, so it's not like he was a
regular drug trafficker. He was just a misguided young man looking to
get his twin brother out of debt before the year ended. The result is
that he is being murdered for attempted drug trafficking.
Two minutes to write a note to someone asking to spare the life of a man
who does not deserve the death penalty ... a meagre two clicks and a few
words to save a life ... that's all I'm asking.
I find it more than a little bit ironic that people who were so noble,
so powerful, and so united on the side of justice during the Great Wars
can turn so cold, so calloused seemingly overnight. As a Canadian, I
appeal to all of you who have an innate sense of justice, all of you who
have a shred of compassion, to send a note asking to save Van's life. As
a fellow human, I ask that you share some humanity for a boy that has
made a regrettable mistake directed by his heart.
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