Family members of six death row inmates today made a public plea to give their loved ones a chance for a fresh start in life.
One of the kin, Wong Yong, 80, said her son was arrested and subsequently convicted for drug trafficking at the age of 27.
She said her husband left her when her son was only seven and she had to work as a rubber tapper to raise her five children.
As such, she added, she was unable to keep a close eye on her son, and others may have taken advantage of him.
“He is a good person. He doesn’t pick fights with people… His friends all say he would stand up for them.
“When he was arrested at 27, he already had two children. He has been locked away for over 30 years now.
"Day and night, all I want is for him to come home,” she said at a press conference held last night by the Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall Civil Rights Committee and several NGOs.
She said that she had sought a lawyer’s assistance to defend her son, but was told that they lost the case and would have to be either appeal or seek a pardon, but to date, there has been no news on the matter.
Holding back tears, she said, “He has been in prison for over 30 years… Everyone makes mistakes, but for him, there is no turning back. He sometimes calls home, to check on me, to comfort me…”
She said she could no longer see clearly, is partially deaf, and has difficulty walking but insisted on atteneding the press conference to make her appeal.
'Didn't know any better'
Meanwhile, Wu Ya Gui (name transliterated) said her son had been convicted of murder, but claimed that he was innocent.
“All I know is that the mastermind used my son’s IC to rent a room,” she said, adding that a murder had taken place in the room, which implicated her son.
Meanwhile, Hayati Mohamad said her elder brother was arrested for drug possession when he was 28. He is now 42 and on death row.
Hayati said her brother was completely unaware that there was marijuana stashed in a car which he had borrowed.
“My brother was merely bringing his friend to go fishing, when they were arrested at a petrol station.
“All I know is that they (the police) originally wanted to arrest my brother’s friend, and that friend had said that he would admit guilt. But in the end he didn’t, and the police arrested my brother too. My brother didn’t even know why,” she said.
Another next-of-kin at the press conference, Ye Man Mei (name transliterated), said, “My parents visit him (the inmate) every two weeks. He told them not to worry and that he hopes the government will give him a chance, to give him freedom, to make amends.
“I hope the government will be gracious and abolish the death penalty,” she said.
Holding a letter from the inmate, she said, “(In the letter) he knew what he did was wrong… to get involved with marijuana… When I heard that the government would abolish the death penalty, I felt relieved.
“When I heard they (opponents to the abolition of the death penalty) are opposing it, I didn’t know what to do.”
Eye for an eye not the way
After the next-of-kin made their pleas, Buddhist drug rehabilitation centre Geha Bodhi Care Centre chairperson Lam Kai Cheong urged members of the public to hear them out.
“The next-of-kin of death row inmates had not dared to speak up, while members of society thought they got what they deserved,” he said.
However, he said the reason for abolishing the death penalty is not to disregard the rights of other families, but to give death row inmates a chance to remake themselves.
“Of course we sympathise with the family of the decease, and we too feel their pain and where they are coming from. But, none of these can change what has happened, and we don’t want vicious cycle to go on,” he said.
Meanwhile, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall Civil Rights Committee chairperson Liau Kok Fah said the death penalty’s “an eye for an eye” approach cannot give justice to victims’ families.
“We often think in terms of an-eye-for-an-eye, a-life-for-a-life to give justice to victims’ families.
“However, there are a lot of studies which had interviewed victims’ families in the US, where many states allow victims’ families to witness death sentences being carried out.
“They say that justice has been restored, but in the end, they remember that their family members can’t be brought back,” he said.
He said instead of implementing the death penalty, a better approach would be to think about supporting victims’ families.
“Have we given them counselling? In Malaysia, we don’t. We have never provided mental healthcare for victims’ families,” he said.
He stressed that the death sentences solves nothing, and the wounds left by the original crime would still remain. Thus, the emphasis should be on assisting victims’ families.
At the end of the press conferenc, Lam led the death row inmates’ next of kin to bow three times, and pleaded to the public to give the inmates a second chance.
“We sincerely ask for the public’s forgiveness, and to give the inmates a chance to renew themselves, so they can go home, be with their families. Thank you.”
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