119 Nigerians Sentenced To Death For Drug-Related Offences In Malaysia

A new report by Amnesty International(AI), a human rights organisation, has revealed that Nigeria currently has the highest number of foreigners who have been sentenced to death in Malaysia.

The report shows that 119 Nigerians among a total of 1,281 persons are currently on death row in Malaysia, adding that the inmates were being kept in 26 detention facilities across the country.

The human rights organisation disclosed this in a report entitled: “Fatally flawed: Why Malaysia must abolish the death penalty.”

, “As of February 22, 2019, 1,281 people were under sentence of death in Malaysia, held in 26 detention facilities across the country.

“A startling 44 per cent (568) of all those under sentence of death were foreign nationals, from 43 countries.

“Nationals from Nigeria made up 21 per cent of this group, with those from Indonesia (16%), Iran (15%), India (10%), Philippines (8%) and Thailand (6%) following suit.

“A significant 73 per cent of all those under sentence of death have been convicted of drug trafficking under Section 39(b) of the Dangerous of Drugs Act, 1952 — an extremely high figure for an offence that does not even meet the threshold of the ‘most serious crimes’ under international law and standards and for which the death penalty must not be imposed,” AI said in the report.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International had published a report accusing Nigerian Military of commiting war crimes and failing to protect the lives of thousands of people.

AI specifically named five high-ranking military officials, two Chiefs of Army Staff and two Chiefs of Defence Staff, who should be investigated for potential individual and command responsibility.