WHILE rights activists celebrate the government’s plan to scrap the death penalty, many Malaysians have taken to social media to express their fears that the move could lead to growth in violent crime and drug trafficking.

Former Malaysian Bar president Ambiga Sreenevasan, who is also a member of the Committee on Institutional Reforms, was one of the first to applaud Putrajaya for the move.

“On #WorldDayAgainstTheDeathPenalty there is good news coming out of Malaysia. Minister announced that we will be abolishing the death penalty for all offences.

“Bravo to the reforming government. Let Malaysia lead the way in the region,” Ambiga tweeted via her Twitter handle @Ambiga_S.

Well-known human rights lawyer Eric Paulsen (@EricPaulsen101) also tweeted a congratulatory note on Twitter: “Syabas! (well done)”

“Death penalty is the ultimate human rights violation and has no place in any civilised society,” said Paulsen.

On Facebook, activist and lawyer Siti Kasim wrote: “Alhamdulillah…  time to go back to be humankind. Death is the purview of God if you believe in one, and not mere humans.”

Yesterday, de facto law minister Liew Vui Keong announced that Putrajaya will table a bill to abolish the death penalty in the next parliamentary sitting, which begins Monday.

Liew said a moratorium was in place pending the abolition of the laws for the death penalty.

But while the news has been welcomed by the international and local rights activists, many Malaysians expressed shock and dismay.

Guanmeng Goh on Facebook said without the death penalty, criminals would have no fear.

Mohamad Fadzil Mustafa commented on Facebook: “Sad news to the families of the victims tortured and killed by the criminals, all in the name of politics.”

Zzu Uzz on Facebook called the decision “another PH minister’s stupidity”.

“Imagine your wife is raped and killed like the late Canny Ong, or your child is raped, sexually tortured in cruelty until she dies like Nurin Jazlin.”

Ong, 27, was kidnapped in a mall’s parking lot in Bangsar, raped and then stabbed to death in June 2003. Her killer Ahmad Najib Aris buried her body in a hole by a highway and returned the next day to burn her remains. He was executed by hanging in September 2016.

Nurin Jazlin Jazimin was eight when she was kidnapped at a wet market near her home in Kuala Lumpur in August 2007. Her naked body was found in a gym bag outside a shop about a month later.

A cucumber and a brinjal were found stuffed inside her genitals, which had caused her rectum to rupture. It led to bacterial infection that killed her. Her murderer has yet to be found.

“Death sentence for rape, paedophilia, drug trafficking and murder should be maintained,” Shaimi King said on Facebook.

Another Facebook user Steven Low said drug traffickers and murderers would rejoice at the news, while Malvinder Dhaliwal said the crime rate would “surely increase” and questioned why taxpayers should be feeding criminals in prison.

“I don’t agree with abolishing the death penalty! I do not wish for my taxes to be used to feed barbarians – killers, rapist, drugs dealers (traffickers) etc!!” said Edwin Lau.

Sze Yung Hui also agreed that the death sentence should be retained because “some people aren’t worth preserving on this earth.”

Some social media users, however, were cynical, saying they expected Putrajaya to make a U-turn if there was too much opposition from the people.

“First the announcement. Then the outcry. Then the ‘correction’. I’d wait till things actually happen,” DrDoom (@krug88) said on Twitter. – October 11, 2018.