Forums > Social Discussion > Australian drug smuggler hanged this morning

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roarfireSILVER Member
comfortably numb
2,676 posts
Location: The countryside, Australia


Posted:
Nguyen Tuong Van, 25, who was arrested in late 2002 carrying almost 400 grams of heroin, has been hanged in a Singapore prison this morning.



I just wanted to say that I'm deeply saddened by this, it makes me feel sick inside. I know we have to respect other countries' justice systems, but still, it's such a tradegy. What a sad world. They didn't even let his Mother hug him one last time, she was only allowed to hold his hand...



I don't want this to turn into a debate about whether capital punishment is right or wrong because I'm sure it's been done plenty of times before. I just wanted to express my feelings on this particular issue, I don't think my day will be very happy today.

.All things are beautiful if we take the time to look.


EeraBRONZE Member
old hand
1,107 posts
Location: In a test pit, Mackay, Australia


Posted:
It's his mother I feel sorry for.

It's also a very difficult issue. A caller to the morning show on Channel 7 put it quite succinctly this morning when she said she really felt for the mother as she herself had lost a son, but as she lost her son to a heroin overdose she couldn't feel the same for Van Nguyen.

I only hope his family is left in peace to deal with their grief and not hounded by the press a la Michelle Leslie in order to get a soundbite.

There is a slight possibility that I am not actually right all of the time.


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
I will never set foot in Singapore.

Not until they stop arresting homosexuals, stop hanging drug addicts, and stop censoring free speech, for starters. The caning needs to go, too.

I won't knowingly give a cent of my money to that country.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


Bender_the_OffenderGOLD Member
still can't believe it's not butter
6,978 posts
Location: Melbourne, Australia


Posted:
what a horrible fate it must be to outlive your own child.

Laugh Often, Smile Much, Post lolcats Always


Rouge DragonBRONZE Member
Insert Champagne Here
13,215 posts
Location: without class distinction, Australia


Posted:
I want to know how she was allowed to hold his hand. Was it through a tiny hole in the glass or what? Cos I think that if I was about to be hanged and nothing was going to stop me otherwise, if I got anything that resembled close to my mother, I'd say "**** the hands only" and hug her.

i would have changed ***** to phallus, and claire to petey Petey

Rougie: but that's what I'm doing here
Arnwyn: what letting me adjust myself in your room?..don't you dare quote that on HoP...


Hairy TaitBRONZE Member
member
109 posts
Location: Back in the Future, United Kingdom


Posted:
Although i hink it's it's terrible that this guy was hanged, i can't fathom why people try and smuggle herion from places where the government will kill you if you'e caught.......



If you're aware of the dangers of these countries.. it really is in your best interest to behave.....
EDITED_BY: Hairy Tait (1133707240)

It's a very interesting story, Future Boy....!


jublianGOLD Member
x
108 posts
Location: Melbourne, ZZ9 Plural Z Alpha, Australia


Posted:
Tait, while i haven't been to Singapore or any of the regions surrounding i can see why some one would think its easy to smuggle drugs in and out of there.

My sister and my father both went on holiday there and i have many friends who have also been. The concensus is that the government is attempting to squash a problem in the quickest time possible. It could be compared to stopping jaywalking by the same means (i by no means feel that these two crimes are comparable, its a comparison). The public essentially are either not bothered with it or are too scared to report it.

"Quote coming soon..."


DomBRONZE Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,009 posts
Location: Bristol, UK


Posted:
I'm in Singapore at the moment, staying with a girl from Oz and have asked a few people about this. Like most people on this board I really don't approve of capital punishment, there's too many philosophical, moral and legal flaws to it. But whilst I generally disapprove of the death penalty and I do feel incredibly sorry for his family and friends, I find little compassion for somebody who's getting hanged for commiting such a serious offence in a country so famous for it's death penalty. If you're not willing to face the punishment, avoid the crime. And here the stakes are really high!

The people in Singapore are all rather well behaved as they do live under an authoritarian regime. But many people really seem to like that life: it's very easy as it is so controlling. Me, I'm looking forward to being back in a country with a bit more 'life'!

And Lightning, so far I've seen at least 2 openly gay bars and the scene is now apparently recognised. But but as the guys are all a little bit on the small side you might not need to visit to check it out!

Rouge DragonBRONZE Member
Insert Champagne Here
13,215 posts
Location: without class distinction, Australia


Posted:
Don't forget cutting the hair of even the male tourists because they were paranoid about the "hippies" from america.

I agree with Dom. Thems the rules regardless of how fair/humane/in need of review they are.

i would have changed ***** to phallus, and claire to petey Petey

Rougie: but that's what I'm doing here
Arnwyn: what letting me adjust myself in your room?..don't you dare quote that on HoP...


PeleBRONZE Member
the henna lady
6,193 posts
Location: WNY, USA


Posted:
I feel bad for the family and friends, as already stated.



Other than that...I honestly have no issues with it.

Follow the rules or face the consequences.

We all have to. We all have those choices to make. We all reap what we sow.

*shrug*

His poor mama, but then again, the poor mama's of the people he helped supply whose lives are ruined.



I just don't see getting sad about this. There are too many other things going on in this world which are real travesties.

Pele
Higher, higher burning fire...making music like a choir
"Oooh look! A pub!" -exclaimed after recovering from a stupid fall
"And for the decadence of art, nothing beats a roaring fire." -TMK


DoctaGOLD Member
member
81 posts
Location: Brisbane, Australia


Posted:
*comment deleted by Pele*.........yes hanging is inhumane, but so is the slow decline (and sometimes death) of a herion junkie. We keep forgetting that this bloke had as much heroin on him as the 'Bali 9' put together..........think of all the people who don't get their hits now. If you've had to watch friends slowly die from heroin addiction, then you'd have little sympathy for this guy, beside, everyone knows that the asian countries are hard lined when it comes to drug smuggling........why would you even try unless you were prepared to hang??? You reap what you sow, and when you're dealing in death (heroin) you get death.............



Doc smile
EDITED_BY: Pele (1134162728)

loki.c1687SILVER Member
addict
546 posts
Location: Leeds, United Kingdom


Posted:
How can you care for a man like this suggling heroin!Well i dont feel sorry for this man he got what was coming to him.
sorry im so cold about this topic but with law like this i belive there would be less crime of this nature such as rape,murder,crappy tv and film remakes...well mybe not....
mike.c

Rules and responsibities:
These are the ties that bind us.
We do what we do,because of who we are.
If we did otherwise,we would not be ourselves.
I will do what i have to do
And i will do what i must..


NYCNYC
9,232 posts
Location: NYC, NY, USA


Posted:
Written by: Dom


But but as the guys are all a little bit on the small side you might not need to visit to check it out!




I think it's classy that you waited until December to have your funniest comment of the year.

Well, shall we go?
Yes, let's go.
[They do not move.]


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
Yanno, there are may offenses that can lead to death of others, including jaywalking. We don't hang people for all of them.

I can see death for someone where it can be clearly demonstrated that they are such a danger to society that even life in prison is too risky as there would be a risk of escape.

Other than that, I oppose the death penalty.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


ben-ja-menGOLD Member
just lost .... evil init
2,474 posts
Location: Adelaide, Australia


Posted:
thats true mike but i think ud find there would be a rapid decline in jaywalking if it was punishable by death ..... personally i think that if you stupid enough to take drugs into a country that clearly says they will hang u for smuggling drugs then ur probably better off out of the gene pool.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourself, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous and talented? Who are you NOT to be?


loki.c1687SILVER Member
addict
546 posts
Location: Leeds, United Kingdom


Posted:
why just lock someone up for life??i mean if i had a chioce bettween death or life in a box..i think death would cut out the middle man ya know...plus i would'nt be raising tax for the rest of the england....see how i think of you guys too!
mike.c

Rules and responsibities:
These are the ties that bind us.
We do what we do,because of who we are.
If we did otherwise,we would not be ourselves.
I will do what i have to do
And i will do what i must..


RyGOLD Member
Gromit's Humble Squire
4,496 posts
Location: Brisbane, Australia


Posted:
Written by: Doc Lightning


I can see death for someone where it can be clearly demonstrated that they are such a danger to society that even life in prison is too risky as there would be a risk of escape.

Other than that, I oppose the death penalty.




https://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=74066

For the sake of discussion- 8,000 to 26,000 doses of heroin isn't a danger to society? If all that heroin was available to be bought, I'm sure that some junkie or someone newly hooked would get involved in some kind of criminal act to finance the purchase. Surely you're familiar with the 'victim killed/injured by junkie in robbery gone wrong' structure.

Yes there are other crimes out there where the act itself is so shocking that one can easily say send the perpetrator to the gallows. Killing someone for example. I'm not sure what the statistics are, but junkies can find their addictions leading them down very desperate paths.

I personally think drug trafficking is crime where the repercussions are exponentially bigger than the act per se. I think the less drugs available the better for everyone- especially my loved ones.

You say "I can see death for someone where it can be clearly demonstrated that they are such a danger to society that even life in prison is too risky as there would be a risk of escape."

I think that's what legal systems which mete out the death penalty aim for. Where they draw the line is the tough bit. What's your opinion on the severity of drug trafficking Doc? Out of curiosity, how would you feel if 8,000 junkies, one for each dose of heroin that trafficker tried to smuggle- showed up in your neighbourhood (not that that would happen, chances are those 8,000 doses would go to a few of the same people). So changing the scenario, how would you react if just 10 junkies lived in your neighbourhood? Or even just 1, next door to you?

Regarding the death penalty, I know why they'd execute some people. Murderers.. Rapists.. Personally, I can't say whether I approve of it or not. I'm just glad I don't have to make the decision.

To go off on another tangent which may or may not put another perspective on it, some governments send troops to some countries, and do so on the approval of less than half their own electoral population. As a result of actions like this, many people on both sides get killed daily. I think a decision to end a drug trafficker's life can be considered trivial and almost justifiable in relation. But similarly, I'm glad I don't have to make that decision.

FireTomStargazer
6,650 posts

Posted:
Original post: Why do we have to kill people, who killed people to prove that the killing of people is wrong... ??? Death penalty is wrong, heroin-trafficking is wrong - hence two wrongs don't make a right... never can... As a parent I would ask myself what I have seriously done wrong by raising him into death row...



But now - thinking twice upon it:



What an big stupid mega-[censored] this guy was! I have lost all compassion for him...



Not just that he has the stupidity to smuggle 400grams of heroin AND set foot on South East Asean soil - he neither gave a f**k about his own fate and life, nor did he even think a split second to his parents and what they would go through if he was caught!



Question: what is the difference between a kid stripping half a kg poison around his waist, or another kid stripping half a kg C4 around his?



Anyone got an answer to that?
EDITED_BY: FireTom (1134650782)

the best smiles are the ones you lead to wink


loki.c1687SILVER Member
addict
546 posts
Location: Leeds, United Kingdom


Posted:
its a silly question

Rules and responsibities:
These are the ties that bind us.
We do what we do,because of who we are.
If we did otherwise,we would not be ourselves.
I will do what i have to do
And i will do what i must..


FireTomStargazer
6,650 posts

Posted:
One you're willing to ponder upon?

the best smiles are the ones you lead to wink


onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
Written by: Firee Tom



Question: what is the difference between a kid stripping half a kg poison around his waist, or another kid stripping half a kg C4 around his?







One will go out with a bang, while the other will just hang around for a bit?

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


FireTomStargazer
6,650 posts

Posted:
---LOL---

nice sense of humor

you're ... knew it ... a pommie

the best smiles are the ones you lead to wink


JtJCheck ya later
500 posts
Location: Lower Shaw Farm


Posted:
biggrin

Jake the Juggler



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