Twenty years later: Remembering Van Nguyen
Today marks twenty years since Australian man Van Nguyen was executed by hanging in Changi Prison, Singapore.
He was only 25 years old.
Born on 17 August 1980 in a refugee camp in Thailand, Van grew up in Australia with his mother and twin brother. He had the opportunity to attend university but was unable to accept the offer due to financial difficulties.
Van was arrested in December 2002 at Changi Airport in Singapore, for carrying 396 grams of heroin, an act carried out to pay off debts and assist his brother. He was convicted in March 2004 and – caught by Singapore’s severe drug laws – received a mandatory death sentence.
Van’s case attracted significant international attention. Australian lawyers Lex Lasry and Julian McMahon worked with Singaporean lawyers to advocate strongly for Van but were unable to overcome the mandatory nature of his sentence. Van’s case raised questions about how the mandatory death penalty undermines the right to a fair trial.
In the lead up to his execution in 2005, friends and supporters ran the Reach Out Campaign, which urged the Singapore Government to commute Van’s sentence. At public events, Van’s friends gave out tracings of his hand and encouraged others to trace their own hands and write messages of support on them for Van. These hands were displayed on the steps of the State Library of Victoria (pictured above) and sent to the then President of Singapore.
Two decades on, Singapore's mandatory death penalty continues to claim lives. Van's story reminds us why this work matters – and why we must keep fighting to end the cruelty of capital punishment.