What about Vui Kong?

Should Yong also be given a second chance now that he has repented and even won respect from inmates, prison guards and warden? Should judges consider severity of each case and background of each drug trafficker when deciding what punishment should be handed down?

The debate has actually been going on for long time in Singapore and discussion began once in a while when certain cases have some special circumstances.

According to a piece by the editor-at-large of The Online Citizen,Choo Zheng Xi, the mainstream media had not been following the case, "the vast majority of Singaporeans have not been given an opportunity to debate whether or not we believe 19-year-old Vui Kong should be put to death. Put to death without regard for his lack of prior criminal records, his tragic family background, the possiblity that he can be reformed, or whether or not an alternative punishment would suffice," he said, in an editorial dated back in December 2009.

"Singaproeans need to be asked to weigh two competing visions of our criminal justice system and decide which best represents our values: a compassionate Singapore where a sceond-chance is possible and punishment fits both the crime and the criminal, or a zero tolerance one-size-fits-all system of vengance," he continued.


Learning the story behind Yong’s gangster lifestyle might shed a little light on how the young man ended up in the situation where he is now and perhaps a second thought on the death penalty that has been handed on him.

More on the story of Yong Vui Kong

Yong Vui Kong’s brother on camera

Picture credit: The Online Citizen