SINGAPORE SLAMS AMNESTY INTL FOR DEATH PENALTY REPORT

SINGAPORE (AP)--Singapore on Friday slammed a recent Amnesty International
report on the city-state's use of the death penalty and said it makes no
apology for its uncompromising laws against drug offenders.

A statement from the Central Narcotics Bureau said the Amnesty report -
released earlier this month - was riddled with "misrepresentations and
distortions."

"The death penalty has deterred major drug syndicates from establishing
themselves in Singapore," a statement from Central Narcotics Bureau said.
"The Singapore government makes no apology for its tough law and order system."

The statement didn't deny Amnesty's claim that the city-state of 4 million
had the world's highest execution rate per capita between 1994 to 1999,
with 13.57 executions per 1 million people.

Singapore made the death penalty mandatory for drug traffickers and
murderers in 1975. Anyone caught with more than 15 grams of heroin or more
than 500 grams of marijuana is presumed to be trafficking.

The ministry said the Amnesty report entitled "A Hidden Toll of Executions"
was wrong in asserting that most of those executed here were foreigners and
the poor, least educated and most vulnerable.

The statement said that in the last five years, Singapore hanged 138
people, 110 of them for drug offenses. Of the total executed, only 37 were
foreigners, it said.

Among those executed between 1993 and 2003, for which no figure was given,
the statement said 44% had received a primary education or schooling up to
12 years of age.

Some 34% had a secondary education, or schooling up to 16 or 17 years of age.

Amnesty said it relied primarily on infrequent press reports in compiling
its report as the city-state's executions were "shrouded in secrecy" and
its execution statistics aren't regularly reported.