Debate with your people, not me, billionaire Branson tells Singapore minister

British billionaire Richard Branson has urged Singapore Home Minister K Shanmugam to engage with local activists instead of him, declining an invitation to debate on the death penalty in the city-state.

Branson, a critic of Singapore's death penalty which saw more than 10 people executed for drug trafficking despite protests over the circumstances of their trials, said such a debate would need to involve local voices.

"In Singapore’s case, we have been inspired by several people and organisations – advocates, lawyers, journalists – with experience, knowledge and data," Branson said in response to Shanmugam's letter to him, inviting him to a live televised debate on the death penalty.

He urged Shanmugam to debate with anti-death penalty activists such as those from the Transformative Justice Collective and Anti-Death Penalty Asia Network.

Branson also named prominent rights lawyer M Ravi, who has been slapped with a series of legal actions by authorities over his defence of those sentenced to death in Singapore, including Malaysian Nagaenthran K Dharmalingam, whose cause the British aviation magnate personally took up by writing an appeal to the Singapore president last year.

Branson described Ravi as a "courageous lawyer", and urged Singapore to treat locals campaigning for the abolition of the death penalty as equals "who are just as interested in Singapore’s progress as I’m sure you are". 

"They deserve to be listened to, not ignored, or worse yet, harassed," he added.

He said a televised debate would be turned into a spectacle and reduce the discourse to sound bites.

"I can’t imagine that is what you are looking for. What Singapore really needs is a constructive, lasting dialogue involving multiple stakeholders, and a true commitment to transparency and evidence."

Branson had repeatedly urged Singapore to grant Nagaenthran clemency, and had called for a "national conversation" about the use of the death penalty in the island republic following Nagaenthran's execution in April. 

He said in his last plea that while he had "enormous respect" for Singapore, its use of capital punishment was the "one horrible blotch on its reputation".

"More than ever, I am convinced that it’s in our hands to end the death penalty in our lifetime. The global movement for abolition is growing. Also because of miscarriages of justice like this," he said in a blog post dedicated to Nagaenthran.