Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

This Saturday marks the first anniversary of the death of Van Nguyen, who was unceremoniously executed in Singapore 12 months ago. Since his death, we have not stopped the drug trafficking. We have not stopped people stupidly going there and trafficking drugs. We have now had more Australians caught up in foreign countries who will also be facing execution. His death was a tragic waste of human life. Yes, he should have been punished—he should have been punished severely—but not by execution. I had the sad pleasure of meeting with Kim Nguyen, his mother, last week. She still cannot come to terms with her situation. Day in, day out, she sees herself as the victim of this crime, of this execution. She does not like to leave her home. She does not like to interact with people. It is such a tragic waste of human life. Van should have been punished severely, but not by execution. This Saturday there will be a memorial service at one of our churches to commemorate the life of Van Nguyen. Execution has served no purpose in this exercise or in any exercise.

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