Shafaq News / Singaporean authorities announced on Friday the execution of a 45-year-old female citizen for drug dealing, the first execution of a woman in the country in nearly 20 years.

The Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) stated, "The death penalty imposed on Saridewi Djamani was carried out on July 28, 2023."

The woman was convicted of smuggling "at least 30.72 grams" of heroin, as Singapore's laws permit the death penalty for trafficking anything above 15 grams of heroin.

The death sentence was carried out despite appeals by human rights groups that there is no evidence that the death penalty has a unique deterrent effect or that it has any impact on the use and availability of drugs.

According to the CNB, she was sentenced in 2018 and was "accorded full due process under the law and was represented by legal counsel throughout the process."

"She filed an appeal against her conviction and sentence, which the Court of Appeal rejected on October 6, 2022, and her petition for a presidential amnesty was also dismissed."

Saridewi is the first woman to be hanged in Singapore since hairdresser Yen May Woen, in 2004, was also convicted of drug trafficking.

Singapore has now hanged 15 people since resuming executions for drug convictions last year, which activists say is an accelerated pace after ending a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic.

Singapore continues to have some of the strictest drug regulations in the world, and its government is adamant that the death penalty is effective at discouraging drug traffickers and preserving public safety.

Per the law, anyone found in trafficking, importing, or exporting a particular amount of illegal substances such as methamphetamine, heroin, cocaine, or cannabis products will be sentenced to death.