Human rights groups on Tuesday applauded Malaysia's move to scrap the mandatory death penalty as a major step forward in the push for the abolition of capital punishment in Southeast Asia.
Instead of the death penalty, lawmakers on Monday approved bills to give courts the option of imposing prison sentences of between 30 and 40 years and caning not less than 12 times. Previously, courts had no choice but to mandate hanging as punishment for a range of crimes including murder, drug trafficking, treason, kidnapping and acts of terror.
