BANGLADESH: PARLIAMENT PASSES LAW WITH DEATH PENALTY FOR YABA OFFENCES

October 30, 2018:

Parliament has passed the Narcotics Control Act 2018 with a provision for death penalty to the people convicted of yaba manufacture, distribution and trade, bdnews24 reported on 27 October 2018.
All types of drugs, including yaba and Shisha, have been added to the new law.
The maximum penalty will be death in case of over 5 grams of methamphetamine. The punishments for such offences also include life-term imprisonment and fines in the law.
“It’s a cruel law. Anybody carrying 25 grams of drugs will be sentenced to life in prison or death,” said Jatiya Party's Shamim Haider Patwary.
“Many carriers themselves do not know that they are carrying drugs.”
As the law does not use the word “highest” before punishment leaving scope for ambiguity, the sentencing may often be capital punishment, Patwary said.
“Because of this, the judge will not have any other option to punish offenders than sentencing them to death or life in prison. So it was necessary to take public opinion into account before passing the law.”