Asia-Pacific

UK author to be jailed in Singapore after losing appeal

(Agencies)
Updated: 2011-05-27 14:23

SINGAPORE - A British author will spend up to eight weeks in a Singapore jail after the Court of Appeal on Friday rejected his appeal against a conviction for contempt of court.

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Singapore's High Court in November sentenced Alan Shadrake, 76, to six weeks' jail and a fine of S$20,000 ($16,090) for scandalising the judiciary with comments in his book about its use of the death penalty.

"I cannot pay the fine so I will have to do another two weeks," Shadrake told Reuters after the court dismissed his appeal.

He had been free on bail pending the appeal and starts his jail sentence on June 1, the same day the second edition of his book, "Once a Jolly Hangman: Singapore Justice in the Dock", appears in British bookstores.

"If I'm well behaved, I will get remission of a third and that (jail sentence) will be reduced to five weeks," Shadrake added.

Wealthy Singapore, an island-nation of 5.1 million people, imposes the death penalty for crimes such as murder and has a mandatory death sentence for drug trafficking. It boasts of one of the lowest crime rates in the world.

The Southeast Asian city-state has, however, been criticised for its harsh laws and use of civil defamation lawsuits against some of its critics. Authorities say such lawsuits are necessary to protect the reputation of government leaders. ($1 = 1.243 Singapore Dollars)