Placing all drugs in the same category allows government officials to more easily create misleading straw man arguments against those campaigning for an end to the death sentence, by accusing such groups of seeking to legalise a number of harmful substances.
Ultimately, such narratives are harmful, partially because they often do not work (studies in other contexts indicate that similar drug education programmes can have no effect) and partially because they are misleading. Individuals exposed to drug use who come to realise that the state's discourse is out of touch with reality are less likely to trust the state in the future.

Singapore's harsh stance on drugs is not evidence-based

When pressed to defend Singapore's death penalty, the Singapore government has cited reasons such as the reduction in opium (a drug that has become increasingly obsolete and unpopular globally) trafficking in Singapore and a 15-19% reduction in the likelihood that one would traffic a volume of cannabis that would warrant the death sentence (500 grams). The state has also argued that there is strong public support for the death penalty — without acknowledging that popularity does not constitute scientific consensus or evidence.
Singapore has also argued in favour of its zero-tolerance strategy, in opposition to harm reduction policies gaining ground elsewhere in the world (most notably in Portugal, the Netherlands and Switzerland). Minister Shanmugam has even argued against the United Nations' reclassification of cannabis as a less harmful drug. The Minister has claimed that profit motives are behind the scientific evidence for the use of cannabis for medical purposes, and that Southeast Asia is the second-largest market for methamphetamine (which the UN decision does not affect).
What is harm reduction? Harm reduction is an approach to drug policy grounded in human rights. It aims to reduce the negative impacts of drug use by focusing "on positive change and on working with people without judgement, coercion, discrimination, or requiring that they stop using drugs as a precondition of support." Key principles include a commitment to evidence, a commitment to social justice, respecting the rights of drug users, and the avoidance of stigma.
The actual scientific evidence for the effectiveness of the death penalty and mass incarceration for deterring drug-related offences is limited and often contradictory:


Many studies have found that there is no link between imprisonment for drug offences and a reduction in drug-related crimes.

Indeed, studies also point out that evidence for the deterrent effect of the death sentence is inconclusive. Some have argued that death sentences brutalise society, undermining the value of human life and potentially having the counter-productive effect of causing more murders.

Many studies also explain that addiction should not be seen as a crime, but instead as a health issue to be treated. These studies call for states to adopt a harm reduction / public health approach to drug abuse.
Crucially, while there remain ambiguities behind key questions in drug enforcement, there is little credible evidence supporting the use of the death penalty, or the use of mass incarceration over treatment.

Why drugs are not like cigarettes or alcohol, or what evidence-based policy looks like

In contrast to Singapore's approach to drug policy, one can look at another set of policies driven by research on human behaviour and economics: Singapore's approach to restricting cigarettes and alcohol.
Rather than outright banning cigarettes or alcohol, Singapore uses a variety of subtle measures to disincentivise smoking and alcohol consumption, like raising prices through taxes or restricting when/where cigarettes and alcohol can be consumed (fewer smoking corners, requiring alcohol permits to sell past a certain time). Consequently, Singapore ranks as the fourth most expensive city to buy a pint of beer out of 48 major cities, and as the eighth most expensive country in the world for buying cigarettes.





The price of a pint in US dollars in a "touristy" / expat section of the city. Source: Deutsche Bank / Visual Capitalist

These techniques are effective, with Singapore's alcohol consumption among the lowest in the Asia-Pacific region, and with tobacco consumption reducing every year. Notably, the success of these policies speaks for itself, despite mixed public support — has anyone ever cheered for the rising price of alcohol? Crucially, while the demand for cigarettes and alcohol is very sensitive to differences in price and accessibility, the same cannot be said for drugs. Against intuition, research indicates that limiting supply or criminalising drugs does not always lower demand, and other strategies may be more effective.

Is harm reduction incompatible with Singapore?

An alternative to criminalisation and harsh punitive measures is harm reduction. However, Singapore has frequently argued that harm reduction does not work, pointing to its brief legalisation of subutex as a prime example. Subutex (also known as buprenorphine) is an opioid prescribed by doctors to treat addiction to opioids such as heroin. Hoping to tackle the use of heroin in Singapore, the state legalised subutex in 2002. By 2006, subutex was banned and made a controlled drug. The state has stated that this was because it had observed the emergence of a "needle culture", which saw drug users abuse subutex by mixing it with other substances.
However, some have argued that there were issues with Singapore's legalisation of subutex, such as a lack of training and preparation for doctors who prior to this rarely dealt with drug abuse, or the evidence for how suboxone (a mixture of buprenorphine and naloxone) would be a better option due to its far lower potential for abuse.
Additionally, research from other contexts where subutex is available show that there are medical benefits even for illicit subutex use, as those using it generally seek to wean themselves off of dependence to worse opioids. This is especially relevant for those who cannot or will not access substance abuse treatment, when they try to escape the revolving door of opioid abuse.
Although the Singapore government considers its brief legalisation of subutex as evidence for the failure of harm reduction measures, one can also see how the state's brief and ill-planned approach to subutex is what doomed harm reduction in Singapore.
Does harm reduction work? In 2001, Portugal took the radical step of decriminalising personal drug possession. Possession is no longer punishable with imprisonment, and those found in possession are instead referred to health and social services, freeing up the police to pursue more severe drug-related issues (such as trafficking). Currently, Portugal has among the lowest rates of drug consumption in Europe and has significantly reduced the negative social impacts of drugs. Experts have argued that it was not only the decriminalisation that made this possible, but also the state's support of harm reduction and expansion of treatment/support services.

An end to Singapore’s War on Drugs?

While there are small signs that Singapore’s harsh stance on drugs is changing, the broad direction of Singapore's drug policies remains unchanged. In 2012, Singapore amended its laws to create narrow exceptions to its mandatory death penalty for drug trafficking. In 2019, Singapore's laws were again amended, this time to allow for repeat offenders without other offences to undergo rehabilitation without incarceration, and to allow for some offenders to undergo rehabilitation without gaining a criminal record. However, during a recent speech, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, explicitly condemned harm reduction approaches and the global trend towards legalisation — rejecting reform and backing a continuation of current efforts.
Elsewhere, efforts to dehumanise drug users and traffickers, and to ruthlessly incarcerate or execute them have been widely acknowledged as unjust, cruel and ineffective. The world is entering a tipping point, with global perceptions of drug use becoming more nuanced, and movements to abolish the death penalty and mass incarceration gaining ground.
The path to the end of the war on drugs is paved with ruined lives. For Singapore to achieve a more compassionate, rehabilitative and evidence-based approach to drug policy, Singaporeans should not turn a blind eye to the suffering that today’s drug policy entails. Take action by adding your name to the petition to pardon Nagaenthran, by supporting the Transformative Justice Collective, or by volunteering your time as a Befriender or Volunteer with the Singapore Prison Service.

原報導連結：https://www.singapore-samizdat.com/p/singapore-war-on-drugs-social-impact

粗略翻譯：

新加坡的毒品戰爭有效嗎？
誰首當其衝受到新加坡毒品政策的影響？

新加坡以其對毒品的強硬、支持死刑的立場而聞名，甚至因試圖處決一名走私毒品、但患有智力障礙的男子而受到國際譴責。從表面上看，這種嚴刑峻法似乎可以有效遏制毒癮和販運，但許多證據表明事實並非如此。

囚犯人口百分比來源：新加坡、英國、美國、日本、泰國、印尼； 監禁率來源：世界監獄簡報