What is a fair form of punishment for drug traffickers?

Question

Hong Kong film director Derek Yee wants your opinion. Catch his latest movie, Protégé, which revolves around drug trafficking. Starring Andy Lau, Daniel Wu and Louis Koo, Protégé is playing in cinemas in Singapore and Malaysia.

Answer 1

I think a pragmatic (problem solving) aproach is needed.

The first step given that you have specified punishment is to ask


"will punishment change the behaviour of the drug traffickers?"

and the related question

"will punishing these drug traffickers make other people less likely to take up trafficking in drugs"

Fortunately there are clear answers to both these questions

Punishment is a behavior modification tool that can be effective,
But only when it is connected closely in time to the event. When disconected from the event in time, it will lead the punished individual to become agressive and fearful. This has been confirmed in many studies on both humans and animals.

Statisticaly it is clear in countries with strong punitive measures against drug trafficing the drug trafficers are more violent, and more likely to commit other crimes. The world leader in "the war on drugs" is the usa. Every year since they institued this war they have had more drug related crime, and had to build more prisions. They are now one of the world leaders in people imprisoned, and in violent crime and drug use has increased significantly.

Some people might want to say that their are other reasons for these increases in drug use, and violance, and I am not trying to say that the "war on drugs" is the only reason for these things. The reality is though that the focus in the affluent western world on punishment is not making the world safer, or healthier.

Punishment has not reduced the number of people entering the drug traffiking field, it has done the opposite. It has created a suspicious, angry generation who have learned to react agressively and quickly whenever they feel threatened.

Drug use is escapism, people who feel helpless and vulnerable are most at risk. Criminalizing these people only perpetuates the problem.

Answer 2

Plus it all depends on the crimal history of the traffickers and which Agencies are involved. In Drug Trafficking across state lines and borders the Federal Agency will definitley be involved and if each state line that is crossed wants to get involved. If the traffickers are near a school when they're busted the punishment phase is much higher. In this country, the USA, you get more time for a drug charge than you do for molesting a child, which is totally absurd. A fair form of punishment? I received an 8 year adjudicated probation sentence for Delivery of Methamphetamine charge that was changed, in the courtroom, to a Constructive Delivery charge. I went thru the Federal Prison System in 1997 for Use of a Telephone to Commit a Drug Offense which I received 46 months for. While in the custody of the B. O. P. (Bureau of Prisons), I went thru a drug program and received 1 year off my sentence. Do not ask me how I did not end up in prison this time with my extensive criminal history except that God is on my side. If guns and killing people are involved in the drug trafficking crime the punishment phase should be a lot higher because it produces other charges, like Use of a Firearm During a Drug Trafficking Crime, which is also a Federal Offense. This also takes you to Possession With Intent to Distribute and a Possession/Manufacturing charge. Drug Trafficking also can produce a Conspiracy charge depending on how many people are involved.

Answer 3

It depends on what Paragraph the drug falls under. A Paragraph 1 drug has no medicinal purpose. Such as a drug as highly addictive and dangerous in the manufacturing process as methamphetamine. And it all depends on which County and State you're in when you get busted. Understanding the different Paragraphs of drugs and the punishment phases with your State and Federal Agencies should be researched in the Law Libraries for each Agency. Plus it all depends on the crimal history of the traffickers and which Agencies are involved. In Drug Trafficking across state lines and borders the Federal Agency will definitley be involved and if each state line that is crossed wants to get involved. If the traffickers are near a school when they're busted the punishment phase is much higher. In this country, the USA, you get more time for a drug charge than you do for molesting a child, which is totally absurd. A fair form of punishment? I received an 8 year adjudicated probation sentence for Delivery of Methamphetamine charge that was changed, in the courtroom, to a Constructive Delivery charge. I went thru the Federal Prison System in 1997 for Use of a Telephone to Commit a Drug Offense which I received 46 months for. While in the custody of the B. O. P. (Bureau of Prisons), I went thru a drug program and received 1 year off my sentence. Do not ask me how I did not end up in prison this time with my extensive criminal history except that God is on my side. If guns and killing people are involved in the drug trafficking crime the punishment phase should be a lot higher because it produces other charges, like Use of a Firearm During a Drug Trafficking Crime, which is also a Federal Offense. This also takes you to Possession With Intent to Distribute and a Possession/Manufacturing charge. Drug Trafficking also can produce a Conspiracy charge depending on how many people are involved.

Answer 4

Punishment, a reward for doing wrong. A trafficker of drugs, has a motive, and that is gold, money. Should a trafficker that indirectly kills people should get the death penalty? Should a banker be put to death because he stole millions of dollars and thus causing others to commit suicide? I believe that punishment as imposed by the law of the land, depending on the culture where the infraction was committed. I saw a documentary that stated that if a person is caught with 5 mg of crack the punishment is 5 years in jail. 10 milligrammes 10 years of jail. After the culprit is released, did the 5 or 10 years deterred him/her from trafficking again. Again the question "What is a fair form of punishment for drug traffickers," A lot of damage is being done by those condoning, using, buying, fabricating, distributing drugs. Therefore there is no fair punishment for traffickers. Traffickers are not fair to children, society, culture of anything good around them. In the long run, they destroy each other, one way or another. DRUGS KILL.

Answer 5

It depends on what level the on the chain of command this person is.
1. The Mastermind should be put behind bars for life - because he is usually rich and hence have a choice of what how they want to make their money. They choose drugs as it is an easy way to make money without caring about the lives they will destroy.
2. The middlemen should be put behind bars for many years - they are usually the henchmen of the masterminds and this is their profession. They will continue to be in this trade as long as they are in society.
3. The runners should be be put behind bars for up to 5 years and then on probation and community services - these people are normally those that have poor living condition and are exploited for their circumstances. Also, these are the people at the bottom of the chain whereby they do not profit very much but suffer the most when there is a crackdown. Society should really help these people to go back on track.

Most importanly, there should not be any death penalty. No human, irregardless of your position or status in life should have the right to take another person life.

Answer 6

When i saw some of the answers, I could not stop laughing as it was soooo Singaporean with great details of type of punishments meted out for different "category" of trafficking offense.

Well, I have been leaving in a pretty "clean" environment all my life I will not able to understand the motive behind of drug trafficking. No doubt greed will be the reason behind, but what is the real trigger for it? It is because of the widening of the "rich-poor" divide that drive the underdogs to seek a better life in this competitive world?

Who in the first place will want to be a drug trafficker in their life? Imagine yourself as a teacher in a classroom and you instruct the students to write an essay on their life ambition, how many kids would want to write to be a prostitute, drug trafficker or even a film director for porn movies? : )

I believe everyone should be given a second chance for the mistakes done in their lives. People push drugs for many reasons and the underlying reason may not be greed afterall. If we can choose to have a better career with good prospect why want to be a drug trafficker? Some push drugs because they could not think of a better way to earn a living , to provide for the family and/or they have been influence by family, friends, circumstances etc. Where were the positive influences THEN that could have deter them from making the wrong decision? Even if there were positive influences, they could be too weak to have a good impact on the decision made.

I believe long term imprisonment will be good enough for them with re-education . While they serve in the prisons they should be in the rehab to undo the harm they have done to the society.

Answer 7

First we must ascertain the reasons why the drug traffickers commit such a heinous crime. If they are doing for money, then we should jail them for at least 20 yrs.
Sometimes they are forced to carry drugs by the drug lords for one reason or another. Then we should try our best to help them and give them a second chance.
But i think public education on the evils of drug abuse is more important. If no one use drugs, then there is no demand, and no one will smuggle drugs.
In Singapore, the punishment is death by hanging. Not sure if that is the most effective method as we still get drug dealers and traffickers catch every month. Again i think public education on the evils of drug trafficking would be more effective.
Thanks.

Answer 8

I suppose there are several ways of looking at it. The "human right" of an individual or the "human right" of the community .
I choose to think the latter. Since we all know drug not only destroy an individual but also families relating to the victim, it has to be stopped. Unfortunately, there are individual who want to make the quick $$ at the expense of causing suffering to others. To stop the drug trafficking, the law has to be very clear about the punishment and punishment has to be effective to prevent anyone from making use of drug to make $$$. I would say a death penalty will be a good warning. You can try trafficking but you just need to be caught once and all the $$ one make will have no life to enjoy. Any punishment lesser then this will only give drug trafficker a chance to think is worth trafficking a couple of times and strike it rich and then wash hand.

Imagine each successful trafficking can provide thousands of doses to those who are already a victim of drug or even to recruit new ones. So even one successful trafficking is too much to accept . The community is at risk because of one guy who succeeded. So the punishment has to be effective in eliminating the drug trafficker. Either we eliminate them or they eliminate us.

We may say we have the will or choice to say no to drug even if someone try to convince us to try it. But there are always those who has a weaker will and we should protect them from being taken advantage of.

Answer 9

This is an excellent question one I have had to research quite a bit in my Criminal Justice degree. I think first before we seek proper and fair punishment we must first look at the whole picture and understand environmental factors. In many of our youth drug trafficking is a way of life for those in economical hardship communities and an easy way to make money. But with that said it is a choice that each one makes and a second choice if they have been caught and punished previously. I think the best method of punishment is to bring back hard labor in the prisons and find ways to clean the drugs and violence out of prisons. Hard labor along with help from the theraputic community teaches them not only a new way of life but to appreciate life rather than throw it away.

Answer 10

The local law should take action over it. Death penalty is way better than noose. Well, but considering human rights and fair form of treatment to the precious life of human being, there should be an alternative form of arrangement for them to be isolated from the society, yet carry on their normal lives. Something like seclude them in a institution, not necessary prison. Then there they must live together with all the other drug traffickers or drug addicts. Then they all should you know try to live together, share things, something like a rehab boot camp kinda. Then they must do social service monitored closely by concerned watch dogs. This then enables them to reorientate into the society. If 2 years of NS makes a person from boy to a man. Then of course these kinda mistakes also does deserve a better dignified treatment than a prison death penalty or life term.