What is public opinion on capital punishment in Singapore?

Public opinion in Singapore strongly supports the retention of the death penalty, despite a steady decline over the years due to growing liberal views in society. Surveys show that while support dropped from 95 percent in 2005, more than 80 percent of Singaporeans still believed the country should retain capital punishment in 2021. This high level of public backing shares similarities with other developed nations like Japan, where government surveys also show public support exceeding 83 percent.

What we know

• In a 2005 survey conducted by The Straits Times, 95% of Singaporeans expressed the view that their country should retain the death penalty. [2]
• Public support for capital punishment in Singapore has steadily fallen over the years due to increasing liberal opinions in society. [2]
• More than 80% of Singaporeans believed that the country should retain the death penalty in a 2021 assessment. [2]
• In 2025, a government survey showed that about 83.1% of the Japanese population supports the death penalty, reflecting similarly high public support in another developed democracy. [3]

Where to go next

• how it workedHow are executions carried out in Singapore?
• whenWhen did Singapore amend laws to exempt some offences from mandatory death?
• compared withHow does public support compare with Japan's death penalty views?
• the bigger pictureWhat is the broader legal framework of capital punishment in Asia?
• a case in pointWhat offences specifically warrant the death penalty in Singapore?
• an unexpected connectionHow does Singapore's public support compare to Japanese citizens' views on execution?Both developed Asian societies maintain high public backing exceeding 80 percent for retaining the death penalty despite global abolitionist trends.

Sources

• [1]capital punishment in Singapore (Wikidata Q2426417) · CC0 1.0
• [2]Capital punishment in Singapore · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]Capital punishment in Japan · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]Capital punishment in China · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]Capital punishment in Malaysia · CC BY-SA 4.0