WORLD
BRITISH DEATH PENALTY AUTHOR FREED ON BAIL IN SINGAPORE
Baku, July 20 (AZERTAC). The British author Alan Shadrake, who was arrested in Singapore on defamation charges, has been released on bail, BBC reports.
The government has said his anti-death penalty views are not the cause of his arrest, but what they called his violation of the laws of Singapore.
A trial date, 30 July, has been set and Mr Shadrake is not allowed to leave the country without permission.
The government has a long record of vigorously prosecuting anyone it sees as attacking the young country`s image.
Mr Shadrake launched his book, "Once a Jolly Hangman - Singapore Justice in the Dock", in Singapore at the weekend.
Now he has paid just over $7,000 (£4,750) bail, and must wait 10 days for his trial.
This will be on criminal defamation charges and possibly also contempt of court - after the attorney general`s office said he had cast doubt on the impartiality and independence of the judiciary. He faces a possible sentence of two years in jail.
The Singapore government has said its position on the use of the death penalty is well established and well known. People with different opinions about it are "as a matter of principle" allowed to express those views, a Ministry of Home Affairs spokesman said.
The government routinely prosecutes - and wins - cases of defamation against journalists and academics.
Human rights activists say the government uses defamation laws to stifle opposition views.