[Siapa Makan Cili] Episode 9: The Truth About Malaysia’s Death Penalty

On this special episode of Siapa Makan Cili, released in conjunction with the World Day Against the Death Penalty, we speak to Jia Vern, lead researcher at HAYAT (and former Cilisos intern!), an NGO working on decarceration, drug policy reform, and the total abolishment of the death penalty in Malaysia.

From the tragic story of a grandmother from Jakarta sentenced to death for a crime she didn’t understand, to the shocking realities of Malaysia’s prison and sentencing system, Jia Vern breaks down:

• How Malaysia’s mandatory death penalty was finally abolished in 2023 — and what’s changed since.
• The hidden injustices behind drug trafficking convictions.
• Why deterrence doesn’t work — and how systemic failures, poverty, and coercion lead ordinary people into extraordinary punishment.
• The surprising bipartisan support that made abolition possible, including from PAS and Perikatan MPs.
• What still needs to change: sentencing councils, prison conditions, and how society views justice.
  This is one of our most emotional and eye-opening conversations yet, touching on law, humanity, and what it really means to call ourselves a just society.