COMMENT | I remember vividly speaking to Pannir Selvam Pranthaman’s sister, Angelia, about how he managed to pen poems while on death row in Singapore.

She simply said, “It’s not easy”, because objects like pens are seen as potential weapons and death row inmates are not allowed to have them for fear of injuring others or even themselves.

Thus, Pannir was only given a pen refill to write with and, nevertheless, continued to put pen refill to paper, resulting in a collection aptly titled “Death Row Literature”.

Each piece of poem was lovingly handed to Angel, and as time went by, the collection increased in size, becoming a larger compendium detailing his time and existence within the dreary walls of the Changi Prison.

Pannir has spent...