Vietnam to produce its own lethal drugs for executions

Move by south-east Asian nation comes after factories in EU stopped shipments of drugs over objections to death penalty

Vietnam is to begin producing its own chemical for executing prisoners after factories in the European Union stopped shipments because of objections there to the death penalty.

Vietnam stopped using firing squads in 2011 because of concerns it was traumatising the shooters. Last year, the government said it was unable to execute 532 people on death row because it could not source the drugs for lethal injections.

The Labourer newspaper on Thursday quoted the minister of public security, Tran Dai Quang, as saying Vietnam would produce its own drug. The report gave no details.

EU factories are the main supplier of drugs that can be used in executions. Several American states have also said objections from European factories were making it hard to find the chemical.