A 52-year-old widow was the first woman to be hanged under Malaysia’s stringent laws against drug-trafficking, She was Mrs. Lim Beng Nooi, who met her fate at dawn on Friday, October 8th, 1982, at Pudu Prison in Kuala Lumpur. She was caught with 974 grams of heroin – the death penalty is mandatory for possessing more than 100 grams.

Since her execution at least two other women have been hanged for similar offences, one in 1990 and one in 1994.