Chan Thao Phoumy, a 62-year-old French man born in Laos, has been executed in Canton for methamphetamine trafficking, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced. French authorities expressed consternation despite their efforts to secure clemency. France reaffirms its opposition to the death penalty worldwide.
The French Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced on Saturday the execution of Chan Thao Phoumy in Canton, southern China. This 62-year-old French man, born in Laos, was sentenced to death in 2010 for manufacturing, transporting, smuggling, and trafficking methamphetamine. He was accused of being part of a network that produced tons of the synthetic drug in China from 1999 to 2003.
Arrested in 2005, he was initially sentenced to life imprisonment. New evidence led to a retrial and the death penalty. The ministry regretted that his defense was denied access to the final court hearing, calling it a violation of his rights.
Despite French authorities' mobilization for humanitarian clemency, the execution proceeded. The Quai d'Orsay condemned the act and reaffirmed France's opposition to the death penalty "everywhere and in all circumstances," calling for its universal abolition.
According to the 2025 figures from Ensemble contre la peine de mort (ECPM), Phoumy was one of four French nationals on death row worldwide. Amnesty International estimates China executes thousands annually, without publishing official statistics.
