Van Tuong Nguyen (Vietnamese: Nguyễn Tường Vân, listenⓘ; 17 August 1980 – 2 December 2005), baptised Caleb,[1] was an Australian from Melbourne, Victoria convicted of drug trafficking in Singapore.

[2][3] Throughout his trial, Van claimed that he was carrying the drugs in a bid to pay off debts amounting to approximately A$20,000 to A$25,000 that he owed and to repay legal fees his twin brother Khoa (a former heroin addict) had incurred in defending drug-trafficking and other criminal charges including an attack on a Pacific Islander youth with a katana.

He met with a Cambodian man at the Lucky Burger restaurant on 4 December and was taken by car to a garage where he was forced to smoke some powdered heroin.

[5] The following day, Van met his associates at the Lucky Burger and was again taken to the garage and ordered by the men to consume heroin, perhaps to help them determine if he was an undercover police officer.

On boarding his flight to Melbourne after a four-hour stopover at Singapore Changi Airport, Van triggered a metal detector.

Van's family received a registered letter from the Singapore Prison Service, notifying of his scheduled hanging on 2 December 2005.

[citation needed] After his sentencing in March 2004, anti-death-penalty campaigners were reported to be inundated with emails from Australians offering support for Van.

Nine years earlier, Kevin Barlow and Brian Chambers had been sent to the Malaysian state gallows for their part in a drug smuggling case.

[15] On 24 November 2005, Victorian Attorney General Rob Hulls met with Singapore's Senior Minister of State for Law and Home Affairs Ho Peng Kee to press the case for clemency but was unsuccessful.

[19] This documentary was filmed over two years, following Van's mother (Kim), his brother and his two close friends, through the appeals, and campaigns held (in Australia) before the execution day.

An opinion poll conducted by Roy Morgan Research two days after Nguyen's execution showed 52% of Australians approved of it, compared with 44% against.

[21] In 2013, SBS TV produced a television drama series about the events surrounding Van's arrest, trial, unsuccessful plea for clemency and execution.

Better Man starred David Wenham, Claudia Karvan, Bryan Brown and Remy Hii; and directed by Khoa Do.

Among those present was opposition politician Chee Soon Juan, leader of the Singapore Democratic Party, who is an opponent of the mandatory death penalty.

[citation needed] A request was made by Liberal MP Bruce Baird for an official minute's silence to honour Van.

[22] Representatives of the Returned and Services League objected, stating such tributes should be reserved for fallen soldiers or victims of natural disasters; other groups felt it was inappropriate to "honour" a convicted trafficker of drugs which killed hundreds each year.

[30] Victorian MPs Geoff Hilton, Bruce Mildenhall, Sang Nguyen and Richard Wynne attended the service.

[34] Australian Prime Minister John Howard used the execution of Van as a warning to young people to stay away from drugs.

[36] Federal Health Minister Tony Abbott also said that the Singapore government's decision to go ahead with the execution was wrong and that the punishment "certainly did not fit the crime....

"[35] On 23 February 2006, the Australian government rejected a bid by Singapore Airlines for permission to fly a permanent route between Sydney and the United States.