The non-Muslims need to study Islam well through its authentic sources and not distorted ones or from media. If apostates cause no harm to the Muslim community and do not call for spreading hostility towards Islam, they should not to be punished; rather they should be advised kindly and wisely to learn the truth about Islam.
Shedding more lights on this, Sheikh Shaker Elsayed, a prominent Muslim scholar states the following:
“The Qur’an mentions that “Kufr (disbelief) after Islam” is punished by Allah not man. Apostates who were punished in this life are ones who ended up working against Muslims and fighting against Islam.
Islam, I believe, would consider any punishment against a person because of changing his faith, as a coercive measure, and we know that Islam prohibits coercion strongly in the Qur’an.”