Eleanor Hall from The World Today, a national ABC radio program, today interviewed Federal Justice Minister, Senator Chris Ellison, who basically said not very much about Schapelle's case as he believes it would be inappropriate, but did confirm that the Australian Federal Police are looking into the claims of drug smuggling rings operating within Australia via airport baggage handlers.
Transcript of the interview is online, where you can read Ellison repeating his lines about it not being right to comment on the Corby case due to it being in progress now, etc, etc, respecting their courts, blah blah yada blah.
Look, sure, I understand the ethics involved in bringing in media, talking about the case, observing foreign social and legal customs, and so on. However, it is just such an awful, frightening situation going on over there -- Schapelle is required to prove her innocence in order to save her own life. This is not the Australian courts, in which the prosecutor would be needing to prove her guilt. This is Bali, place of widespread poverty and ongoing religious war on one side, and politicians lapping up their privileges and paying off their enemies on the other.
I disagree with you Ellison; we should be using the media. As much as we can. It wasn't until Bakir stepped in that anyone from the Aus. government even commented on what was going on.
What if this were someone else's daughter? Your own? Would you be wanting us all to be silent then too?
Wednesday, March 30, 2005
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