The Schapelle Verdict

I haven't posted for a while, so I'm rather stunned to see my stats have been soaring. Hello, everyone! So -- what do you think of the verdict?

I must admit I'm surprised that the sentence wasn't higher. Throughout the trial I'd been hopeful she would be freed, even, at some points, pretty certain that would happen, but these feelings came from me seeing the case with my eyes, from my perspective as an Australian, and as a supporter of justice. Unfortunately, as we all know now, the all-important eyes that were presiding in this case were not Australian, and they rate justice on an entirely different scale.

It seemed crystal clear from the witness testimonies and evidence presented by the defence team that there was (a.) a definite possibility of interference from a third party with Schapelle's luggage, (b.) nothing in Schapelle's past or present life to link her with any sort of drug smuggling activity, (c.) massive, glaring holes in the prosecution's case, and (d.) absolutely nothing to corroborate the Indonesian customs guy's story. Amongst other things.

Yet -- the judges threw out every single bit of evidence. Every bit! And they disregarded every single bit of testimony. They believed customs officer Winata's word against Corby's because he was the authority, they said.

Ooooo-ooo, I shook and cried with Schapelle (and most of the rest of the nation) as Chief Judge Sirait worked himself into a frenzy delivering the three judges' unanimous decision. How could they? Do these people have no heart?

But in Bali there are many who think she is guilty. The Ganja Queen, they call her.

Oh poor, poor Schapelle.

User-un-friendly Blogger

I have an unconscious habit of pressing Control-S often when I'm typing -- legacy of hating auto-save features whilst still nursing a healthy fear of losing my work -- and I often accidentally hit the keyboard shortcut on web pages, especially those with forms required me to type something.

Now, if you press Control-S in a browser you get an option to save the page, which you can cancel. No problem.

If you press Control-S in Blogger, however, it publishes your post. Just like that, no questions asked.

Gets me every time.

Got Money?

Nah, neither do I.

I am about to go and save my ass from the real estate fires -- two months behind on my rent, and I've just managed to scrape it together through, quite honestly, a true miracle.

Why is it that everyone decides to not pay at the same time? And why is it that this time, in which people start lagging with payments, is always the same time that banks and other such institutions decide to get nasty?

I hate dealing with money. Loathe it. Therefore, I'm a terrible debt collector, and a shocking accounts keeper. Do not put me in charge of managing your funds!

However... if you need help with spending it, then I am your woman.

Indonesia's Unlawful Legal System

Wow, I'm back, and so much has been going on since I last posted.

Firstly, I've had some heartfelt messages of support posted in the comments here for Schapelle Corby, probably summed up best by this post. As we all know by now, the prosecution in her case has asked for a life sentence, and one of the three presiding judges has announced in a media interview this week that Schapelle didn't do enough to prove her innocence. Outrageous.

Also recently, Chief Judge Linton Siriat highlighted just how ridiculous the Indonesian legal system is, confirming he can still order the accused to the firing squad, ignoring the prosecution's recommendations, if he so wishes. Ah. Well, then, let's hope he liked what she was wearing in court. Seems it makes about as much of an impact as facts do.

There is an interesting transcript online of an interview from ABC's The World Today radio program, in which Eleanor Hall discusses this very issue -- of Indonesia's questionable legal system -- with Indonesia analyst Damien Kingsbury, from Deakin University's School of International Political Studies. Kingsbury points out some serious flaws with their judiciary process in relation to consideration of evidence, professional training, and the basic assumption of guilt that their legal system is founded on.

And then, this past weekend, to top it all off -- Indonesian guards at the jail Schapelle is in are caught red-handed selling heroin to inmates. [I can't find anything online about this, but it was featured on the TV news here last night. Why are there no online reports?]

What a joke this whole sodden mess is. And at the centre, the 27-year old Gold Coast woman who forgot to lock her boogie bag.