BootsnAll Travel Community

The Schapelle Corby case has generated a tidal wave of publicity and the Bali Nine promise to be no less of a media magnet when their trial comes up.

People who show support for Schapelle do so for all kinds of reasons. Some say she is innocent. Others say she didn't get a fair trial, others that the sentencing structure is too harsh.

Ingoring this particular case for the moment, what do you think should be the law in Bali regarding foriengers importing drugs? What do you think would be a fair sentence / fine for a person caught with a kilo of marijuana, and another with a kilo of heroin?

Should they be repatriated and should their sentence then be adjusted to fit with local sentencing guidelines?

I think that they should serve their punishment in the country where they broke the law. I also do not believe that a citizen from another country should have some kind of “diplomatic immunity.” I think they should be held accountable by the foreign government.

The girl’s defense was that a baggage agent placed the drugs in her bag when it was in the possession of the airline. They claimed that the baggage agents meant to send these drugs to a different location and fucked up. All together a good smuggling skeem if you have a person working the bag room on the other end. The problem with this is that if you work in an airport bag room and are going to smuggle drugs in someone’s luggage you are more likely to load the luggage on the wrong flight not the drugs, its not good business. The customs officials in Bali claimed that she appeared nervous and was slightly reluctant to open here bag?

I say she is guilty.

They could solve this problem all together if they scanned the bags when the airline receives them and prior to the passenger picking them up.

If people are going to smuggle drugs in other countries, (not that I approve) they should bloody well learn that countries law first and don’t do it if you cant handle the job or the consequences.

However I do feel for this girl and the other 9 two I suppose. I do not think she deserves 20 years for carrying a plant

well at least it was not singapore then she would be dead. you know it is stupid really you are running such a high risk for that stuff. If she is guilty, and i mean really not just by court ruling then she got what she deserved. she played russian roulette for a few thousand dollars and lost. if it was scandal then i feel bad for the girl just like the thousands of others around the world wrongly imprisoned.

indonesia was not that tough on her from my understanding they could have killed her. i think almost every country in the world imposes very heavy penalties for this sort of offense. had she been caught in L.A. the same thing would have happened. so indi is not being overly harsh, IMO, but examples need to be made.

Why should a foreigner get special treatment? They certainly don't get it in Australia, the USA or Europe. And it is simply arrogant to demand it when an Australian/American/European is arrested abroad. There is no blunter way of saying "we are better than you".
That said, I am against overly harsh sentences everywhere and for everyone. The death penalty needs to be abolished globally. Long sentences for smuggling drugs? Some parts of America have 3 strikes laws which are just as unfair. Both need to be abolished.

Like, word up.

Extreme laws vs. drug smuggling don't really benefit anyone. Just more cash in the pockets of the cops and the hoods.

<Extreme laws vs. drug smuggling don't really benefit anyone. Just more cash in the pockets of the cops and the hoods..>

An excellent and salient point, jlab.

By the way, I don't think she is guilty. This woman had been to Bali before and knew the bottom line. Anyone who has been through the airport knows that there are billboard size signs stating the penalties and making the government's position on drugs pretty clear. She knew better than to do something that stupid (and by the way, nine pounds is not going to make you much money, so there goes the weed/greed angle)..

I was in and around Oz for a lot of the trial, and the consensus there is that she did not do it either. There is reasonable doubt, which unfortunately doesn't mean a damn thing in a place like Indonesia. By the way, the lead judge on this case has a career record of 59-0 convicting people on drug charges.

Indonesia--like the US--needs to take a page out of thedrug laws in western Europe and recognize the difference between weed, smack, and their users. The laws are archaic, expensive, counter-productive, and morality based. But then absolutist regimes can be like that...

[QUOTE]Originally posted by salmo99:
something that stupid (and by the way, nine pounds is not going to make you much money, so there goes the weed/greed angle)..
[QUOTE]


Just on that point, the weed she was carrying was worth about AUD 80,000 in Bali according to an article in The Age recently.
http://www.theage.com.au/articles/2005/05/25/1116950758434.html

$7200.00 US/pound? Ridiculous......

i think the whole "war on drugs" is a complete waste of time and should be abolished in not just one but every country in the world.when you think about it the establishment spends alot of tax dollars and wastes alot of the police forces time chasing around plants and other substances when they could be putting the money and the time towards stopping actual murderers and criminals.

also what the government fails to realize is that by continuing the war on drugs and outlawing these plants and substances there actually providing money for these gangs and underground mafias which can and do sell said plants and substances for unbelievably high prices due to the fact that the illegal drug market is in high demand.since the underground does the smuggling and growing of these drugs they can charge any amount of money for there products and get away with it.

another thing i disagree with about the war on drugs is the fact that the government tries to dictate to you what you can and can't ingest into your own body when infact it should be the individuals choice if he/she wants to experiment with drugs.

aside from the facts above in many different country's theres alot of loopholes when it comes to the laws on drugs.for example i live in canada and under the drug control act it states that it is illegal to posses anything containing active chemicals in lsd(lysergic acid) yet morning glory seeds which are perfectly legal and readily available to buy contain lsa(lysergic amides) which are also active within lsd.when the seeds are eaten they produce psychedelic effects similar to the effects produced by lsd.

as you can see the war on drugs is a dated philosophy that really needs to be changed before things get any worse.

*peace be with you all*

Well, a few hits, ok, I'd say that it could be excused. But a Kilo?

That means a years salary for most people just for the mule.

If she is guilty, I say let her pay the price for her greed and stupidity.

If she is innocent, I feel sorry for her, but thats no reason to reduce a sentence aimed at reducing drug trafficking.

Given Indonesias reputation, if she were guilty, she or the person she worked for could have bought off the judge before it got serious, so its possible she's not.

I've had similar discussions about Midnight Express, except that person really was guilty, and yet he was made a hero of because of the place he did his time in.

Turkey is not a good place to go to Jail. I imagine Indonesia is worse.

I won't go much into the status of drug laws except to say that laws regarding marijuana ought definitely to be changed. H and cocaine.. both kill their users slowly or quickly, depending on their habits.

quote:

she or the person she worked for could have bought off the judge before it got serious, so its possible she's not.

If she is guilty she was probably doing it for the money, did not deliver and therefore has none. As for here employer he is already taking a loss with the weed and the mule is too hot to use again. It would be more profitable for him to let her rot and get a new mule

Peacemaker- The first time your house blows up becasue the guy next store got the urge to cook up a pot of meth, re-read your post...

Peacemaker, I commend you for voicing your opinions. And in support . . .

Drug War Clock


WHAT DOES THE DRUG WAR COST?

Through its Office of National Drug Control Policy, the federal government spends $17 billion per year fighting drugs.

That's roughly the same thing it spends on the Food Stamp program, which feeds poor Americans, and on our country's entire General Sciences, Space, and Technology budget.

But the actual financial cost of the drug war is much higher, with many drug-reform advocacy groups quoting the cost at $50 billion, which is equal to the combined budgets for all of our country's agriculture, energy, and veteran's programs.

And even this from Wikipedia: "Most investigations into trafficking or manufacturing are fruitless, and casual users remain at a greater risk of arrest, conviction and imprisonment than others."


Just something to think about.

quote:

casual users remain at a greater risk of arrest, conviction and imprisonment than others."

O.K if you are talking about Marijuana that is fine, however when it comes to Heroin or Crack Cocaine or Crystal methamphetamines their is nothing Casual about it. Any one who touches these drugs is in a good position to end up like Golum from Lord of the Rings. Ready and willing to do anything necessary to get thy precious. I do not place much blame on the addicts I blame the supplier. The human mind is weak and in a state of extreme weakness it is easily used and exploited, instead of picking our fellow man up and dusting him off the marketers push them back down and kick dirt in their face. I cannot even proposition a hypothesis to solve such a grim and truly twisted dilemma but I cannot believe that dropping defenses and letting it alone would be our answer

The last post said it best: Aussies, or Americans, or Europeans, or whomever, have NO say in how Indonesia makes or enforces it's laws. If one wants to get Indonesia to listen, the best way for one to make a stand it to vote with your feet and not go there. Obviously the Aussies would have much more pull in this course of action, but it would only be noticed if the boycott was widespread and public. Hit 'em where it hurts: the wallet.

IMHO
Doing drugs in any foreign country is not too smart. The only exception might be in Amsterdam where it basically is allowed. And any thought one might have of getting "special treatment" because they are a tourist will most likely get it. The cops will make a special effort to break it off in your rear end.
Go get high on the beauty of the country you are visiting.Isn't that why you went there ?

Here's an article about the workings of a crack house. Not a pleasant place to be.

Hey, Some deep running ideas here. Certainly when u are in another land then it is their laws that should rule the land and not the ones of the country u left behind. I mean does that mean Singaporeans caught in the UK face execution. Personaly I feel the death penalty is not a fair deal. Many times police and other buffoonery show that guilt is actually innocence. What then? Call up the messiah and resurect the poor dude to say sorry. Smoking a spliff in the wilderness anywhere is cool for me but carrying bags of illiciit substances over international borders is most definately a no go. Again common sense raises it's head and should clearly suggest that life and death in an Asian jail is not a justifiable reward for greedy intentions. My heart goes out to anyone in Schapelle position but that will not help her and neither will her own hindsight.
Enforcing drugs is a good idea for the synthetic powders that are decimating our society. But don't we need a little more consistency. I mean look at Columbia where the DEA and the CIA crossed swords. And now thanks to the USA/UK alliance the local war lords protect Afghanistan which is now top of the charts for the worlds supply of heroin. Does that figue for u? For me it's very conter intuitive.

i dont know if this has been brought up yet!

but ill just throw a spanner in the works

Bali Bomber Mastermind responsible for 202 lives = 3 years
Drug smuggler = 20 years

What the...?