Salam, your points have merit and I don't know your other writing (as is probably the case with many other readers). Maybe you have addressed the bigger issues elsewhere. If not I'm really wishing that you had written a different article.

What many of us want to hear is Aussie muslims speaking out against the Indonesian legal system which is perceived by many as being very corrupt. We want to hear that muslims are concerned that the Indonesion legal system is held in such low regard that many believe that a conversion to Islam might actually help (admittedly Australian parole boards have to deal with conversions to christianity as well). We want to hear that you really hope that religion does not matter before the courts in Indonesia (or elsewhere).

I'm not sure what price I would put on my integrity if faced with a no one gets hurt deception vs the potential of a long jail term, hopefully I'll never have to find out. What I will not do is judge someone who may have made a choice less than the ideal in the face of a judicial system widely regarded as corrupt. I note that Michelle still claims to be muslim but maybe that has been publicised since you wrote the article.

How about an article on the ethics of those thugs who bashed the reporter recently following the arrests of suspected terrorists?
Now there you have some really disgusting behaviour.

R0bert

"Now that she is out and back to her normal life, there has been no mention of her conversion to Islam or how she plans to tackle fitting her current way of life to this modest religion."

And your point salam?

God, it sounds as if Salam Zreika thinks sharia law is of some relevance here. Its NOT. This girl has every right in Australia to wear what she wants and to dump any religion she wants, learn our Australian law and customs its part of being an Australian citizen. If she lied to escape jail do you begrudge her that

Apparently it is OK to take drugs,sell your story to the media,and "propel her modelling career into a higher stratis sphere" according to one of her pretentious wanking colleagues.

Great example for our children.Ecstasy is now the most prolific drug used among our young,and long term use destroys the chemical balance that controls our emotions.Great future for our children eah.

Excellent points R0bert.

At, first I found myself resenting Michelle Leslie - silly girl getting caught with two tabs of ecstacy in a country notorious for harsh drug laws.

However, I forced myself to imagine being in her shoes. I did a lot of dumb things when I was young. Could've been me. If faced with 15 years in an Indonesian jail I would've done anything, worn anything, adopted any attitude to get out.

I am sure that Michelle wishes she never made such a stupid mistake. She owes us nothing, least of all an explanation. All she needs to do now is learn from her mistakes and get on with her life.

Rancid here. I was on the receiving end of a punch in the face once (everybody wants to fight you when you are nine-stone nothing "girl"). I have never won a fight, but then again I have never backed away - ever. The police suggested I not show for court in torn jeans and dirty shirt but dress to respect the court. Dress accordingly was the message.
The defence attack victim's character in court. Most defence lawyers are animals - these lawyers often know that their clients are as guilty as hell, they use every trick in the book to break the victim during and before the case goes to court.

I would love to see some comparitive statistics between the wealthy accused and the poor accused. Always try and line up a solicitor to be with you when you speak to the police -even if you are a victim. Never fall into the trap of going to the headmaster in cases of child abuse (some private schools suggest that problems be discussed with Principals. Don't go straight to the police with solicitor in hand.) Police priority is to avoid the expense of court proceedings. Having said that, police are generally held in high esteem in our place - good fellas.
For some reason good presentation makes you a good fella in the eyes of some magistrates. However, the observation that magistrates are professional is probably closer to the truth. Perhaps in Leslie's case the prosecution didn't force things along.
I think the more interesting thing here is how the media can create and manipulate the news and the news agenda. Grace.

Dawood,

Sorry! I will, of course, check with you in future before I ‘bring up’ anything. Alternatively, you could content yourself with expressing your own views and leaving others to express theirs.

I have absolutely no interest in your opinions, and I suggest you don’t tax your limited intellect by worrying about the opinions of others