This deserves to be discussed It's the moderatedly toned companion piece to

Bali Nine can thank the civil libertarians .

GrahamY - I don't think the new format of the forum works!

Amazing I can't believe the Author is a lawyer let alone taught would be lawyer's. "We are not expected to wear the full brunt of all the risks that we knowingly take" yes we do. Are you suggesting we say that about the Bali bombers, "their imam said it was the right thing to do" so we should hold them to account!
More importantly these people broke the laws of another country and that country should be free to do what it's laws dictate. We don't do what they author is suggesting for Oz breaking US laws so is this a underlying racism coming out?

.. and no, I do not resile form my point about this guy just because he is representing the mules ( see post re McConville )

Tuff Luck Bali 9, they went to a country knowing the law, they broke the law , Knowing the consiquence of their actions. That is the chance they took & shouldent expect Australian Politions or anyone else to get them out of it!Sorry to take the hard line but think of the people who develope phycosis and kill them self's &/or others because of drug abuse. I reckon, Kill all 9 of them, the needs of many out weigh the needs of a few. Tuff luck Bali 9.

The AFP works for us and deserve our appreciation for a job well done. We can only hope that the Australians who sent the nine to their fate have been identified and marked. These creeps operate without risk from their comfortable lifestyles and are able to prey on our youth. The nine are a lost cause, forget them and go for the hidden “business people and investors” who organise and profit from this ugly trade.

Please do not blame the AFP for nine Australians wanting to make a quid out of the despare of others.
What tripe.
You do the crime ,you do the time.
There is no excuse for drug smugglers.It is not a spur of the moment,or a crime of passion.
It was a sinister cold calculated crime, that has the end of finishing the lives of many fine Australian's.
Suicides,due to drug use are the end consequence of this crime.
It would be fairer for the Indonesian Government to execute all nine
but a lesser number may seem unjust,yet life has always been unjust.
"Mass Execution" is an insult to all races that have experienced such a crime.
Perhaps sensationalism is in vogue in the Auistralian media.

I don’t know what precise combination of naive stupidity and greed motivated the actions of the Bali 9, but mules are rarely just avaricious or dumb. The terrible stakes for what is a pathetically poor payoff (a few thousand bucks at most) makes a career as an international drug courier through Asia an extremely unattractive career choice for all but the most desperate or ignorant.

For many the story begins with drug or gambling debts, followed by loan sharking and stand over and threats by some extremely unpleasant individuals. I don’t know to what extent this applied to any of the Bali 9, but some of them look to me like not-too-bright kids who have got in way over their heads with a particularly nasty form of global business. I’ve seen lots of kids get sucked into the criminal world: for many, escape gets more and more difficult the deeper they go. By the time they realize how trapped they are it’s too late. That’s no excuse for their actions, of course, but I’ve been stunned by the lack of compassion from some posters on this string.

I can understand that the Indonesian people and their government are less than thrilled by the idea of their country becoming an international narcotics trafficking crossroads, and I acknowledge how important it is for them to be seen to be taking the problem seriously. But I agree with Mirko here: proportionality in penalty seems to be taking a back seat to political considerations. Most of these kids appear to be very minor players in the global drug trade. Unfortunately, they are seen as both expendable and very, very replaceable.

All of this has to be seen in the context of the "blind eye' turned to drug sales on the streets of Bali.

If police and law authorities cracked down on this, then one could conclude that the Indonesians were serious about drug sales and use.

But its much easier to show you are serious with a harsh judgement by a few judges, especially when it will be apopular decision in Indonesia, than it is to clamp down on widespred official corruption.

I agree with snout. What a bunch of uncompassionate people. Have any of you made a mistake when you where young? It is unbelieveable. The world should be warned about visiting countries that kill young impressable people. I do believe that they should be punished for their crimes but not with their lives at such a young age. All this will do I hope is warn people not to visit such savage places. 'Keep away' And again this is proven with the lighter sentence of the Bali bombers. It's a corrupt place all ready. I am on the otherside of the world always wondering what is on the other side - no longer do I want to go there or wonder. Not with so many heartless people. These young people are so young and probably did not know the harsh consequences of their action in that country. We need to warn the World.

Don't see anyone protesting the execution of Saddam Hussein - capital punishment is just that no matter who or where - me thinks double standards and hypocrisy.