Corby controversy I

Corby controversy I

Though it is understandable for Australians to feel strongly about the predicament of one of their own stuck in a life-and- death situation in a foreign country, the public outrage has not only been astounding in its intensity but also shocking in the glimpses it has revealed of the depths of racism and xenophobia.

Sympathy and support should never overwhelm respect for the Indonesian verdict and the process of appeals. Hurling racist slurs at the Indonesian judiciary and casting aspersions on its integrity simply because the Bali court has not endorsed the popular Australian belief in her innocence is unacceptable.

While it is one thing to raise funds and run campaigns of every kind to support her, it is another thing to boycott Indonesian products and holiday destinations, or to ask for the return of donations to the tsunami relief fund.

While the political reality is that the Australian Government will have to take cognizance of the unequivocal public feeling by doing all it can, it should refrain from the kind of political actions that would strain bilateral ties with Indonesia. It would be a pity if the goodwill generated by the tsunami disaster is dissipated by the bitterness being spawned by the Corby case. -- New Straits Times, Kuala Lumpur