No one else to blame

Today saw the sentencing of Scott Rush and Renae Lawrence, members of the so called ‘Bali Nine’ to life in prison for their part in attempting to smuggle 8.4kg of heroin from Bali in April 2005. The other 7 will be sentenced this week with 5 more expecting to receive life sentenced and the 2 ringleaders expected to be sentenced to death.

What has prompted me to comment on this fact is the following quote of Rush’s parents from the Sydney Morning Herald

Rush's mother, Christine, said their "family tragedy" proved Australian citizens could not rely on their government. His father, Lee, had tipped off federal police that Scott was being recruited to smuggle drugs, in the hope they would stop him visiting Bali.

"Australia has always held as a value and a philosophy opposition to the death penalty," Mrs Rush said. "However, our laws are such that our children are exposed to the death penalty … this must not happen to any Australian again."

While we are sympathetic to the parents of those involved, and perhaps to a certain extent some of those involved as well, why is any of this the fault of the Australian Government? The Government does not exist entirely to stop its citizens from doing silly things. Simply because Lee Rush had spoken to a member of the AFP concerning his son, does not then place the onus on the AFP to prevent Scott Rush from attempting to smuggle heroin.

It is certainly a normal human trait to try and place blame on somebody else. I would perhaps suggest in this case, that Mr Rush is more desperate to lay the blame on the AFP because he knows he could have done more to prevent it. Surely a person’s father is in a better position to influence his son than almost anybody else.

It is widely known that the penalties for trafficking drugs in Asia are very harsh. Just because one is a citizen on another country, does not exempt them from the laws of the country they are visiting. These people were knowingly smuggling heroin, which, regardless of what country you are in, is illegal. They took a risk, a rather big one. Sometimes the risks we take in life pay off, sometimes they don’t. When they don’t we must accept the consequences involved. Sometimes the penalties are much harsher than might seem fair, but that still is a consequence of the risk taken, and life is not fair.