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Schapelle Corby's cancer-stricken father will fly to Bali in the next 48 hours after receiving fresh family reports that his daughter is suicidal.

Michael Corby is clinging to the hope his unannounced arrival in Indonesia might give his daughter the vital lift she needs to cope with prison life until May when her court verdict is expected.

In his first full interview, he told The Sun-Herald from his home on the Gold Coast: "My daughter's health is deteriorating and the rest of the family out there need a break. They are struggling badly."

Mr Corby, who is battling prostate cancer, plans to raise his daughter's spirits by handing her a special photograph from her childhood days.

The picture shows Corby excited at meeting Father Christmas for the first time with her two young cousins. "I found it while I was packing and the moment she sees it, I know it's going to light up her face. She has such a beautiful smile, and this will bring it back."

Mr Corby, a retired coalminer, remains adamant his 27-year-old daughter is the innocent victim of a domestic drug trafficking ring.

In October last year, he kissed her goodbye as she left for a flight bound for Bali. The journey was supposed to lead to a tropical vacation with friends and family. But six months on, her life hangs in the balance after 4.1 kilograms of marijuana was found by Denpasar airport officials stashed inside her bodyboard bag. If she is found guilty, prosecutors are expected to push for the death penalty.

Breaking his six-month silence, Mr Corby, 55, relived the moment his world was turned upside down.

He said: "I was asleep at home when my ex-wife phoned and told me Schapelle had been arrested in Bali, that they'd found this bag of marijuana in her bag. My medication was knocking me around a bit back then. Anyway, I must have dozed off again because when I awoke, my first thought was, what a strange bloody dream.

"A short time later the phone rang. It was a television journalist. That's when it hit me it was true."

He said he was distressed when he later saw news footage of his daughter begging for her freedom so she could return home and see her dying father.

"I could have five days, six weeks, two years left, who knows. But the sad thing is, Schapelle has already lost her gran in the time she's been stuck in jail. She missed the funeral, which was very hard on her because there was no chance to say goodbye."

Mr Corby insisted his daughter had never been involved with recreational drugs.

"She hates drugs of any sort."

He told how his daughter, as a teenager, had dragged him back to reality after he became semi-dependent on prescription pills.

Mr Corby recalled the day when everything came to a head. "Schapelle was playing with her mates. I was on the couch as usual when suddenly she burst in and stared straight at me. She yelled, 'You're not my dad any more . . . just look at you . . . these drugs have turned you into a completely different person.' She grabbed the pills and raced to the toilet. Before I could stop her she had managed to flush the whole lot away.

"I was so mad at the time but weeks, months later I realised what these things had been doing to me."

Struggling to contain his tears, he said: "The young girl who did that for me that day is the same girl now locked up over there."

Mr Corby also revealed his daughter should have been on a different plane but that plans had been changed at the last minute.

"If she had been on an earlier flight we wouldn't be here now. You just have to hope these things balance themselves out."




THE Federal Government will "go into overdrive" to stop accused Gold Coast drug smuggler Schapelle Corby being executed should an Indonesian court find her guilty and impose the death penalty.

Justice Minister Chris Ellison yesterday said everything possible would be done to keep Corby alive, including personal representations by Prime Minister John Howard.

"I am not going to pre-empt any outcomes, but I can tell you what the Government's policy is . . . relating to the death penalty and that is we go into overdrive in making representations to avoid that being carried out," he told the Ten Network.

"Recently the Prime Minister John Howard made personal representations to Singapore in relation to the death sentence of an Australian national in that country."

Corby, 27, is on trial for allegedly importing 4.1kg of marijuana into Indonesia in an unlocked bodyboard bag last October.

She faces the death penalty or life in jail if found guilty.

Mr Ellison said negotiations with Indonesia were under way to establish a transfer of prisoner agreement, which would allow Corby – if convicted – to serve her sentence in Australia.

"I must say that the Indonesian authorities have been very co-operative in relation to this matter," he said.

Mr Ellison also rejected the suggestion a guilty verdict would harm relations between the two countries.

"In Schapelle Corby's case, she has been represented, she has had the opportunity to bring in evidence (and) the court adjourned the hearing to enable fresh evidence to be brought before it," he said.

"I think the Indonesian authorities have co-operated with our requests and I don't think a finding of guilt will affect our relationship with Indonesia."

The comments came as Indonesian President Dr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and his wife arrived in Australia last night for a four-day visit to Canberra and Sydney.

Mr Ellison said the Australian Federal Police, in co-operation with the Queensland Police Service, were continuing to investigate allegations aired at Corby's Bali trial last week.

John Ford, a Victorian prisoner, told the court Corby was the victim of a domestic drug trafficking run.

He claimed the marijuana found in Corby's body board bag was owned by Melbourne man Ronnie Vigenser.

But in a paid interview with the Nine Network, Mr Vigenser denied it was his marijuana.

Mr Ellison said the public airing of aspects of the case outside court was unhelpful.

"I think it is best left to the Australian Federal Police to carry out this investigation rather than some public parade of what people say and who says what," he said.

"Really, it is a matter for the Australian Federal Police, they are the authority to deal with this."

Prosecutors will this week submit what they believe is an appropriate sentence for Corby.

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WNB

I wonder if the Indonesian government realizes that international spectacles like this make them look like a bunch of backwards third world fascists.

Seriously, what the hell is wrong with them? There are some pretty serious concerns that the pot was planted, yet they didn't dismiss the case. Even if it weren't the case, who the hell executes people for less than two pounds of weed? These people really need to update their laws, because Indonesia is looking more and more like a third world ****hole with every article I write on this subject.

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king cola

Even if it weren't the case, who the hell executes people for less than two pounds of weed?

I agree but then again executing someone for any amount of weed is just crazy. It's just a plant! Incidents like this though is probably why i would never risk visiting a country with backwards laws like this to begin with. I would never even risk using marijuana in a country with a law like this but it's always possible to be setup because your from another country. Some countries would execute someone for just having so much as a gram of marijuana. People being executed for possessing marijuana is murder.

aposiopesis

I don't think they'll kill her, an Australian prisoner has testified he overheard smugglers in jail discussing the fact that their domestic smuggling ring had botched a pickup, and their marijuana went to Indo in Schappelle's bag. This evidence is hearsay, so they are unlikely to acquit her on this basis, but it will probably cast enough doubt on the case to stay execution.

If a transfer of prisoner agreement goes through, it may include a clause that will enable her to appeal her conviction through the Australian Judicial process, which is far more just, and with a good lawyer would probably see her released.

A lot of "maybes" there.......but I'm optimistic about this one, I really hope this attitude is justified. I'm sure she is innocent.

EDIT: I heard on the radio this morning that Indonesia's Prime Minister Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has announced he will be monitoring the trial closely to ensure justice is served. This, to my mind is good news, Bambang is a new Prime Minister and is very keen to repair ties with Australia.

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killer12382

They might want to get used to the fact that her life is basically over. Asian countries do not tolerate drugs of any type. And they don't like to loose "face" in front of the rest of the world if Australia tries to free her.
"Don't do the crime if you can't do the time."

 

the evil itch

the thing that makes this case a bit tricky is the fact that indonesia's newly elected leader is quite inclined to make things good with australia. now the australian public, with the exception of the few clueless subscribers of the "drug dealers are evil and should be locked up for life" tale, are all in defence of miss corby - whether they do believe she did it or not. but the other opposing factor is the Australian PM who is known to be quite closed minded about drugs.

John howard is a man who formed a drug advisory comittee and fired all its members bar one old salvation army grampa only because they thought the same. He did nothing for David Hicks - australian citizen when charged for terrorism overseas, and will probably do little for Schappelle.

also, with australia being the biggest source of tourist revenue in Bali and other tourist destination surrounding, the public opinion of australians do count in this case, making this more than just an internal court matter.

if she is let free back to her home country to be put through the justice system here, there are clear advantages. indonesia will be seen as a little more open to the western ideals than the terrorist threat that the election bungle of words provided (the PM said he would pre emptively strike other countries for terrorist threats - which by that, was implied indonesia) while the law is still advertised that drug smuggling may come with a death penalty - and that schapelle corby got away only because of politics. (hell i never knew that the death penalty came into action over pot in our neighbouring country)

yes, it may be said to incite terrorism but im sure these tourist town economies would be hit less by such, than by the mass of australians deciding against their popular holiday destination on a longer timeline.

i guess its just my opinion but i hope that logic carries through somewhere or as someone said, it's murder of a young girl.

troublemaker_42

Sorry to make such a moot point in light of the seriousness of the conversation, but last I knew, 4.1 kgs works out to be roughly NINE lbs, not two pounds. A Kg is roughly 2.2 lbs......

imported_sara_jane

I've just been looking at http://www.dontShootSchapelle.com where they are raising money for the reward. It looks like some pretty big people are starting to throw their support behind Schapelle Corby, even in London. This is such a tragic story but it is good to see Australian's coming out of the woodwork everywhere to support this girl.

aposiopesis

The prosecutors in Corby's case are going to seek life imprisonment rather than the death penalty. They refuse to accept John Fords assertion he heard smugglers confessing to owning the drugs in prison,
Their reasoning -"Looking at his background as a prisoner, the reason for him to testify before an Indonesian court is to taste freedom." They also rejected Bond University's Professor of Criminology, opinion that Corby did not know the drugs were in her luggage. "His opinion is not based on accurate research on the defendant and her background."
They also dismissed evidence from three of Corby's travelling companions, who testified there was no marijuana in Corby's luggage when she checked it in at Brisbane Airport.

Indonesian legal observers say it is likely she will get a very long sentence. The verdict is expected to be reached at the end of May. You can read the entire story I got this information from here: www .smh.com.au/news/World/This-is-the-end-of-my-life/2005/04/21/1114028489301.html?oneclick=true

Our Prime Dissembler, John "the rodent" Howard has remained silent. One of his congaline of suckholes, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Alexander Downer has applauded the prosecutions decision not to seek an order for execution.

This is a nightmare. I feel for this girl so much, but I don't know what can be done to help her.

Buzzby

A couple of weeks ago, the US government was running around in circles trying to "save the life" of someone barely alive. Why aren't these same people throwing the weight of the United States behind the effort to save one very much alive Australian girl?

Is it because she's not an American? We're spending hundreds of billions of dollars to help some Iraqis. A phone call from the right office would make it all OK.

Is it because she's accused of smuggling marijuana from a place where it's worth more to a place where it's worth less? No one would do that on purpose! She's obviously not guilty but because the story is "tainted" with marijuana she's not going to get the outside help she needs.

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