Clear deterrent

OUR politicians' unequivocal condemnation of the Bali nine leaders’ executions and their general anti-death penalty stance has generated a lot of support and has been aided and abetted by overly-biased media coverage.

But why should Australia dictate how another country conducts its affairs and then churlishly remove ambassadors and threaten to remove financial aid?

In truth, won’t the death penalty imposed on Andrew Chan and Myuran Sukumaran be the ultimate deterrent?

It may be a small comfort to their families, but these deaths may eventually save lives by discouraging anyone who foolishly thinks they can smuggle and escape the consequences.

Let’s hope that any future misguided attempts at drug smuggling from Bali will now be reduced to a big fat zero.

DAVID RUDMAN, Rockingham.