Airport death penalty posters in Australia

Australian Customs Minister, Chris Ellison has backed a new airport poster campaign. The posters are a no-nonsense last reminder to wouldbe drug mules, that they could face the death penalty of convicted overseas.

Two members of the Bali Nine are awaiting execution in Bali’s Kerobokan jail, after being convicted in 2005 of conspiring to traffic narcotics in Indonesia. Many drug mules are young people, without much world experience or common sense. Some people will ignore any warning you give them, and behave as if they are at home.

I remember taking a plane from Medan in Indonesia, to Penang in Malaysia. My friend and I were sitting next to an Aussie surfer on the plane. After passing through Immigration and Customs with him, and seeing signs saying ‘DRUG TRAFFICKERS WILL BE EXECUTED’ we took a taxi downtown and got a cheap hotel room together, 3 beds. To my horror he immediately went out in the street, and brought a bag of marijuana back to the room. “I could smell downstairs so I knew they had it.” he told us. I moved to another room.