REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, DENPASAR - The Bali Justice and Human Rights Office welcomed the apology expressed by Mercedes Corby, sister of Schapelle Corby who was recently released on parole after serving over nine years in jail for drugs smuggling attempt.
"I think its a good step," Sunar Agus, the head of the offices penitentiary division, said on Thursday.
However, despite the apology, the office would continue to evaluate Schapelle following her release on parole, he added. Sunar Agus said the apology did impact what had happened so far after Mercedes exclusive interview with Australia's Channel Seven television station.
The local justice office was drafting a report on Schapelles behavior and activities since her release on parole, he noted. The report would be sent to the Justice and Human Rights Ministry in Jakarta, he added.
Meanwhile, Mercedes Corby had previously apologized to the Indonesian government for her interview with Australias Channel Seven.
"From the bottom of my heart, I am very sorry to the people of Indonesia if my interview on Australian TV caused uneasiness," Mercedes told the press in Bali on Thursday.
"I apologize if my words were disrespectful to Indonesia; I did not intend any disrespect. Our family is thankful and grateful that Schapelle is free on parole, and we thank the Indonesian government," Schapelles elder sister said.
Schapelle Leigh Corby, an Australian tourist, was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2005 for attempting to smuggle 4.2 kilograms of marijuana into Indonesia through Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport in October 2004.
In 2012, she received a clemency from President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono that cut her sentence by five years on humanitarian grounds. She finally walked free under parole on February 10, 2014, from her jail in Bali, where she had spent two thirds of her prison term for drug smuggling.
Could be from Indonesia
On Sunday, March 2, Channel Seven aired an exclusive footage of Schapelle Corbys first days out of prison and an exclusive interview with Mercedes talking about her sisters feelings.
Mercedes in the 11-minute long interview claimed that Schapelle was innocent, suggesting she had been set up. She questioned the origin of the marijuana carried by her sister.
"We do not know where the marijuana came from. It could be from Indonesia," Mercedes pointed out.
Following the airing of Mercedes interview, Indonesian Justice and Human Rights Minister Amir Syamsuddin, on March 4, said the government was evaluating whether Corbys parole terms were violated by the interview her sister gave to the Australian television network.
The minister said that it was possible that the result of the evaluation could lead to the revocation of the parole and lead to Schapelle Corbys return to jail.
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