Budgie Nine: Australian men arrested in Malaysia for ‘public indecency’ call in top lawyers to avoid jail
THE so-called “Budgie Nine” — the group of Aussies arrested in Malaysia for stripping down to their undies emblazoned with the country’s flag — will most likely face a Kuala Lumpur court tomorrow after the Australian government refused to step in.
NSW
Don't miss out on the headlines from NSW. Followed categories will be added to My News.
THE so-called “Budgie Nine” — the group of Aussies arrested in Malaysia for stripping down to their undies emblazoned with the country’s flag — will most likely face a Kuala Lumpur court tomorrow after several nights in the cells of a high security police facility.
Local authorities are yet to declare if the nine men will face charges and if so what charges they would likely face.
The fact that the group’s swimmers were stamped with the Malaysian flag has caused a storm in the nationalistic and majority Muslim nation amid claims the men embarrassed the country hosting them.
Malaysian prosecutors are meeting on Wednesday morning local time to discuss the fate of the boisterous group.
The group have been held in two separate cells at the Sepang District police headquarters in Kuala Lumpur since their arrest at the Grand Prix celebrations on Sunday.
They had decided to strip off after Australian Daniel Ricciardo’s win in Sepang on Sunday.
It is understood the group was visited yesterday by representatives from the Australian High Commission in Malaysia and also by their local lawyer Tania Scivetti.
The men are being investigated under the Penal Code for intentional insult with intent provoke a breach of the peace but local legal opinion is divided over whether they could also be charged with an offence related to desecrating the national emblem, being the flag.
Lawyers say there is no specific offence covering what the men did by wearing the flag on their underwear as opposed to burning it in protest.
Under the Malaysian legal system the men are being held and investigated by police who will submit a report to the Attorney-General who will decide the charges if any.
It is expected the nine will face court tomorrow, where their detention could be extended for a further period to allow more investigation or they could be charged, sentenced to time served and deported immediately.
In custody are Jack Walker, Edward Leaney, Nicholas Kelly, Thomas Laslett, Thomas Whitforth, Brendan Stobs, Timothy Yates, James Paver and Adam Pasfield.
The men are believed to be friends from their time at Sydney University and the exclusive Palm Beach Surf Life Saving Club. Mr Walker is a staffer for federal cabinet minister Christopher Pyne.
Mr Leaney, previously a barman at the Arthouse Hotel in Sydney’s CBD, works as general manager for his family’s manufacturing firm Focus Uniforms.
A friend, who asked not to be named, said of Mr Leaney: “He’s a party boy and great fun — he wouldn’t have set out to offend anyone.”
Mr Laslett is a senior project engineer on the Sydney Light Rail Project. Last night a member of his family said they and the families of the other young men had agreed with the Department of Foreign Affairs that they would not comment until the matter had been resolved.
One of Mr Laslett’s Sydney friends said that he was a bright young engineer.
“He is a really nice bloke too, and very clever,” she said. “It’s the sort of thing any of our mates might do, probably not in a Muslim country though.”
Legal And Political Aid
The friends have engaged local lawyers Tania Scivetti and Shafee Abdullah, specialists in defending accused drug traffickers facing the death penalty.
They are waiting to learn if police will charge them with “intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of the peace”, which carries a two-year jail sentence under Malaysian law, and “public indecency”.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull today said he would not intervene by contacting his Malaysian counterpart to try and secure a lifeline for the group of pranksters.
As family members of the nine men arrive in Malaysia to support their bids to avoid jail time, Mr Turnbull backed the earlier comments of Foreign Minister Julie Bishop, who warned Aussies the government cannot just pull people out safety if they get in trouble in a foreign country.
“The matter in Malaysia you are referring to is being dealt with by our consular officials and I do not want to add anything to what the Foreign Minister has said and that is to say Australians overseas should always be careful of and respect the laws of the country in which they are in,” Mr Turnbull said.
“I know the young Australians families are there and our consular officials are working to assist them and I will leave it at that.”
OPINION: WHY ANDREW FIFITA IS A GOOD BLOKE
Ms Bishop said the government is providing consular assistance to the men but they could not interfere in the laws of another nation.
“The Australian government can provide consular support but as I constantly remind people, we can’t bail you out if you get into trouble with the laws of another country,” Ms Bishop told Channel Nine’s TODAY Show.
“We can’t interfere with the legal proceedings of another country any more than a foreign government could interfere in our legal proceedings.
Ms Bishop said the men had obviously planned the stunt ahead of time.
“I don’t know that it will be seen as a lapse of judgment. It was clearly premeditated. They were wearing the budgie smugglers and had bought them in Australia,” Ms Bishop said.
The Reaction
There was outrage across Malaysia yesterday as news of the men’s prank was made public.
Deputy Home Minister Nur Jazlan Mohamed said it would be appropriate for the men to be charged. “We open our doors to tourists, we try to treat them as well as we can, sometimes even better than our own people, but when they come here with the intention to commit indecent acts, to embarrass us,” he said.
“I think that’s not how visitors should respond to our good treatment.”
The government-owned New Straits Times newspaper roared on its front page: “Outrageous! Jail Them!”
Sepang police chief Abdul Aziz Ali said officers intended to charge the nine.
They were reportedly in good spirits after the race, chanting “Aussie Aussie Aussie, oi oi oi” for several minutes and posing for pictures with locals in their Malaysian flag Budgy Smuggler brand swimmers.
Social analyst David Chalke said: “While many Australians see semi-nudity in good humour, the same cannot be said for Malaysian authorities. You might be able to run around naked in Cronulla but not in Kuala Lumpur.’’
MINISTER’S RIGHT-HAND MAN IN THE HOT SEAT WAS ‘GATEKEEPER’ TO MINISTER
Daniel Meers
THE Turnbull government adviser locked in a Malaysian prison for dropping his pants in public once described his role as “gatekeeper” for Christopher Pyne.
Jack Walker, who has worked for the Defence Industry Minister since October 2013, spent more than a year as Mr Pyne’s executive assistant, running his diary. The pair liaised regularly over who would have access to the cabinet minister for meetings.
Once employed by NSW Liberal powerbroker Michael Photios’ lobbying firm PremierState, Mr Walker is now a defence innovation adviser to Mr Pyne.
The government was wary of commenting on the matter yesterday while Malaysian authorities considered charges against the group of nine men arrested when they stripped down to swimming briefs while celebrating Australian driver Daniel Ricciardo’s win at the Malaysian Grand Prix.
There is a view the arrest will cause greater embarrassment for the Turnbull government because Mr Pyne has an international profile as a minister sharing the defence portfolio. His office regularly communicates with nations across Asia.
Treasurer Scott Morrison, however, had little sympathy for the men yesterday, saying all Australians had to be aware of the laws of the country they visited.
“You are on their grounds, so you have got to comply,’’ he said. “It’s a timely reminder for young people when they travel overseas to know what the laws and rules are, and respect them.”
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten urged calm.
“It’s most important that these people get through the processes which are currently underway and I don’t think inflamed debate from Australian politicians is what their families or they need, and I certainly won’t do that,” he said.
Mr Walker’s detailed online resume describes his executive assistant role as “acting as the key gatekeeper for access to the minister”.
Cops bust alleged drug trafficker with $1M, gun, ammo
Police have seized more than $1 million cash after arresting an alleged drug trafficker in Brisbane’s south.
‘Leave him alone’: Bowen defends Albo’s $4.3m beach house buy
A string of ministers have leapt to the defence of the Prime Minister’s purchase of a $4.3m luxury coastal house, while the Opposition has suggested some of his Labor colleagues have turned against him.