LATELY, there have been many cases of young girls caught in foreign countries for transporting drugs which inevitably leads to them languishing in foreign prisons for long periods of time.

The latest incident of a young girl from Kelantan, who was sentenced to death in China for drug possession, should be a wake-up call for parents to be more vigilant about their children’s whereabouts and the company they keep.

Girls can be so naive and easily influenced by their “foreign friends” to be their mules in carrying drugs overseas, without thinking of the consequences should they get caught.

We should respect foreign laws pertaining to drugs and those nabbed should not give the lame excuse that they were ignorant of the heavy penalties likely to be imposed on offenders.

HAMDAN IBRAHIM, Kuala Lumpur

Source: NST – December 24, 2007