I'm not a fake Muslim: Leslie
Monday Nov 21 23:08 AEST
Convicted drug user Michelle Leslie says she is a Muslim and will practise
her faith with or without traditional Islamic headwear.
Leslie, 24, is expected to return to Australia on Tuesday after serving
three months in Bali's Kerobokan jail for possessing two ecstasy tablets.
The model wore Muslim dress during her trial but after her release
switched to skintight jeans and a singlet top which exposed her stomach.
Young Aussies warned Media deal sparks outrage
In some of her first public comments since being released from
Kerobokan on Saturday, Leslie has told the Daily Telegraph newspaper
she was hurt by claims she pretended to be a Muslim to get sympathy
from Indonesian judges.
"It's incorrect to say I am a fake Muslim and that is very upsetting to me," she told the newspaper before boarding a Sydney-bound plane in Singapore.
"I found that this is the religion for me.
"I'm a Muslim and I practise these beliefs in the best way that I can.
"I was a Muslim long before any of this happened. You can be a Muslim regardless of your clothes.
"If I have offended anyone, I'm sorry."
Australian Federation of Islamic Councils president Ameer Ali on Monday accused Leslie of engaging in a "stunt" by wearing Islamic dress during her trial.
"It looks as though ... she used Islam as a stunt to get a judgment in her favour," he told AAP.
"If the judgment was skewed by her appearance in Muslim dress, it leaves a lot to be desired of the Indonesian justice system."
Leslie said she was in good health and looking forward to spending time with family and boyfriend Scott Sutton.
"I need to take some rest and re-evaluate my life and what's happened to me in Bali," she told the paper.
Leslie refused to comment on reports she stopped over in Singapore to confront a key witness in her case, Siti Namira, the friend known as "Mia".
The woman is reportedly the true owner of the two ecstasy pills found in Leslie's handbag.
Leslie's spokesman told the paper she did not blame her friend and had stopped over in Singapore to "work through some issues".
Magazines and television networks have already sounded out Leslie for deals to air her story.
A spokeswoman for New Idea said the magazine was interested but had "not put any offers to her yet", while the Nine Network's A Current Affair said it would not pay for her story.
The Daily Telegraph said it did not offer any financial incentive to Leslie for its interview and she did not request payment.
?AAP 2005
Monday Nov 21 23:08 AEST
Convicted drug user Michelle Leslie says she is a Muslim and will practise
her faith with or without traditional Islamic headwear.
Leslie, 24, is expected to return to Australia on Tuesday after serving
three months in Bali's Kerobokan jail for possessing two ecstasy tablets.
The model wore Muslim dress during her trial but after her release
switched to skintight jeans and a singlet top which exposed her stomach.
Young Aussies warned Media deal sparks outrage
In some of her first public comments since being released from
Kerobokan on Saturday, Leslie has told the Daily Telegraph newspaper
she was hurt by claims she pretended to be a Muslim to get sympathy
from Indonesian judges.
"It's incorrect to say I am a fake Muslim and that is very upsetting to me," she told the newspaper before boarding a Sydney-bound plane in Singapore.
"I found that this is the religion for me.
"I'm a Muslim and I practise these beliefs in the best way that I can.
"I was a Muslim long before any of this happened. You can be a Muslim regardless of your clothes.
"If I have offended anyone, I'm sorry."
Australian Federation of Islamic Councils president Ameer Ali on Monday accused Leslie of engaging in a "stunt" by wearing Islamic dress during her trial.
"It looks as though ... she used Islam as a stunt to get a judgment in her favour," he told AAP.
"If the judgment was skewed by her appearance in Muslim dress, it leaves a lot to be desired of the Indonesian justice system."
Leslie said she was in good health and looking forward to spending time with family and boyfriend Scott Sutton.
"I need to take some rest and re-evaluate my life and what's happened to me in Bali," she told the paper.
Leslie refused to comment on reports she stopped over in Singapore to confront a key witness in her case, Siti Namira, the friend known as "Mia".
The woman is reportedly the true owner of the two ecstasy pills found in Leslie's handbag.
Leslie's spokesman told the paper she did not blame her friend and had stopped over in Singapore to "work through some issues".
Magazines and television networks have already sounded out Leslie for deals to air her story.
A spokeswoman for New Idea said the magazine was interested but had "not put any offers to her yet", while the Nine Network's A Current Affair said it would not pay for her story.
The Daily Telegraph said it did not offer any financial incentive to Leslie for its interview and she did not request payment.
?AAP 2005
