Consequences of a futile gesture. Presumably the Australian politicians who signed a letter calling on the Malaysian Government to abort the sodomy trial of opposition politician Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim feel smugly warm inside their minds for their actions. Futile gestures can often make you feel morally superior but they can also make relations with neighbouring nations far more difficult than they need to be.

Yesterday outside the Australian High Commission in Kuala Lumpur there was a demonstration by Malaysian political groups making the obvious point that, as one put it, “the act of these Australian MPs is a clear interference in our internal affairs and an encroachment of our sovereignty and we will not tolerate this.” It is not hard to imagine a much stronger statement being made by an Australian politician if Malaysian MPs were making official protests about the conduct of a trial in this country.

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The lack of impact the letter from Australia had on the Malaysian judicial system was shown by the decision of the country’s Supreme Court to dismiss an attempt  by Mr Anwar to get the charges against him dropped.

Another example of Malaysian justice. Three Muslim women became the first in the country to be caned for committing syariah offences. Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein said the three were found guilty of having illicit sex and had the caning sentence meted out to them on Feb 9 at 10am at the Kajang Prison. The Star newspaper reports that the trio were found guilty of committing illicit sex under Section 23 (2) of the Federal Territory Syariah Criminal Act 1997. The Federal Territory Syariah High Court had issued the caning order between December last year and January 2010.

A stay at home PM. The report this morning that Kevin Rudd is not off to Gallipoli this Anzac Day but has suggested that the Governor General go instead tells us something about what the Labor Party’s research is showing. The peripatetic nature of the Prime Minister clearly does not impress most Australians.

Drinking the label. French Customs officers became suspicious when they realised that they were processing the paper work for more exports of Pinot Noir from Languedoc to the United States than the total quantity of wine produced in that region from that grape type. The consequences of their vigilance was the conviction and fining yesterday in Carcassonne, south west France, of the winemakers involved.

The BBC reports that the judge said: “The scale of the fraud caused severe damage for the wines of the Languedoc for which the United States is an important outlet.” But perhaps the most reveling comment came from the lawyer for the principal exporting company Sieur d’Arques, Jean-Marie Bourland, who told Agence France-Presse: “There is no prejudice. Not a single American consumer complained.” A lawyer for three other defendants argued his clients had delivered a wine that had Pinot Noir characteristics.

It just goes to confirm what I have always suspected. Most of us drink the label rather than what’s actually in the bottle.

And you thought Telstra was rude. New Zealand Telecom is reaching new heights in customer service. A Wanganui woman who rang and complained about delays in her mobile service received this reply:

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