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On 8 December ACT Chief Minister Jon Stanhope at an ArtsACT awards ceremony in Garema Place, Canberra City Centre, announced that “A Certain Maritime Incident: the Sinking of SIEV X” by Tony Kevin had received the 2005 ACT Book of the Year Award. See ACT Chief Minister’s website
Media Release 526/05,
8 December 2005:
“ACT’S Premier art and literary awards announced.”
** The “ “Author’s sense of ‘public duty’ scoops ACT
literary award”, By Catherine Naylor. “Tony Kevin felt he had a public duty to write what was named yesterday the ACT Book of the Year. Upset at the loss of life and lack of answers about the sinking of Siev X in 2001, the former ambassador and public servant decided the time had come to pen his first book. “It grabbed me when
I realised how many women and children had lost their lives
and how many had husbands and fathers waiting for them in “They should never have been put in that position where they had to take that voyage.” The result of 2 ½ years of research, A Certain Maritime Incident – the Sinking of SIEV X was published in August 2004. “I wrote it under a sense of public obligation. I felt like this had to be said”, Kevin said. The book is really the product of about two years of trying to support the Senate’s efforts to investigate what really happened. “Those efforts have
been repeatedly blocked by government officials under the protection
of government ministers.” The sinking of the Siev X and the Australian response was symbolic of that time in history, when the country had abandoned its morals, Keviin said. “At that time, September
and October 2001, we all went a little crazy in “The book tells of a mad moment in our history when we lost our moral bearings”. “It lays a public platform of history for the time when a whistleblower comes forward [about the incident] and that will happen,” He believes the book
has made the public more aware of the tragedy and of the investigations
that had endeavoured to find out what had happened off the “The book came under very strong, high-level criticism from people close to central government.”, Kevin said. “There is a movement now to have a memorial on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin. The wreck of Siev X is going to be part of our history.” Other awards presented yesterday were ….” ENDS. ** In his acceptance statement, Tony Kevin said: “Thank you for this award. It is very courageous of the ACT Government, because my book after initial bitter denunciation by the political and military establishment has been studiously ignored since then. Jon Stanhope’s support of this book, and his support for the plan to build a national SIEV X Victims’ Memorial somewhere on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra, joins his other acts of great political courage - the passage of a Human Rights Act in the ACT, and his proper decision to release to public scrutiny the secret first draft of the Howard anti-terrorism law. We are lucky in the ACT to have a man of Jon Stanhope’s courage and integrity as our Chief Minister. This is almost certainly a seditious book, under the anti-terrorism law passed two days ago in the Senate. It is unlikely that any Australian publisher would now accept the risk of being charged for publishing this book. Indeed, it was hard enough to find a publisher two years ago. My brave publishing house, Scribe, has only a few copies left in stock from the original print run of 4000. Those of you who do have copies, treasure them – they may soon be collectors’ items. SIEV X is and will continue to be an ongoing public issue of huge importance. It was the first time the Howard Government showed its ruthless determination to ignore the law and Senate powers, and to intimidate public servants, police and defence personnel into doing its illegal bidding. Whatever the exact truth is about how 353 innocent persons who sought refuge with us drowned, when their suspected illegal entry vessel SIEV X sank in Australia’s border protection zone south of Sunda Strait on 19 October 2001, that truth has been systematically covered up by a range of government departments and agencies, and by the ADF and AFP, marching in lockstep together. The Senate has been repeatedly insulted and lied to by senior government national security officials, under the orders and protection of their Ministers. There are undoubtedly persons of decent conscience in these national agencies. There are many smoking guns in this history. Brave opposition parties’ senators are assiduously pursuing them, but so far the government has been able to evade its duty to call a judicial inquiry. This is scandalous, and possibly criminal. Time will tell. My book tells the story of that blocked investigation. One day, when an official or former official whistleblower comes forward, people will come back to this book for historical reference and explanation of the context of the time, that mad moment in our history when we lost our moral bearings.” ** The Scribe website http://www.scribepub.com.au/ also carries a story on the ACT Book of the Year Award . - Tony Kevin, For further enquiries: 02 62956588 or 0414 822171
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