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Media Release by Tony Kevin, 9 November 2003 Khaled Daoed and the expulsion of the Kurds
What are the linkages between the forced expulsion of the Kurdish asylum-seekers, and the arrival in police custody of alleged SIEV X people smuggler Khaled Daoed ?
Australia should now be expelled from the UN Refugee Convention, because the Howard government has dishonoured it, in using our ADF to tow back to Indonesian waters by force asylum-seekers who had set foot in Australia and sought refuge here. On a linked matter, the trial of Mr Daoed in Brisbane needs to be closely scrutinised, because it also will pose major tests to the threatened rule of law in Australia.
Khaled Daoed The two most comprehensive reports so far on Khaled Daoed’s first appearance in court in Brisbane on Friday 7 November are : ABC PM Radio on 7 November 2003, "Alleged people smuggler faces court" (unsigned) http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2003/s984848.htm , and Kevin Meade, "Accused SIEV X people smuggler cries in court", "Weekend Australian" 8 November 2003, page 2 Both these reports – and other shorter reports that have appeared elsewhere (see www.sievx.com for hot-links to several such items) rely almost totally on the story as given by Senator Ellison to the media on Friday morning. There is an almost total absence of historical context. For comparison, here is Ellison’s media release: http://www.afp.gov.au/page.asp?ref=/Media/2003/1107PeopleSmuggler.xml
E159 Alleged SIEV-X people smuggler extradited to AustraliaAlleged people-smuggler, Khaleed Shnayf Daoed, has arrived in Brisbane to face charges over a people-smuggling operation that attempted to bring people to Australia aboard the vessel known as 'SIEV-X' in 2001, the Minister for Justice and Customs, Senator Chris Ellison, announced today. Daoed, an Iraqi national, was brought to Australia following the recent decision of the Swedish Government to extradite him. He is alleged to have played an important role in the 'SIEV-X' operation which ended when the vessel sank in October 2001 during its voyage to Australia and approximately 353 people lost their lives. Daoed is also alleged to have played an important role in arranging the voyage of another vessel which brought 147 illegal immigrants to Australia on 4 August 2001. He faces 12 charges under the Migration Act for his alleged people-smuggling activities and, if convicted, he could face up to 20 years' imprisonment. He also faces one charge of money-laundering arising from his alleged people smuggling activities. Daoed is a co-accused of Abu Quassey, who is currently on trial in Egypt for people smuggling related offences arising from his role in organising a number of vessels carrying intended illegal immigrants to Australia. These vessels include the SIEV-X. "Daoed's extradition is particularly welcome given his alleged role in the SIEV-X tragedy and the Australian Government is grateful for the cooperation shown by the Swedish authorities in this matter," Senator Ellison said. "His extradition is the result of a long and successful investigation by the joint Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA) People-Smuggling Strike Team," Senator Ellison said. Daoed's arrival in Australia is further proof that the Australian Government will take all steps possible to ensure the criminals behind the abhorrent practice of people-smuggling will be brought to justice, wherever they are in the world. Daoed's extradition to Australia follows the successful extradition of two other alleged people smugglers, Ali Al Jenabi and Hasan Ayoub, from Thailand in respect of other matters. In the case of Abu Quassey, the Government has sought his extradition from Egypt. However, Egypt has commenced its own prosecution of Abu Quassey. The Government has provided all assistance to Egypt that is legally possibly to assist in Abu Quassey's prosecution. "Australian Federal Police and DIMIA continue to work hard to pursue those who organise and facilitate the practice of people-smuggling - wherever they are in the world - and the Australian government will take all steps possible to ensure these people are returned to Australia to face prosecution." Senator Ellison said in this case the AFP has worked collaboratively with the Swedish National Police through the AFP's international network. ENDS
Just for starters, recall the two Senate motions on SIEV X that were passed on 15 and 16 October – just over three weeks ago: http://sievx.com/testimony/2003/20031015SenBobBrownExtract.html http://sievx.com/testimony/20031015SenBartlettNoticeOfMotion.html Senator Bartlett’s motion noted that the Commonwealth Government has not responded to the report of the Select Committee on a Certain Maritime Incident (CMI) , which included an examination of the SIEV X sinking; and it called on the Commonwealth Government to immediately establish a comprehensive, independent judicial inquiry into all aspects of the People Smuggling Disruption Program operated by the Commonwealth Government and agencies from 2000 to date, including Suspected Illegal Entry Vessels, and in particular the boat known as SIEV X. This is actually the third time the Senate has made this demand over the past thirteen months. The first time was in the Report of the Children Overboard (CMI) Committee in October 2002. The second time was in the Senate motion passed on 11 December 2002. So the cock has crowed three times, but John Howard continues resolutely not to hear what it says about truth and lies. Of course one can understand why Senator Ellison might not want to refer to these three Senate demands for judicial inquiry into the People Smuggling Disruption Program and the sinking of SIEV X, in announcing the arrival in custody of Mr Daoed. But why don’t the ABC or News Limited or any other media organisation now think it worth recalling, when an alleged SIEV X people smuggler finally goes to trial in Australia? It would seem very relevant to a big story. But somehow, it just isn’t there. Then there is the smooth way in which Ellison’s words slide around the crime of the deaths of the 353 people: " …the 'SIEV-X' operation which ended when the vessel sank in October 2001 during its voyage to Australia and approximately 353 people lost their lives". As always with Ellison and the AFP, the only crime of concern is "people smuggling". Deaths are incidental, a regrettable by-product of people smuggling which is the only alleged crime that our law enforcement authorities seem interested in prosecuting. Should not someone now ask Ellison - now that you have an alleged SIEV X people smuggler in Australia, are you going to explore the possibility of charging him with a homicide-related crime? Or do you really see no homicide case to be examined, in terms of whether this boat was deliberately overloaded to sink? Here is another question Ellison could properly be asked - now that you have an alleged SIEV X people smuggler in Australia, will the prosecution rely only on on testimony from SIEV X survivors in Australia on temporary protection visas, or will it seek out the testimony of SIEV X survivors who have been given permanent residence as refugees in other countries ? For justice to be done and seen to be done, does Ellison agree that the latter course should be followed in this important case that goes to 353 deaths? Should not somebody now ask Ellison – what does he propose to do in the course of Mr Daoed’s trial, to try to ascertain the facts on the alleged sabotage of SIEV X by Abu Quassey and those he may have worked with to disrupt people smuggling? Is Ellison going to say that such questions are speculative and outside the range of this prosecution? Possibly – but it would be useful; to get such an answer on record, if this were to be the answer. Reading Ellison’s release and its media reportage, we seem to be on a different planet from the searching series of questions that Senators Faulkner, Collins, Cook, Kirk, Bartlett and Brown have been asking in Estimates since the conclusion of the CMI Committee – there is a comprehensive and readily accessible Hansard record on www.sievx.com . These Senators are clearly now sceptical of the integrity of much of the evidence they were given by officials about SIEV X in that CMI Committee, both under oath and in supplementary documents – or else these Senators would not keep bringing up these SIEV X issues again and again in Estimates Committees. Surely that Senate interest is relevant to the trial of Mr Daoed ? We are, after all, talking about the same boat SIEV X, and the same 353 dead persons.
I am not a lawyer but it seems to me that natural justice, not only to the 353 SIEV X dead but also to Mr Daoed himself, would require that those kinds of issues be brought before the Court. There is no sign in Ellison’s release that they will be. This should be of concern to our professional investigative media.
I understand and sympathise with the reported concern by Mr Daoed’s lawyer Mr Peter Russo that Senator Ellison’s release could prejudice Mr Daoed’s chances of fair process . Ellison responded that he only said what is on public record anyway. The problem is that Ellison has only very selectively used parts of the public record that he wants to. He says nothing about the Senate history and he also says: "He (Daoed) is alleged to have played an important role in the 'SIEV-X' operation …." This is quite strange, because all the available media reporting after SIEV X talked about Daoed as being one of Quassey’s three minor accomplices – Daoed was said to be his bookkeeper - and that Quassey was definitely the man in charge. And there is a whole reported history of Daoed being arrested in Indonesia, and then released under pressure from the UNHCR, for want of evidence; and that same UNHCR subsequently sent Daoed to Sweden as a refugee! What is the new evidence now that Daoed played an "important role" ( Ellison’s words) in the SIEV X operation that drowned 353 people, that the AFP could not make available to the Indonesian police and UNHCR before Daoed was released as an unimportant small player, and found refuge in Sweden ?
Can we broaden our mental focus here a little? This is not just another obscure people smuggling trial. SIEV X was a major event in the election of John Howard. At the cost of 353 lives, it ended the artificially inflated threat of people smuggling to "national security". It enabled Howard to win re-election as a leader whose tough border protection policies had "worked". And then serious questions began to be asked, first by me but now by many people, whether the sinking of SIEV X was really only the result of a greedy people smuggler overloading his boat for profit ?. It is well understood now by large numbers of serious observers in Australia that there is probably more to the SIEV X story than this, and that national honour requires that our justice system get to the bottom of it. It is also well understood that the Howard Government is desperately trying to hide the truth and bury the story. . Pauline Hanson just spent a few distressing months in prison and then found out she should not have been sent there in the first place. Is Mr Daoed going to get better justice in Brisbane than Pauline Hanson got, or will he be – as she was – a convenient scapegoat in bigger schemes involving the agendas of more powerful players ? As Mr Daoed weeps in a Brisbane courtroom – as well he might, because "people smugglers" are now seen as just about on a par with pedophiles or drug pushers to schoolkids in the Australian public’s perception - the Australian government has just taken a new quantum leap intro high-risk political territory. The expulsion of the Kurdish refugees For the first time in our history, people who had set foot on Australian soil (for that is what Melville Island is) and were seeking asylum as refugees, were simply scooped up by a RAN boat , with DIMIA, AFP and Attorney-General’s connivance, and towed back to Indonesian waters. One trusts in this case it was Indonesian territorial waters and not the "Indonesian Search and Rescue zone", because that would have left these people anywhere north of midway between the NT and Java. This is an outrageous violation of Australia’s international legal and humanitarian obligations. For a parallel analogy , consider Chinese illegal immigrants coming onshore in California. and the US Navy then arresting them and towing them back to Chinese waters. That is what the Howard government has just done with these poor Kurdish people. What protection do they now have against Indonesian refoulement to Turkey? Why should Indonesia protect them when Australia has callously washed its hands of them ? Is this what Howard means when he boasts of "our values" ? Of course these Kurds are likely to be genuine refugees under the UN Convention, but that is of no concern to the Howard government . We have another Tampa here, but – because of SIEV X – Howard has won this round easily. "Anywhere but here" has prevailed. The connection of this latest outrage to SIEV X is obvious and haunting. Before SIEV X, Indonesia had been adamant - once Australia intercepted asylum-seeker boats they were Australia’s problem; that was what Tampa had proved. But what SIEV X did was to give Australia an unassailable "humanitarian" And now, even asylum-seekers who land in Australia can be sent back to Indonesia! A supremely confident Howard has shrugged off Australia’s legal obligations under the UN Refugee Convention and the various maritime laws governing humane treatment of people who arrive by sea. Australia should now be expelled from the UN Refugee Convention because our government has dishonoured it. And the link back to SIEV X is clear. Perhaps people who care about Australia’s future as a society based on law should start taking an interest in the Daoed trial. It is not just another people smuggling trial. Correctly handled under the law, this trial could blow the whole SIEV X story open. If not, this will simply encourage the Howard Government to further arrogant disregard of its public accountability and judicial obligations.
Note: This media release will go up on my website, www.tonykevin.com |
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