AAPP Media Release, 6th October 2021
“The prosecution of Bernard Collaery should never have gone ahead, and it should be discontinued immediately”, said Kathryn Kelly, co-convenor of the Alliance Against Political Prosecutions (AAPP).
AAPP welcomes the ACT Appeal Court decision on Collaery’s appeal, particularly the recognition by the judges “that the open hearing of criminal trials was important because it deterred political prosecutions, allowed the public to scrutinise the actions of prosecutors, and permitted the public to properly assess the conduct of the accused person.”
“This is an excellent precedent,” said Ms Kelly.
“The ACT judge will apparently need to assess further affidavits from the Attorney-General. However, if the government pursues this political prosecution, it risks the very thing they were trying to prevent – embarrassment of the government due to disclosure of its allegedly illegal bugging of the Timor-Leste government offices in 2004. There certainly seems to be much yet to be disclosed,” Ms Kelly said.
“There is an important question of whether Attorney-General Michaelia Cash has a conflict of interest in this case, since she was reportedly employed by Perth law firm Freehills, which worked with the company Conocophillips on Timor Sea issues. If this is the case, surely she should not be involved?” said Ms Kelly.
End —————–
Contact AAPP Co-convenors
Kathryn Kelly 0417 269 984
Sister Susan Connelly 0498 473 341
Australian Alliance Against Political Prosecutions
PO Box 549, Curtin 2605, Australia
website: https://aapp.ipan.org.au/
https://www.facebook.com/Dropwhistleblowerprosecutions/