5 years ago
67 DAYS FOR PETER DUTTON TO SPEAK UP ON PRESS FREEDOMS
SENATOR THE HON KRISTINA KENEALLY
It has taken Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton 67 days to speak up about freedom of the press and the public’s right to know after the Australian Federal Police raided the home of a chief political editor, Annika Smethurst, before raiding the ABC the following day.
Mr Dutton waited until 4pm on a Friday afternoon – just days before the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security’s public hearings into press freedoms – to announce his “Ministerial Direction on Investigative Action Involving Journalists”.
This is a cowardly act.
Mr Dutton has announced what he “expects” of the AFP. Australians, including journalists, media executives and the public, have demanded guarantees from the Government and all Mr Dutton has given them is window dressing.
This pithy effort and even more pitiful timing from Mr Dutton is disrespectful to every hard-working journalist in Australia and epitomises what the Home Affairs Minister thinks of them, the media, and the Australian public.
It’s taken Mr Dutton too long to speak out and there are still many unanswered questions.
Why has the Morrison Government treated journalists like criminal suspects – forcing their private travel arrangements to be handed over?
Can the Morrison Government confirm they will not charge or prosecute any Australian journalist – such as those at the ABC – for doing their job and reporting in the public interest?
Why did the Morrison Government vote against establishing a wide-ranging Parliamentary Joint Committee into freedom of the press and the public’s right to know?
Is a free press a right Australians can continue to rely on under the Morrison Government?
When it comes to freedom of the press and the public’s right to know, Mr Dutton and the Morrison Government have failed at every step of the way to show the leadership Australia deserves.
Mr Dutton waited until 4pm on a Friday afternoon – just days before the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security’s public hearings into press freedoms – to announce his “Ministerial Direction on Investigative Action Involving Journalists”.
This is a cowardly act.
Mr Dutton has announced what he “expects” of the AFP. Australians, including journalists, media executives and the public, have demanded guarantees from the Government and all Mr Dutton has given them is window dressing.
This pithy effort and even more pitiful timing from Mr Dutton is disrespectful to every hard-working journalist in Australia and epitomises what the Home Affairs Minister thinks of them, the media, and the Australian public.
It’s taken Mr Dutton too long to speak out and there are still many unanswered questions.
Why has the Morrison Government treated journalists like criminal suspects – forcing their private travel arrangements to be handed over?
Can the Morrison Government confirm they will not charge or prosecute any Australian journalist – such as those at the ABC – for doing their job and reporting in the public interest?
Why did the Morrison Government vote against establishing a wide-ranging Parliamentary Joint Committee into freedom of the press and the public’s right to know?
Is a free press a right Australians can continue to rely on under the Morrison Government?
When it comes to freedom of the press and the public’s right to know, Mr Dutton and the Morrison Government have failed at every step of the way to show the leadership Australia deserves.