search

Australian police raid public broadcaster over leaked defense documents

Political leaders distance themselves from raids, but ABC editor calls police action a ‘serious escalation of the attack on the free media’

ABC's editorial director Craig McMurtrie speaks to the media as Australian police raid the headquarters of the public broadcaster in Sydney on June 5, 2019. (Peter Parks/AFP)
ABC's editorial director Craig McMurtrie speaks to the media as Australian police raid the headquarters of the public broadcaster in Sydney on June 5, 2019. (Peter Parks/AFP)

SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — Australian police raided the headquarters of public broadcaster ABC on Wednesday, the second high-profile raid on journalists in 24 hours in a sharp crackdown on sensitive leaks.

Six police officers entered the corporation’s offices in Sydney with a warrant naming three senior journalists and executives involved in a two-year-old investigative report.

In 2017, ABC obtained documents that showed Australian special forces had killed innocent men and children in Afghanistan.

The Australian Federal Police said the search was “in relation to allegations of publishing classified material, contrary to provisions of the Crimes Act 1914.”

https://twitter.com/elisereports/status/1136138365143699456

ABC executive editor John Lyons said the search warrant demanded access to reporters’ handwritten notes, emails, story drafts, footage and passwords, among other things — going through a total of 9,214 documents.

“This is a really serious escalation of the attack on the free media, and that hits the public,” he said as the raid continued. “I’ve never seen an assault on the media as savage as this.”

Illustrative: Australian police at a crime scene in Melbourne on November 9, 2018. (William West/AFP)

“It’s not just about the media. It’s about any person out there who wants to tell the media about a bad hospital or a school that’s not working. Or a corrupt local council.”

A day earlier police raided a journalist’s home in Canberra over a report that detailed the authorities’ bid to gain powers to spy on Australian citizens’ communications at home.

Police said there was “no link” between the two raids which relate to “separate allegations of publishing classified material.”

Both stories involved sensitive and potentially classified materials and were embarrassing to the Australian government and the security services in particular.

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison speaks at a business breakfast in Darwin, April 24, 2019. (Mick Tsikas/AAP Image via AP)

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has tried to distance himself from the raids, which come just days after the re-election of his conservative government, insisting they were police, not government, matters.

“Australia believes strongly in the freedom of the press and we have clear rules and protections for the freedom of the press,” he said during a visit to London.

“There are also clear rules protecting Australia’s national security and everybody should operate in accordance with all of those laws passed by our parliament.”

‘Attempt to intimidate’

Police said that controversial Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton was not notified about the raids beforehand, and that the issues had been referred by two unnamed agency heads.

Shadow home affairs minister, the Labor party’s Kristina Keneally, demanded an explanation for why the raids occurred.

Although the press in Australia can report largely free of political interference, strict defamation laws, court gag orders and state security statutes affect what can be said in print and broadcast.

Australia’s Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance union branded the raids a “disturbing attempt to intimidate legitimate news journalism that is in the public interest.”

“Police raiding journalists is becoming normalized and it has to stop… it seems that when the truth embarrasses the government, the result is the Federal Police will come knocking at your door.”

read more:
Never miss breaking news on Israel
Get notifications to stay updated
You're subscribed
image
Register for free
and continue reading
Registering also lets you comment on articles and helps us improve your experience. It takes just a few seconds.
Already registered? Enter your email to sign in.
Please use the following structure: [email protected]
Or Continue with
By registering you agree to the terms and conditions. Once registered, you’ll receive our Daily Edition email for free.
Register to continue
Or Continue with
Log in to continue
Sign in or Register
Or Continue with
check your email
Check your email
We sent an email to you at .
It has a link that will sign you in.