NSW Judicial Commission reject 'ASIO kidnapping' complaint
The Sydney Morning Herald reports that the NSW Judicial Commission has rejected a complaint made by the head bureaucrat at the AG's department against a NSW judicial officer who found in a judgment that ASIO officers had unlawfully kidnapped and falsely imprisoned a suspect in a 'terrorism' case.
The news article, which gives details on the content of the complaint, says the complaint alleges that Adams J had made 'unjustified findings' which 'reflect adversely and very unfairly on the officers', and that '[t]he lack of concern the judge has shown for due process and natural justice in his comments about the officers' actions stand in complete contrast to the great care he took to determine that the officers had not complied with the applicable requirements.'
The grounds of the complaint are, and always were, bogus. Adams J's findings were entirely justified, there was plenty of evidence to support them. If those findings reflect adversely on the officers involved, then perhaps ASIO should stop kidnapping people. It should also be borne in mind that the identities of the ASIO officers were suppressed in the judgment -- all that the world at large knows is that ASIO officers B14 and B15 broke the law. Only people within ASIO or other government agencies who know the identities of B14 and B15 would know that they are the individuals who kidnapped Ul-Haque, and they're not likely to care.
As for the natural justice claim, even the news media can see the holes in that argument:
The news article, which gives details on the content of the complaint, says the complaint alleges that Adams J had made 'unjustified findings' which 'reflect adversely and very unfairly on the officers', and that '[t]he lack of concern the judge has shown for due process and natural justice in his comments about the officers' actions stand in complete contrast to the great care he took to determine that the officers had not complied with the applicable requirements.'
The grounds of the complaint are, and always were, bogus. Adams J's findings were entirely justified, there was plenty of evidence to support them. If those findings reflect adversely on the officers involved, then perhaps ASIO should stop kidnapping people. It should also be borne in mind that the identities of the ASIO officers were suppressed in the judgment -- all that the world at large knows is that ASIO officers B14 and B15 broke the law. Only people within ASIO or other government agencies who know the identities of B14 and B15 would know that they are the individuals who kidnapped Ul-Haque, and they're not likely to care.
As for the natural justice claim, even the news media can see the holes in that argument:
Late last year, the ASIO director-general, Paul O'Sullivan, complained the agents had not had a chance to rebut the charges. But the two ASIO officers - known as B15 and B16 - had in fact given evidence to Justice Adams, who found their testimony unconvincing and, at times, untruthful.They forgot to mention 'evasive', 'dishonest', and the other choice terms used by Adams J to describe the ASIO officer's evidence.
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