In 2004, the Australian Secret Intelligence Service (ASIS) bugged the East Timor Cabinet Office at Dili to obtain information that would allow Australia and Australian companies to gain an unfair advantage and the upper hand in negotiations with East Timor over certain rich oil and gas fields in the Timor Sea. This was allegedly at the behest of then Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer.

In 2012, the former senior ASIS intelligence officer who led the bugging operation (Witness K) complained internally that the Australian Government had illegally accessed the top-secret cabinet discussions of the East Timorese Government and had exploited this information during negotiations of the Timor Sea Treaty, to the disadvantage of the people of East Timor.

In June 2018 the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions filed criminal charges against Witness K & his lawyer, Bernard Collaery for essentially exposing the truth of Australia’s espionage against an ally and a newly independent country struggling to get its people out of poverty.

As the government has not shown that national security has been threatened by either Witness K or his lawyer, and as no public interest has been demonstrated by these prosecutions we believe that the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions and the Attorney-General must drop the charges, which only lead Australia down the path towards a police state. 

[Picture credit: ABC News; Outrage credit: Four Corners]