Senator The Honourable Amanda Vanstone
Minister For Immigration and Multiculturalism
and Indigenous Affairs
Suite MF 40
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600
Re: RESPONSE BY YOUR DEPARTMENT TO MY LETTERS OF 29 JANUARY
& 15 MARCH 2004 REGARDING CRUCIAL OMISSION IN DIMIA'S EVIDENCE TO THE
CMI COMMITTEE CONCERNING SIEVX
Dear Minister,
Thank you for responding to my previous letters and confirming that
the SIEV codenamed Gelantipy was the subject of an AMSA search and
rescue in the waters off Christmas Island in March 2001.
However, I am very concerned by your statement that 'there is no
information available to my Department to indicate that Abu Quassey
was associated with this venture' as it appears that you have been
seriously misinformed by your Department. I would be grateful if you
would therefore readdress this matter and I look forward to a further
reply from you.
Both Australian Federal Police Commissioner Keelty and Justice
Minister Ellison provided information to the Senate on two separate
occasions last year that does not support your statement.
On 9 January 2003 Commissioner Keelty stated in Answer #55 to
Questions on Notice asked in Senate Legal & Constitutional Estimates
on 20 November 2002:
On 3 June 2002, three first instance warrants for the arrest of Abu
Quassey were sworn by the AFP with respect to three suspect illegal
entrant vessels (SIEVs) known as the Donnybrook, Gelantipy and the
Yambuk. The warrants allege three offences of organising the bringing
of groups of unlawful non-citizens into Australia and seventy-two
offences of bringing unlawful non-citizens into Australia, contrary to
the provisions of sections 232A and 233(1)(a) of the Migration Act
1958 (the Act), respectively [emphasis added].
This information was reiterated to the Senate by Justice Minister
Ellison on 11 August 2003:
'As advised in an answer to a question on notice from Senate
Estimates hearings in November 2002, on 3 June 2002 three first
instance warrants for the arrest of Abu Quassey were sworn by the AFP
with respect to three suspect illegal entrant vessels (SIEVs) known as
the Donnybrook, Gelantipy and the Yambuk...' [emphasis added] (see
Senate Hansard, p.13093)
So given the fact of a still operational joint agency AFP-DIMIA
People-Smuggling Strike Team (PSST) located in AFP but staffed by
fifteen officers of both departments, and whose stated role according
to Ms Siegmund's evidence to the CMI Committee was 'to undertake
investigations which will hopefully lead to the prosecution of people
involved in organising people-smuggling' how can it be that the AFP
had enough information to issue a warrant for the arrest of Abu
Quassey in respect of the Gelantipy yet your Department claims to have
no knowledge of Quassey's involvement in this venture?
And how can you assert that 'my department had no basis for
concluding that any vessels with which Abu Quassey was associated
later in the year would have threatened the lives of persons
travelling on them or that a rescue by Australian authorities would
have been required'?
There appears on the face of it to have been a serious breakdown in
transmission of key information about people smuggling between the two
departments primarily responsible for monitoring and countering people
smuggling.
There is another very troubling aspect to this matter as detailed and
fully referenced in my previous letters. Given the fact that Abu
Quassey had sent a boat (Gelantipy) to Christmas Island that required
rescue at sea just a few months prior to the SIEVX tragedy, how is it
that the representatives of your Department who appeared at the CMI
Committee could state unequivocally that the reference in the PST
minutes to 'some risk of vessels in poor condition and rescue at sea'
did not apply to SIEVX?
Because of the continuing public interest in this matter I am copying
this letter to Senators Collins, Cook, Faulkner, Kirk, Bartlett and
Brown.
Yours sincerely,
Marg Hutton
29 April 2004
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