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March 11, 2004
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The Farce Continues
The ongoing farce over the extradition of two wanted men from Australia to Hong Kong continues. From Australian Foreign Minister Downer two days ago came this: Journalist: Mr Downer are you concerned at the damage that may be done to the relationship with Hong Kong by the Justice Minister’s refusal to surrender two Australian fugitives?Nice pass, Alexander. So in the Senate yesterday the question was asked of the relevant Minister. He was asked if he was lobbied to prevent the extradition of these two men. I received written submissions which touched on matters relevant to the exercise of my discretion. As I recall, they were directly from Mr Hendy; Mr Voigt; members of their families, including their children; friends; solicitors acting for them; and two members of parliament.The Minister is then asked if he is aware that Emily Lau, a HK LegCo member, stated "I think some people in HK are hopping made, and they think Australia is being uncooperative, and without giving reasons," and this incident has damaged the law enforcement relationship between the two countries. His lame reply: I am aware of Ms Lau's comments. She is entitled to those as a member of the Hong Kong parliament. We have assured the government of Hong Kong of our commitment to work closely with them in law enforcement matters, and they have echoed that commitment. It is business as usual. We continue to work closely with the Hong Kong government in relation to law enforcement matters, as they do with us, and we value that cooperation.The implications are clear - if you've got mates in the right places, you can get away with anything. Having an MP or two helping is nice. Lest you think this is all over nothing, every other person involved in this short piling scandal in HK has been convicted of the charges they faced. There is a strong chance of conviction. Hong Kong has a recognised legal and court system the maintains high standards. There is no possible excuse for the case against extradition. But we'll never know because this is where the matter ends. The Minister might not think so but this has caused enormous damage to the relationship between HK and Australia. posted by Simon on 03.11.04 at 08:35 AM in the
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