Injunction against Aust. newspaper

Press, 7 May 1983, Page 8

Injunction against Aust. newspaper

NZPA Canberra Allegations against the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (A. 5.1.0. based on classified documents were partly true, the Prime Minister, Mr Hawke, confirmed yesterday. He said that Australia may have some explaining to do to Papua New Guinea and Indonesia over alleged eavesdropping activities in Port Moresby and Jakarta. The allegations, published in the “National Times” newspaper, were, in part, one of an intended special series by the editor, Brian Toohey. Late on Thursday evening, the Government obtained interim injunctions from the Chief Justice, Sir Harry Gibbs, restraining the publisher, John Fairfax and Sons, and Mr Toohey from publishing further articles based on the top secret material. The defendants are also required to deliver to the High Court by Tuesday, all the classified documents referred to in the newspaper. Last evening, a Fairfax executive, Mr Max Suich, said that the company believed it was right to pub-lish-the story, and did not believe it had damaged national security. Mr Suich, chief editorial executive of Fairfax, said that- he believed jhe important issues raised Mould be defended in

court. The Federal Opposition leader, Mr Andrew Peacock, who had a long briefing from Mr Hawke on Thursday, said yesterday that he “fully endorsed” the Government’s actions. Mr Hawke said yesterday that the allegations made so far “already go to the gravest issues of Australia’s international relationships and domestic security considerations.” He said, “While not in any way conceding that all the allegations in the article are accurate, some of them are. “In these terms, Mr Toohey’s statement that he has ‘tens of thousands of pages of classified documents’ is not something this Government can simply ignore.” Among the newspaper’s allegations against A. 5.1.0. was that the head of the organisation's New South Wales division, Mr Leon Carter, authorised a break and entry into the Sydney home of Sir William McMahon during the late 19605. According to the article, the aim of the entry apparently was to obtain politically damaging material against Sir William, who at that stage “was jockeying to become Prime Minister after the drowning of Harold Holt.” It was also alleged toat members of A. 5.1.0. handed

over potentially damaging information to the American authorities about prominent Australian figures. The information was believed to have ranged from accusations of subversive tendencies to concern about personal peccadilloes. In addition, A. 5.1.0. was alleged to have handed over “copious amounts” of intelligence material to the Rightwing, Catholic-dominated' National Civic Council in Australia (N.C.C.). The article also quoted from the 1978 annual report of the head of the Office of National Assessments (0.N.A.), Mr Robert Furlonger, about gaps in intelligence gathering in Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. However, it said that much of the problem in Papua New Guinea had been overcome by the installation in the Australian High Commission in Port Moresby of “extraordinarily sophisticated intercept equipment” The article said that some of the problems in Indonesia also had been met by the installation of such equipment in Jakarta. Asked if he expected approaches from countries such as Papua New Guinea and Indonesia for explanations about the article, Mr Hawke said that he thought it “very likely.”