PLEASE EXPLAIN

Philip Ruddock is being at best naive. At worst duplicitous. Or he thinks the Australian people are stupid. Ruddock and Reith and Howard bluffed their way through the “children overboard” scandal. It won’t wash this time. And Beazley must not let Ruddock off the hook.

I am talking about the Israeli spy who was thrown out of Australia recently. It turns out he had some sort of relationship with Ruddock’s youngest daughter Caitlin. A relationship so intimate that the alleged spy, Second Secretary Amir Lati, claims he was invited to have Christmas lunch with the Ruddocks at their Sydney home only days before he was deported.

Lati claims that his relationship with Caitlin was the reason he was deported.

Ruddock says that the relationship that may or not have existed with his daughter was “totally irrelevant”. Bullshit. He said on Sky News “ the gentleman has left Australia”. “Game, set and match”.

Hang on a flash. Philip Ruddock is the Attorney-General of Australia. Our top law enforcement officer. And three days before an alleged spy is expelled he was to have sat down to chew the fat and eat the Christmas turkey with the Ruddocks in their Pennant Hills home. That’s irrelevant. Instead of eating turkey, let’s talk turkey here.

What if over the Christmas bon bons and the beer a spy had gone to the bathroom and en route quietly photographed the contents of the Attorney General’s briefcase. Or rifled through papers on his desk in his study.

This is an awesome breach of security and this time Ruddock’s suave and calm demeanor won’t get him out of it. Obviously, there are restrictions by ASIO on what can be said but Australia needs some sort of explanation more than a dismissive and flippant “ totally irrelevant” comment from the Attorney General. And Prime Minister Howard -- who increasingly and smugly hides behind his fourth term majority – must also go public.

Friday, February 18, 2005

©Copyright Derryn Hinch 2005