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| Editorial Director of the Australian Broadcasting Corp (ABC) Craig McMurtie speaks to members of the media outside the ABC building located at Ultimo in Sydney, Australia, June 5, 2019. Police raided the offices of Australia’s national broadcaster on Wednesday over allegations it had published classified material, the second raid on a media outlet in two days, prompting complaints that the “outrageous” raids hindered media freedom. AAP/David Gray/via REUTERS ATTENTION EDITORS – THIS IMAGE WAS PROVIDED BY A THIRD PARTY. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVE. AUSTRALIA OUT. NEW ZEALAND OUT. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN NEW ZEALAND. NO COMMERCIAL OR EDITORIAL SALES IN AUSTRALIA. |
Police raided the offices of Australiaโs national broadcaster on Wednesday over allegations it had published classified material, the second raid on a media outlet in two days, prompting complaints that the โoutrageousโ raids hindered media freedom.
The Australian Federal Police (AFP) said its officers carried out a search warrant at the head office of the government-funded Australian Broadcasting Corp. (ABC) in Sydney on Wednesday.
That came a day after police raided the home of a News Corp editor, although the AFP said the raids were unrelated.
โIt is highly unusual for the national broadcaster to be raided in this way,โ ABC Managing Director David Anderson said in a statement.
โThis is a serious development and raises legitimate concerns over freedom of the press and proper public scrutiny of national security and defence matters,โ he said.
The AFP said the ABC raid was in relation to allegations it had published classified material and followed a referral from the chief of the Australian Defence Force and a former acting defence secretary in 2017.
The ABC raid was authorised by a court and based on evidence that provided โsufficient suspicion that a criminal offence has been committedโ, the AFP said in a statement.
Marcus Strom, president of the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance trade union, said on his Twitter account the two raids were โjust outrageousโ.
โPolice raiding journalists is becoming normalised. It has to stop,โ he said.
The ABC raid was in relation to a series of broadcasts in 2017 about alleged misconduct by Australian troops in Afghanistan, the broadcaster said.
The raid on the News Corp editor related to a 2018 newspaper report that said Australian intelligence agencies wanted to carry out surveillance by accessing peopleโs emails, bank accounts and text messages, domestic media reported.
News Corp called the raid on its employee โoutrageous and heavy handedโ, and โa dangerous act of intimidationโ.
The Rupert Murdoch-controlled company said it had โthe most serious concerns about the willingness of governments to undermine the Australian publicโs right to know about important decisions governments are makingโ.
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison was reported as saying he believed in media freedom but that there were also clear rules about the use of classified information.
โโIt never troubles me that our laws are being upheld,โ the Sydney Morning Herald quoted Morrison as saying.
REUTERS
