Announcement

Fairfax Media Limited
ACN 008 663 161

September 23 2008

Statements by Fairfax Media Limited and Australia's Right To Know Coalition on the Federal Police Raid Against Canberra Times Journalist Philip Dorling

Statement by Fairfax Media Limited

"Fairfax Media is gravely concerned by this legal assault on one of our journalists for doing his job. A Federal police raid on the home of a journalist cuts to the heart of the operation of a free press, and is unacceptable. We have long advocated the need for shield legislation to protect the public's right to know and today's disturbing events show once again that enactment of a Federal shield law is imperative."

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Statement by Australia’s Right to Know

“Raids by police of newsrooms or the private residences of journalists raise serious questions about the state of free speech in this country.

“The raid in Canberra today, which follows a raid by 16 armed police at The Sunday Times in Perth in May, show that it’s time for governments to stop talking and start enacting laws that will protect whistleblowers and journalists from being hunted down and prosecuted if their information threatens to embarrass governments.

“There is no evidence that national security or public safety is at risk or that this information could lead to a serious crime in this instance and therefore there are simply no legitimate grounds for today’s police raid.

“It is time for new shield laws that will give journalists a legal right to maintain the confidentially of a source. It is also time for new laws to protect whistleblowers from being prosecuted, especially if they are acting in the public interest."