Peace activist may be black-listed

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Peace activist may be black-listed

Tue, 13 Sep 2005 04:16:49 -0400

 

 

 

 

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Peace activist may be black-listed

By Jano Gibson and Jesse Hogan

September 13, 2005

 

An American peace activist being held in Australia may never be able

to travel outside the US again if he is deported over national

security concerns, Greenpeace says.

 

Scott Parkin, who has been in Australia since June, was detained last

Saturday after his visa was revoked over matters relating to " violent

protest activity " .

 

Greenpeace, which is helping Mr Parkin in a legal bid to have his visa

reinstated, said that if the activist were to be deported he would be

black-listed from travelling to other countries.

 

" He probably wouldn't be able to travel anywhere else in the world

because he's been deemed a security threat and that charge is not

appealable in any court once it has been acted upon, " Greenpeace

campaign manager, Danny Kennedy, said.

 

" It's effectively a life sentence the Commonwealth has put on this man

without charge or due process, " he said.

 

Mr Parkin as been in solitary confinement at the Melbourne Custody

Centre since being detained.

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Earlier, Attorney-General Philip Ruddock told ABC Radio that Mr Parkin

received an " adverse security assessment " from ASIO after he arrived

in the country, based on evidence at hand.

 

" The assessment has to be made upon matters relating to politically

motivated violence, including violent protest activity, " he said.

 

Mr Kennedy said Mr Parkin had been arrested at least once in the US

while working for Greenpeace.

 

" He once dressed as Tony the Tiger and ran around the Exxon Mobile

headquarters in Texas along with 20 other Tony the Tigers. He wasn't

charged with a violent crime, " Mr Kennedy said.

 

It was a minor charge relating to trespass or causing public nuisance,

he said.

 

" Scott has never advocated violence. He has only ever advocated

non-violence and peaceful protest. And if Mr Ruddock knows better he

needs to make it clear and transparent and explain it to Scott so that

he can defend himself, " Mr Kennedy said.

 

Meanwhile, Mr Parkin's lawyer said the Immigration Department had

pressured the activist to drop his appeal by threatening to keep him

in solitary confinement.

 

Julian Burnside, QC, said his client had been told by immigration

officers that his deportation would be brought forward if he dropped

his appeal to the Migration Review Tribunal to find out why his visa

was revoked.

 

Mr Burnside described this as " factually false and legally improper " .

 

" What they're doing, in effect, is saying: 'All right, we'll hold you

here in solitary confinement until you dump your action,' and that's

outrageous, " he said.

 

The immigration department is yet to respond.

 

Mr Burnside said the Migration Act allowed appeal applicants to seek

information even after they had been deported. It also requires

visitors without visas to be deported as soon as practicable.

 

He said Mr Parkin's detention set a " disturbing precedent " for the

Government's planned anti-terror laws, which had been criticised by

civil libertarians.

 

" Here we've got a person locked up, at his own expense, and then

removed from the country without ever knowing what he's supposed to

have done, " he said.

 

" Quite frankly, I'm beginning to feel more alarmed by our Government's

conduct than about the risk of a terrorist attack. "

 

Mr Burnside said he would consider taking the matter to court if the

immigration department continued to hold Mr Parkin in detention.

 

" You would hope that you wouldn't have to go to a court to tell a

government department to obey their own laws. "

 

Mr Ruddock today rejected suggestions that political pressure from

Washington may have been behind the decision to deport Mr Parkin.

 

But Victorian Premier Steve Bracks called on the Federal Government to

explain why Mr Parkin's visa was revoked.

 

Mr Parkin is an activist with the Houston Global Awareness Collective,

which aims to end the US-led war in Iraq.

 

Since February 2003, the collective has targeted US-based

multinational company Halliburton, which is a prime recipient of US

Government contracts in Iraq and formerly had US Vice-President Dick

Cheney as its chief executive officer.

 

Mr Parkin has described Halliburton as a " poster child of war

profiteering " .

 

He arrived in Australia in early June and, on August 31, took part in

a non-violent protest outside Halliburton's Sydney headquarters.

 

When he was detained on Saturday, he had been due to give a workshop

in Melbourne discussing emerging trends in grassroots direct-action

campaigns.

 

Greens leader Bob Brown said Mr Parkin may have been arrested for

political reasons on orders from Washington, because of his history of

activism against Halliburton.