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Justice goes west in Australia

Little needs to be added to this insightful and thought-provoking piece by Julian Burnside QC in The Age, on the case of Mohamed Haneef, his initial detention, release on bail and then taken into custody when his visa was cancelled.

All Australians ought to be truly alarmed by what has happened here. It's a slippery slope when events such as those which have occured in the Haneef case go unchallenged.

"The treatment of Mohamed Haneef is very disturbing. He spent 12 days in custody waiting to be questioned by police and he was held under provisions that do not appear to contemplate such lengthy detention without charge.

When, eventually, the police started questioning Haneef, they apparently found out no more than they already knew: he had given his cousin a pre-paid SIM card that still had some credit. Haneef could no longer use it because he was leaving England. A year later the SIM card was found in a car used by a terrorist.

It is a thin-looking case that will depend on showing that Haneef had reason to think one year ago that the SIM card would be used by a terrorist organisation.

Australia Federal Police Commissioner Mick Keelty described the case as being "at the margin". Presumably the same thinking persuaded the magistrate that Haneef should be bailed pending trial.

Prolonged detention for questioning is troubling: it is difficult to square with our assumptions about liberty. But things soon got much worse: as soon as Haneef was granted bail, Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews cancelled his visa."

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