Government News Index
Reith silent on call
By IAN McPHEDRAN
Herald Sun
28mar02
A STATEMENT by former defence minister Peter Reith made no mention that he had allegedly been told two weeks earlier that children had not been thrown from a refugee boat.
Mr Reith's witness statement, dated November 21, 2001, contains no reference to a phone conversation he allegedly had with acting defence chief Air Marshal Angus Houston on November 7.
In that conversation, which was revealed at a Senate hearing last month, Mr Reith was allegedly told in front of a witness children were not thrown into the sea.
But his written statement said: "At no stage have I received advice that the children were not thrown overboard."
The statement was made to an inquiry conducted by Major-General Roger Powell and was released at a Senate inquiry late yesterday.
"There has been no evidence presented to me which contradicts the earlier and first advice," the statement said.
Mr Reith's three-page statement also contains an admission.
"I am still not sure what happened exactly because I was not there and the incident happened very quickly," he said.
The man who inadvertantly triggered the children-overboard scandal has admitted he altered his notes after speaking to the captain of HMAS Adelaide.
Commander of Northern Command in Darwin Brigadier Mike Silverstone was the first link in the command chain to talk with Commander Norman Banks after the Adelaide intercepted a refugee boat on October 7 last year.
Cdr Banks has given evidence he never said children had been thrown into the sea.
However, Brig. Silverstone believes he did and the Government has focused on his evidence.
Witness statements presented to the Powell inquiry and released late yesterday show Brig. Silverstone admitted to doctoring his notes.
"I added the word 'child' when reviewing my notes immediately after my conversation with CO Adelaide," his statement said.