Murdoch press violates 'excluded persons' privacy

The September 1 Daily Telegraph published the names and photographs of all but two of the 29 people who have been put on the NSW police commissioner's list of people to be excluded from much of the Sydney CBD during the APEC summit, and who will even be banned from flying into or out of Sydney airport.

Being put on the list is a decision of the police commissioner. There is no requirement for anyone to have any convictions to be put on the list, and there is no appeal mechanism provided under the APEC security legislation.

The source of the "excluded persons" list, while not named in the Daily Telegraph article, is evidently from inside the NSW Police. This raises the obvious question of the named persons' privacy, possible harm to future job prospects, the harm to personal reputation which comes from being publicly declared a threat to APEC security and the role of the police in demonising left-wing activists.

Prior to the Telegraph article, NSW police had told lawyers and human rights activists that names of "excluded persons" would not be made public.

From GLW issue 723