CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Okay, well, thank you very much for coming to this press conference with Nick Xenophon and I, on this quite important day for the victims of murder or manslaughter across Australia. We’re here with the Bradshaw family, Martin and Ros, Craig and Paul; and Craig will say a few words on behalf of the family and Nick will say a few words after me, and then obviously we will take questions.

So to give you some background, for some time, Nick, as a Senator for South Australia, and me as the Member for Sturt, in whom the electorate the Bradshaws’ live, and I’m therefore their local member, have been trying to get a change to the law to allow the Australian authorities to prosecute a particular suspect in the murder of Anthea Bradshaw, who was murdered in 1994 in Brunei. That’s required an important change to the law, it’s a change to the law that we made for the victims of the Bali bombing, backdating the law to 2002, and it effectively allows Australian prosecutors, and criminal agencies like the police forces, to gather the evidence and mount a prosecution against a suspect who then becomes an accused.

In this bill, in order to make it as bulletproof as possible against legal challenge, we have a few protections. One is that if the country in which the crime was committed have already prosecuted a suspect, the same suspect cannot be prosecuted again, so there is no double jeopardy. There is no retrospectivity in this bill, because there’s no jurisdiction in the world where manslaughter or murder have ever been legal. So therefore we’re not making a legal activity illegal by the changes to this bill. And we strongly believe those measures will strongly support the efficacy of the Bill. And finally, if a successful prosecution is mounted, then the penalty for the crime can’t exceed the penalty to that person would have faced in the country the in which crime was committed. So obviously Australia doesn’t have the death penalty, we wouldn’t go to the death penalty, but everything below that would be available for Australia, but if a country had say a 14 year sentence for manslaughter, we couldn’t put someone in prison for more than 14 years if they were found guilty of manslaughter.

So, I would not describe today as a happy day, or a celebratory day. It’s an important day, and it’s a very emotional day for the Bradshaws, because it is going to allow some closure in their case for the traumatic taking of their sister and daughter’s life, but it also applies to all families around Australia who are in the same boat. So, we’re very proud and pleased to be able to bring this bill, it’s just been introduced to the Senate, and I’m very pleased the Bradshaws are here showing the courage they have shown for the last twenty one years - to be here to witness this really important occasion. Nick.

NICK XENOPHON: Thanks very much Christopher. Can I just say that it is a genuine privilege to be standing with Christopher Pyne in relation to this bill. This began a bit over two years ago when the Government was then in opposition – we saw Shadow Attorney General George Brandis to put to him the case for this. And since that time, we’ve painstakingly worked through the issues, and I’ve got to say, that George Brandis has actually been terrific in dealing with this. He - The Department initially said it was all too hard, effectively, in their submission to a Senate inquiry in respect of a bill that I put up in 2013. But Senator Brandis, as the Attorney General, said he needed to look further into this, and the package of measures, the bill that has been introduced today, is one that safeguards issues of human rights, but importantly, gives justice and the opportunity for justice to families who have lost a loved one.

Can I just, unusually for a politician, I just want to pay tribute to the media because this came about as a result of forensic, investigative journalism by Nigel Hunt of the Adelaide Advertiser who did terrific work in relation to this. If it wasn’t for Nigel Hunt, digging deep into this, spending a lot of time with the Bradshaws to get to the bottom of what occurred, to highlight the anomaly in the law, I don’t think we would be here today.

I also want to pay tribute to the Bradshaws, to all of them who I’ve got to know very well. I regard them as incredibly decent and courageous people. This bill is, as much as anything – this Bill is a tribute to the love of Martin and Roslyn and Paul and Craig for Anthea. And her memory has been honoured by their campaign to have this bill introduced in the Senate and hopefully it will be passed soon.

And can I just say, to Christopher Pyne, it has been a genuine privilege to work with you in relation to this bill, and I also want to acknowledge the presence of Michael O’Connor, South Australia’s Victims’ Rights Commissioner, who has simply been tremendous in his support for the Bradshaws.  Perhaps if we can hear from Craig?

CRAIG BRADSHAW: Thank you very much. On a personal note I would just like to thank my wife for everything she’s done for me in the last 15 years. I don’t think I would have been able to fight this battle the way I have without her support. From the family’s point of view, I’d just like to very much thank Mr Pyne, our local Member who has been receiving many texts from me and phone calls and whatever, and the same with Nick, who I’ve been constantly texting and ringing to try and get this bill into the parliament and then passed which we hope will happen very, very soon. Also of course Michael O’Connell has been wonderful as he deals with many people who are in horrible situations like we are, and realistically we think that this bill being passed will give us a very good chance of having justice for Anthea.

MICHAEL O’CONNELL: This bill was an important demonstration of victims having a voice and it’s to the credit of parliamentarians who have been able to come together and give voice to victims, not just the Bradshaw family but any other family, an Australian citizen, who finds themselves in a predicament that they have where justice cannot be attained. It’s important that we have systems that are fair, just, and equitable for victims of crime.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Are there any questions to Nick and I?

JOURNALIST: Minister, can you explain how the prosecution process will work? There’ll have to be an extradition process I imagine?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Yes there would have to be, for a suspect that isn’t living in Australia. That wouldn’t be the case with all these crimes.

JOURNALIST: But in this specific case it would have to be an extradition..?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well I’m not going to comment on the suspect, I don’t want to comment on the suspect…

NICK XENAPHON: No, no we can’t comment on…

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: So if there, in this case, the suspect isn’t living in Australia, I’m not going to comment on that, that’s a matter for the judicial authorities. If the suspect was living overseas we would have to have an extradition treaty with that country to have them returned to Australia for prosecution. If they were still living in Australia obviously we wouldn’t.

JOURNALIST: Minister, how likely is it that we will see an arrest and indeed when would you expect that to that happen?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well the bill has to happen, has to pass, and I think it will pass, I don’t know anybody who is opposed to the bill in the parliament and Nick will be working to make sure that happens through the senate and I will be introducing it in the house of representatives and passing it there. As soon as that’s passed the authorities have made it quite clear that they believe there is a suspect in the case in the Bradshaw case that they would very much like to pursue an investigation and prosecution of and that’s a matter for them to begin that process as soon as the bills passed. And there will be other crimes to by the way that aren’t the Bradshaw case that the police might well now decide to reopen because of the prospect of finding the killer.

JOURNALIST: Can we put a time frame on it, how quickly can you get it through the parliament?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: I think we can get it through in this session.

JOURNALIST: No, Before Christmas?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: yes we’ll get through in this session.

JOURNALIST: Do other countries accept Australia’s right to extradite people here to be investigated here for crimes done in their country?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Yes they do. And if we pass this law, if there had been a crime for example that was outside the time, uh within the time period then another country would be prepared to extradite an Australian back to Australia to face prosecution. But there’s a threshold that has to be proven of whether there’s a reasonable suspicion of the suspect, you can’t just extradite anybody, they have to go through an extradition process.

NICK XENAPHON: And you have the same safe guards under the current legislation passed after the Bali terror attacks in 2002, and that involves having the DPP signing off, the attorney has to sign a certificate, so there are a layer of safe guards in terms of the rights of the accused. But we should not forget that there are also rights that the victims have to see a resolution, to see justice in relation to the death of their loved one.

JOURNALIST: So does this mean that anybody who suffers physical injury as a result of a crime in a country outside of Australia can have justice served in Australia?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: No this is for people who are killed. This is for manslaughter and murder. So it changes I think its 115.1 and 115.2 of the criminal code so it’s only about victims who have been killed.

JOURNALIST: Ok if Brunei won’t prosecute this person in Brunei, why are they likely to extradite this person?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Well again I don’t want to comment on this particular case but I’m not sure you’ll find the suspect is in Brunei.

NICK XENAPHON: It’s a matter for the police; let the police do their work. But at the moment the police have their hands tied behind their backs because they do not have the jurisdiction in order to take this matter any further. But it’s been clear that former director of public prosecutions Stephen Polaris did indicate that in his view that there was sufficient evidence, forensic evidence, for the matter to proceed further. I think it’s all that can safely be said at this stage.

JOURNALIST: Have the police, the federal police, indicated how many other cases would benefit from this particular piece of legislation?

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Not to my knowledge but Nick might know…

NICK XENAPHON: No, but it is a tool that the police will have, and if an Australian has been murdered, has been killed overseas then and prior to 2002, there will now be opportunities should this bill pass and we expect it will, for the families of the victim to be able to seek redress if the country where the killing took place has not acted in relation to that death.

JOURNALIST: Senator Xenophon I’ve got a question on another issue..?

NICK XENAPHON: Can I, I’m happy to do it separately, I think it’s fair to the Bradshaw’s and Minister Pyne, I’m happy to speak to you separately if that’s ok.

JOURNALIST: Just ask what an arrest, what a prosecution would mean for your family in terms of closure?

MR BRADSHAW: Well we don’t really go that far, being such a long time and a lot of disappointment along the way, we’re taking things step by step. So at the moment, we are looking forward to the bill being passed and then we’re looking to, what happens after that really, and let the police do their job.

JOURNALIST: How long have you been campaigning for this change in the law?

MR BRADSHAW: Well we took a long time to get to the stage before we could actually complain and get Nick’s support, and get Christopher on board. So probably 20 years. Something like that. Ever since Anthea was murdered pretty much. Well it was forensic evidence that came out probably 8 or 9 years after the murder. Thank you.

CHRISTOPHER PYNE: Thank you very much.

[ends]

Mr Pyne’s media:   0439 764 809, pynemedia [at] education.gov.au ()