Amal Clooney slams ScoMo: Human rights lawyer warns Australia not to become 'North Korea' as she mauls government over media raids
- Human rights lawyer spoke at Global Conference for Media Freedom in London
- She warned the Australian Federal Police raids could set dangerous precedent
- Ms Clooney also urged the Australian government not to become 'North Korea'
- Police raided ABC's HQ last month with two of its journalists under investigation
- News Corp journalist Annika Smethurst's Canberra home was also searched
Amal Clooney has launched a scathing attack on the Scott Morrison government for its failure to protect press freedom after high-profile raids on a journalists' home and the headquarters of the national broadcaster.
The human rights lawyer on Thursday spoke as a special envoy at the Global Conference for Media Freedom in London, warning the Australian Federal Police raids last month could set a dangerous precedent.
'What happens in a country like Australia or the UK or the US will be looked at by every other leader in the world and potentially be used as an excuse to clamp down even further on journalists,' she said.
'Journalists all around the world are less safe if the rhetoric, or even policies or laws, of states that are supposed to be free are actually a threat to journalists in those countries.'
Amal Clooney has launched a scathing attack on the Australian government for its failure to protect press freedom after high-profile police raids on a journalists' home and the headquarters of the national broadcaster
Ms Clooney spoke as a Foreign Office special envoy at the Global Conference for Media Freedom in London, warning the Australian Federal Police raids could set a dangerous precedent
She also urged the Australian government not to become 'North Korea'.
'All governments say they believe in a free press – the right is even enshrined in North Korea’s constitution… what matters is enforcement of this right,' she said.
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Ms Clooney called for the greater use of sanctions against regimes that silence the press, better consular help when journalists are in trouble abroad and a better system of asylum for persecuted foreign journalists.
Her comments came after an earlier address by Australia's Foreign Minister Marise Payne.
Amal Clooney is pictured on Thursday at the Global Conference on Press Freedom in London
Ms Clooney's comments came after an earlier address by Australia's Foreign Minister Marise Payne
'We recognise that a sensible balance needs to be reached between protecting our national interest in the face of ever-evolving security challenges and upholding the public's right to know,' Senator Payne told the conference session.
She was later forced to defend her attendance, saying she wasn't being hypocritical and that she was in a 'no-win' situation.
'I would imagine that if Australia was not represented at a conference like today, then you would say that the government wasn't doing their job by being here,' she said.
'So I suspect you would advance a position where a government was in a no-win situation.'
Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese was highly critical of Senator Payne's attendance
Opposition Leader Anthony Albanese was highly critical of her attendance at the conference.
'I do find it quite extraordinary that a government that's presided over these attacks on press freedom has a foreign minister overseas speaking at conferences about press freedom,' he said.
'I think that Australia would have more credibility if we get our act together right here, right now.'
Police raided the ABC's Sydney headquarters last month, with two of its journalists under investigation after publishing separate stories based on leaked government information.
News Corp journalist Annika Smethurst's Canberra home was also searched in relation to a separate story.
It was also revealed this week that in relation to the ABC report, the AFP had requested ABC reporter Dan Oakes' private travel records from Qantas.
The high-profile police raids have attracted international attention and triggered a fierce debate on press freedom in Australia and abroad.
No immunity for raided journalists
The Morrison government has refused to guarantee journalists raided by police last month will be immune from prosecution.
Media bosses sought the assurances during a meeting with Attorney-General Christian Porter and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher on Wednesday but were rebuffed.
'We had a constructive discussion ... but we remain frustrated that a month after search warrants were carried out by the Australian Federal Police the fate of our journalists remains unclear,' ABC managing director David Anderson said in a statement.
They also have concerns over the government's plan to use the often-secretive parliamentary intelligence and security committee to examine how police and intelligence powers have impacted the media.
'We'll continue to work with them on that, but it would be fair to say our concerns about that forum have not gone away,' News Corp's director of corporate affairs Campbell Reid told reporters.
The government favours a short, sharp, targeted inquiry by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security.
The Morrison government has refused to guarantee journalists raided by police last month will be immune from prosecution
It would look at when and why journalists and media organisations come under the scrutiny of police and spooks, and critique the thresholds for when police should follow up leaks.
Mr Porter said he had explained to the executives how the inquiry would be a 'suitable vehicle' for media organisations to outline their concerns.
The organisations had also been invited to make direct submissions to the government.
'The government appreciates the willingness of media organisations to engage directly in constructive dialogue and is looking forward to working with them over coming months,' he said.
Mr Anderson said media organisations would engage with any processes that sought to address their concerns, but their preference was for 'immediate action rather than inquiries'.
'We will continue to push for real outcomes that strengthen the Australian public's fundamental right to know,' he said.
'We have committed to making further direct submissions both on the fate of our journalists and on the specific areas where freedom of the press has been eroded and we have agreed to meet with the attorney-general and minister for communications again in three months' time.'
The Canberra home of News Corp journalist Annika Smethurst (pictured) was raided last month over the 2018 publication of a leaked proposal to allow the Australian Signals Directorate to spy on Australians
He said the government should set the tone for a less secret and more open democracy.
The organisations represented at the meeting included the ABC, News Corp, Nine, Free TV, SBS and Seven West Media.
Labor has planned a separate, broader inquiry, via a committee set up for that specific purpose, and is expected to push for it in parliament on Thursday.
Labor's proposed inquiry would look at disclosure and public reporting of sensitive and classified information.
Whistleblower and public servant protections would also come under scrutiny, along with how the government refers leaks to authorities and the independence of police in dealing with politically sensitive matters.
The Canberra home of News Corp journalist Annika Smethurst was raided last month over the 2018 publication of a leaked proposal to allow the Australian Signals Directorate to spy on Australians.
The following day, the ABC's Sydney headquarters were raided over stories published in 2017 alleging Australian soldiers may have carried out unlawful killings in Afghanistan, based on leaked Defence papers.
