PARIAH - Court looms : Melbourne Indymedia

Court looms
(NT 'Parliament invasion' case)

http://www.country-liberal-party.com/NAP/pages/Articles_11.htm#article2

(20 Nov, 2003)

Usual Police harassment

NT Police woke me this morning with a summonses to attend Scott's trial as a witness. This followed my lodging an amended appeal yesterday.

Such tit for tat harassment by Police is a common ploy in the Northern territory.

We were not called as witnesses at Scott's last appearance although summonsed to appear.

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Amended appeal

I've not bothered with this case until recently, as other concerns and committments have been absorbing my attention. I assure you, having to become a Constitutional lawyer in four days, really is the least of my problems :-)

Besides which, prison (facing four months) is an ongoing threat to any effective activist in a corrupt Police State. We've been facing prison sentences since PARIAH began in 1998.

So I only lodged this ammended appeal yesterday (19 November, 2003). The hearing begins on the 24th November.

Essentially the Legislative Assembly and the Magistrates Court are in constitutional conflict - - and the latter have no right to treat Constitutional matters in a manner akin to a traffic fine. The other points are fairly self-evident.

http://www.country-liberal-party.com/pages/Amended-appeal.htm

The absurdity of the 'traffic fine' scenario was apparent to me in the Magistrates Court, but frankly given the Police harassment, hostile media and the comments by the Attorney General, Peter Toyne, it seemed best to go through with the charade and appeal when the political environment was a little less biased against us.

A jury trial would have been a suicide-circus in that period, when we were still receiving fresh Police charges (up to 30 at a time) and dealing with myriad other charges. I still have 'assault' and 'hinder police' to face in January.

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NT Chief Minister Clare Martin has not helped this appeal by congratulating the Court on their bid to incarcerate political activists.

Clare - "While I am on my feet, I say very categorically that I welcome the very decisive sentencing that happened to those members of NAP who invaded this parliament the May before last."

"It is a very serious offence to invade parliament, and I welcome the very strong decision from the Magistrates Court." - (Hansard Question Transcript - 18/06/2003)

http://notes.nt.gov.au/lant/hansard/hansard9.nsf/0/233666E4E16147CB69256D9D0022E458?opendocument

Where was Clare's outrage when Police "unlawfully" (NT Ombudsman's decision) assaulted and strip searched activists at the first Smoke-in?

http://www.country-liberal-party.com/NAP/pages/Articles_1.htm

Racist and corrupt

During the court case, I described the Northern Territory as a "racist and corrupt cesspool".

The lies (perjury?) from Attorney General Peter Toyne, the 'three monkeys' performance by former (sacked) Police Minister Syd Sterling and Clare Martin's double act with the Prosecutor later, made me feel guilty of understatement.

As for Marion Scrymgour, Chairperson of the NT Labor government's substance abuse committee, I'm still coming to terms with that disappointing betrayal of trust.

http://www.country-liberal-party.com/pages/Do-as-I-say.htm

The Chief Minister and John Ah Kit have both made public statements that lend credibility to my assessment of the Northern Territory.

From Clare we learn that the Public service is corrupt.

http://country-liberal-party.com/pages/NT-Labor-prison-policy-a.htm

From Community Development Minister John Ah Kit we discover "...it (is) time for indigenous communities to stop turning a blind eye to the rot that lies within many of their organisations.

"Good governance is something in very short supply," Mr Ah Kit said.

"We all know of instances of indigenous organisations being run as personal or family empires at the expense of the wider community.

"We all know the stories of fraud and corruption -- of stores being ripped off by managers who all too often have bribed key Aboriginal locals to consolidate their thievery and skulduggery.

"There is no point in pretending that this has not been widespread for many, many years."

Also attending was ATSIC NT Commissioner Kim Hill who was scathing in his criticisms of the current governance arrangements for indigenous Australians.

He said the failure of indigenous people to obtain good governance was because they were the victims of a system with "too much bureaucracy". (NT News, 09 nov '03)

And a corrupt bureaucracy as Clare points out.

John Ah Kit's ability to remain morally unscathed as he transcended the generic corruption he describes, is made heroic, by it's sheer implausibility.

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It seems the only people who face criminal charges in this racist and corrupt Police state are the people protesting against racism and corruption.

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Much gratitude to Daniel Taylor, a student at law, who has assisted us, whilst doing shift work and helping with the Letty Scott case -- amongst others.

http://darwinevo.tripod.com/pages/Issue_Two/pages/Evo2-page_1.htm

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Amendment of Appeal (19 November, 2003)

IN THE MATTER OF a conviction (or order or adjudication) made on the 5th day of June, 2003 by the Court of Summary Jurisdiction of Darwin in the Northern Territory of Australia on the hearing of a certain information (or complaint) wherein PAUL FRANCIS TUDOR-STACK of Darwin, was the informant (complainant) and MICHAEL PAUL LAMBE the Defendant.

TO: Mr Wallace SM a Stipendiary Magistrate for the Northern Territory of Australia and to the Clerk of the aforementioned complainant.

TAKE NOTICE that MICHAEL PAUL LAMBE of ----------------- intends to institute and duly prosecute an appeal AND HEARBY APPEALS to the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory of Australia against a certain conviction (sentence, or order of adjudication) made on the aforementioned date by the said Stipendiary Magistrate, sitting as a Court of Summary Jurisdiction at Darwin in the Northern Territory.

Whereby you convicted and sentenced the defendant on one count of 'intentionally disturbing the Legislative Assembly' while it was in session on Tuesday, 14 May, 2002, contrary to section 61(a) of the Northern Territory Criminal Code to 16 months imprisonment, suspended to four months.

AND TAKE NOTICE that the appellant intends to institute and duly prosecute the appeal at the sittings of that Supreme Court which will be in accordance with the rules of that Supreme Court if practicable commence at Darwin on a day which is the first day after the expiration of 21 days from the service of this notice on which sittings of that Supreme Court for hearing appeals under the Justices Act have been set down to commence.

AND TAKE NOTICE that the grounds for the appeal are

1. The Magistrates Court had no jurisdiction to try this case.

a) there has been no definitive declaration by the Legislative Assembly in accordance with s.5 of the Legislative Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act 1992.

b) It is the exclusive jurisdiction of the Assembly to state if an offence has occurred and especially to prosecute in the Legislative Assembly sitting in its judicial role under ss. 5,25, and 26 of the Legislative Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act 1992.

c.) The constitutional requirement of the separation of powers applies to the exercise of the powers of the house of representatives and exercise of similar powers vested in the legislative assembly by s.12 of the northern territory (self-government) act, as enacted under the legislative assembly (powers and privileges) act. There is a constitutional requirement that the judiciary does not have power to declare whether legislative assembly has been improperly interfered with or to punish persons for their exercising of their right to freedom of expression within the legislative assembly.

Only one of the branches of Government has jurisdiction over the Act in question, and in this case clearly it is the exclusive jurisdiction of the Legislative Assembly, and in fact, there can be no offence without a vote under s.5 of the Legislative Assembly (Powers and Privileges) Act 1992.

2. The Defendants who were unrepresented were not adequately advised of their rights.

a) The hostile media campaign (epitomized by Attorney General Peter Toyne's public remarks on the court case) made an unbiased jury trial seem unlikely to Defendants.

b) The Defendants were emotionally and physically exhausted by the government and Police campaign mounted against them. We were dealing with a statistically improbable number of other cases and legal matters at the time.

3. The politicization of the trial was evident. Particularly during the sentencing/press conference finale. Political bias.

a) The Magistrate and Public Prosecutor seemed bound by a need to exonerate Superintendent Bert Hofer, who I witnessed assault a defenseless female in parliament.

http://www.country-liberal-party.com/NAP/pages/Superintendent-Hofer-NT-Police.htm

b) I absolutely refute all of Magistrate Wallace's comments to the assembled press (during sentencing) about this assault.

c) I will rely on the (Police doctored) video tape and the transcript to demonstrate why.

d) The Court was used at times by the Prosecutor to help Police gain evidence in matters unrelated to the alleged offence for overtly political reasons.

e) Evidence was withheld and tampered with.

f) Cross examination and evidential criteria were grossly prejudicial to the Defendants.

4.) The Defendant does not believe the Constitution has been correctly interpreted in light of Mabo and other changes in Australia's social and legal framework since its inception.

5.) The Defendant believes a Parliament that presides over a racist and corrupt state has less rights under the Constitution than those people that protest said racism and corruption.

6 . The sentencing was manifestly excessive and ignored the circumstances of the Defendants. Namely…

a. The stressful political situation and economic disadvantages of the Defendants.

b. Their political motivation. This is the criminalisation of political protest.

c. The enormous amount of evidence revealing a campaign by NT government and Police to marginalize and destroy NAP (Network Against Prohibition) and PARIAH People Against Racism In Aboriginal Homelands. Conceded by the Magistrate.

7. Evidence of 'selective prosecution' on political grounds -- some examples being the refusal of Police to even investigate complaints made by the Defendants assaulted in Parliament. Despite the best efforts of Magistrate Wallace to whitewash these assaults to the Press they remain a demonstrative reality. The complaint I made against Prosecutor Paul Frances Tudor-Stack has also 'vanished'. Magistrate Wallace defended Mr Tudor-Stack's bigoted remarks, despite having little knowledge of the circumstances.

a) Attempts to bring NT Attorney General Peter Toyne's comments on the trial -- which I believe amount to Contempt of Court -- to the attention of the court have yet to meet with success.

http://www.country-liberal-party.com/NAP/pages/Articles_27.htm

mick lambe - Dated 19th day of November, 2003

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End Klandatory Sentencing

Solidarity and thanks to the crew :-)

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