The Advertiser editorial: Rau is taking SA down an insidious road

A CHEMOTHERAPY bungle in which 10 people were accidentally underdosed has rocked South Australia.

• FULL REPORT: Chairman Rau’s disturbing leap forward

A CHEMOTHERAPY bungle in which 10 people were accidentally underdosed has rocked South Australia.

In the latest revelation last Friday, victim Andrew Knox accused authorities of covering up the death of a victim of the scandal, a suggestion rejected by Health Minister Jack Snelling.

The Families SA child protection catastrophe last month forced Premier Jay Weatherill to abandon one of his signature reforms and split the embattled agency from the Education Department.

Many of the key stories about these ongoing scandals have been broken, in the public interest, by The Advertiser. But our State Government seems determined to make it as difficult as possible for invaluable journalism like this to see the light of day.

State Labor talks about wanting open and transparent government. Debate and decide, rather than announce and defend, was Mr Weatherill’s mantra from the moment he unsuccessfully challenged for Labor’s deputy leadership just after the 2010 election.

But, in every sinew, their legislative actions are the opposite of these words.

The reason is clear. The Government does not want to be embarrassed. It does not want negative news to get out, to show it in a bad – or even slightly poor – light. It does not want people to blow the whistle.

Like most administrations, the Government has a team of well-paid people to spin its message. Their focus is on good news announcements that portray ministers favourably and weave a “positive” narrative about Mr Weatherill’s regime.

But what’s becoming more concerning is the attempt by the Government, spearheaded by Attorney-General John Rau while the Premier and others happily hide behind him, to pursue policies that effectively keep South Australians in the dark as much as possible.

Mr Rau has declared there is no need for shield laws that protect the identities of people who give sensitive information to journalists.

The Government last month refused to back a Liberal Bill, which would have brought SA into line with most other states.

Mr Rau appears determined to maintain the deep secrecy for which the state has become notorious by rejecting a bid to hold some public hearings of the Independent Commission Against Corruption.

In a black irony, this bid came from ICAC commissioner and respected jurist Bruce Lander, who wants his office to be “transparent as much as it can be”.

But Mr Rau, in yesterday’s Advertiser, said: “The Government has consistently not supported public hearings of ICAC and has not supported shield laws”.

Mr Rau’s legislative protection of secrecy is one of the most sinister recent developments in our state.

It sends a chilling message to whistleblowers – if you speak out against the Government, you won’t get any protection.

This is not about journalists, or even the media. This is about the flow of important information into the public domain. It is about opposing censorship.

If these dangerous developments are allowed to continue unchecked, it would mean scandalous incompetence, such as failing to protect children and chemotherapy underdosing, will remain hidden. No wonder any government would wish to avoid scrutiny of these issues.

The State Government, led by Mr Rau, is taking SA down an insidious road. The Advertiser will oppose this path and all sectors of society should rail against it.