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Secrecy

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The presumption of secrecy around the government’s activities is eating at the fabric of our democracy.

The scandal behind the many stories we’ve been unable to tell you

Silencing dissent and concealing information is one of the hallmarks of authoritarianism. Yet it is commonplace in Victoria.

  • The Age's View

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Letch

New leader, same old secrecy. Didn’t Albanese promise to shine a light?

Yes, Albanese has no secret ministries. But the facts show that Labor is presiding over flawed decisions to hide too much from citizens.

  • David Crowe
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese promised to address secrecy in government.

It can be a battle to get information from the Albanese government

Like most governments, this one arrived in office promising more accountability and transparency. Also like others, in practice it has a penchant for control and secrecy.

  • Michelle Grattan
Members of the public wear face masks as they go about their daily lives.

Cabinet secrecy denies Sydney’s lockdown suburbs the truth

This is a suppression of human rights, yet other states are not hiding behind the cabinet-in-confidence decisions.

  • Andy Marks
Illustration: Simon Letch

God save our history: it’s time King Charles called off royal censors

The royals refuse access to their archives, often on the slim pretext that the details are ‘personal’. I was repeatedly denied access while researching my Queen Victoria biography.

  • Julia Baird
Bernard Collaery arriving at court in Canberra.

With truth on trial, the Attorney-General’s High Court bid for secrecy is dangerous

The government’s attempts at secrecy are reaching unprecedented and absurd heights in this whistleblower case.

  • Kieran Pender
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Administrative Appeals Tribunal registrar Sian Leathem has claimed the names of members who only finalise a handful of claims each year must be kept secret or risk affecting their mental health.

Senators tell AAT it can’t keep secret the names of its slow workers

The Administrative Appeal Tribunal has refused to answer Senate questions about which of its members have only finalised a handful of cases in a year.

  • Katina Curtis
Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne has hit out at closed trials in China but Australia does not have clean hands.

Australia takes China to task for secret trials, but one could be happening here right now

Secret trials are the hallmark of authoritarian regimes yet Witness J was tried in complete secrecy in Canberra.

  • Kieran Pender
Australian Federal Police raided the home of journalist Annika Smethurst in 2019.

For we are one and ... safe: how Australia surrenders its liberty by tiptoeing around press freedom

Raids on journalists provoked public alarm and a parliamentary inquiry – all to little effect.

  • Jonathan Holmes
Encrypted message systems such as WhatsApp and social media like Facebook are creating problems for document retention agencies including the National Archives.

From pen and paper to Wickr: the battle to save government decisions

Agencies from the National Archives to the Auditor-General are struggling to track government communications in the time of WhatsApp and Wickr.

  • Shane Wright

Original URL: https://www.theage.com.au/topic/secrecy-1lwy