Labor’s decision to deny the Coalition an intelligence brief on Russia’s activities in Indonesia is one that goes against the written caretaker conventions during election campaigns.
Moreover, I strongly suspect that the Albanese government is trying to hide what will be significant intelligence reporting on Russia and Indonesia, and Moscow’s attempts to establish an air base on Biak island near Papua.
First to the caretaker conventions. They require the public service to be even-handed towards government and opposition during elections. That can mean on major issues, the opposition needs to be briefed as it might be the government that has to manage the issue after an election.
The latest version of the caretaker convention is on the website of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. It is clear there that there is no defensible basis to deny the Coalition a brief on Russia’s interest in a military presence on Biak.
The conventions say that, in an election campaign, governments should avoid actions which might bind an incoming alternate government. This covers “making major policy decisions”, making significant appointments”, and entering into major contracts of undertakings.”
Most importantly, “these conventions also apply in the context of negotiations and engagements with international governments and dignitaries.” Last Tuesday Defence Minister Richard Marles spoke with his Indonesian counterpart, Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin. Marles said: “He has said to me in the clearest possible terms, reports of the prospect of Russian aircraft operating from Indonesia are simply not true.”
This is obviously an engagement with an international government and dignitary. Did Marles follow the caretaker convention to “advise the other parties to the negotiations that any outcomes will need to be authorised by the incoming government”? I bet he didn’t.
Did Marles “seek the opposition’s agreement to negotiating positions”? Clearly not. It has been a couple of years since I have seen any intelligence material, but I have a high confidence that there will be extensive reporting on Indonesia’s engagement with Russia and President Prabowo Subianto’s plan to deepen the relationship with his “great friend” Vladimir Putin.
There would be few higher priority topics for intelligence reporting. One indication that there will be a pile of classified material is that there is a good deal on Russia-Indonesian relations in open-source reporting already. There is a lot going on in Moscow-Jakarta ties and that means increased Australian intelligence reporting.
If there was genuinely no intelligence reporting on the Biak base then it would have been a cost-free move on the governments part to have the head of the Office of National Intelligence say that to Peter Dutton.
The government is holding this intelligence information back because where there’s smoke there’s fire. Labor will have been receiving intelligence reporting and failing to act on it.
So much for Anthony Albanese’s assessment that “we have a good relationship with our friends in Indonesia”.
He’s denying the obvious that Prabowo and Putin have a different agenda at play.
A more focused government would have been all over this issue for months.
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