Subjects: death of an Australian soldier; Governor General; defence photographs.
E&OE...........
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister some tragic news from Afghanistan.
PRIME MINISTER:
Yes, it is a very sad day. An Australian soldier has died and at this stage his family don';t want personal details released and we must respect that. But I want to express to them my very deep sympathy and I know that of all of the Australian people. This young man has died in the service of his country and in the fight against terrorism which is so critical to all of us and to our futures. It indicates how dangerous is the mission on which our servicemen are embarked and it is a sad and awful reminder of the great risks that the men and women of the ADF undertake. I can only say that I';m saddened very much by what has happened and I know that the defence community as always is rallying around this soldier';s family and I hope that gives some comfort to them at such a tragic time.
JOURNALIST:
Do you think the Australian people are prepared to lose lives in this battle?
PRIME MINISTER:
The loss of any young life in the defence of this country is tragic. Nobody wants it to happen. But there is a resolve to continue with the fight against terrorism. I have great admiration for these young men of the SAS. I saw them off some months ago and I really am very saddened and upset about the news I';ve heard.
JOURNALIST:
But do you think there might be some pressure from within the public now that we';ve actually lost a soldier to call the troops back or to cut back that commitment?
PRIME MINISTER:
I think public support for our commitment will remain very strong. But side by side with that there will be great sadness that a young men has died in the defence of his country. I want to thank his colleagues for the assistance they gave him after the incident that took his life, and also the Americans for all the medical assistance and evacuation arrangements that they provided. They were magnificent and I want to record the thanks of the Australian government to the American military for that.
JOURNALIST:
Does it effect in any way our commitment to the battle against terror?
PRIME MINISTER:
No it doesn';t. We must always be prepared difficult though it is when it happens for casualties. It just underlines the special place our defence personnel occupy in the life of the nation. They do something that nobody else does – they put their lives on the line for us and that';s why they deserve an honoured place in our community.
JOURNALIST:
Moving onto another issue there';s been new information that';s come out about the Governor General. Do you think there should be an inquiry?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well there have been fresh allegations made. I don';t know whether it should be dignified with the expression ‘information'; at this time. I understand that the Governor General did not see the program but he is now examining material and that he will have something to say in reply to it. Until then I don';t intend to say anything else. I am not in any way personally familiar with these matters, let him reply.
JOURNALIST:
Does he have your support?
PRIME MINISTER:
Does he have my support? Yes he does.
JOURNALIST:
There is some talk that perhaps he shouldn';t be in the position now that his name has been tarnished this way.
PRIME MINISTER:
He has my support.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister in regards to the photographs that were shown. Some people are asking questions that why didn';t your Government show the photographs of the boat sinking…..
PRIME MINISTER:
Simon Crean has made that allegation. I';ve been told a moments ago that the Acting Chief of the Defence Force has informed the Minister that the two photographs that were released by Mr Reith on the 10th of October last year were in fact the only photographs sent to Mr Reith';s office on that day and therefore the claim made by Mr Crean that Mr Reith had deliberately chosen some photographs from a group on the 10th of October is quite wrong.
JOURNALIST:
So photographs showing the boats were not withheld by your Government?
PRIME MINISTER:
They weren';t made available to Reith';s office and in fact those photographs that appeared today on the Channel 9 program that is the first I have seen of them. It';s the first I knew of their existence. But the important thing is they weren';t sent to Mr Reith. I mean the allegation made by Simon Crean is that in order to doctor the case as he puts it Mr Reith selected out from a group those two, ignored the one showing the boat and published the two with the children in the water and the naval personnel. Now what I';ve been told today in writing by the Acting Chief of the Defence Force is that on the 10th of October last year only two photographs were sent and they were the two photographs that were released by Mr Reith. I';m also told that on checking with the Commander of the Adelaide there was no digital enhancement or cropping or alteration of those two photographs. So I think Mr Crean should now go back to his source and check when, you know, is his source alleging that all of those photographs were sent to Mr Reith on the 10th of October because those photographs were released by Mr Reith almost immediately after he received and my advice is that on the 10th of October the two released were the only two that were sent.
JOURNALIST:
So you haven';t misled or the party hasn';t misled the Australian public in any way?
PRIME MINISTER:
I have acted at all times on advice and I have not misled the Australian public, I have not done anything to distort the situation. But this latest effort by Simon Crean is wrong. Mr Reith so I';m told, not by Mr Reith but by the acting head of the Defence Force was only sent two photographs so therefore the central claim made by Crean this morning falls to the ground.
JOURNALIST:
Prime Minister when you say you acted on advice, you can trust that advice, 100% trust that advice?
PRIME MINISTER:
Well I don';t believe anybody set out to mislead me if you';re asking me that and that';s what';s called trust. It doesn';t mean to say that people don';t from time to time, everybody may get some advice wrong. But I don';t think anybody set out to mislead me.