Oz P.M. urged to act on intelligence failures

"A senior Army intelligence analyst has written to the Prime Minister calling for a royal commission into Australia's intelligence services, claiming there has been systemic failures and a culture of cover up."

A culture of cover up?? Did they know about Bali, prior to the bombing...
www.abc.net.au...
S.

Here's a better link...
www.news.com.au...

[Edited on 13-4-2004 by sanctum]

Further...
short transcript,
www.abc.net.au...

S.
This link is playing up.
Here's a cut/paste (yeah, i know) but
here it is. Try the link 1st,


Australian Broadcasting Corporation

TV PROGRAM TRANSCRIPT

LOCATION: www.abc.net.au...

Broadcast: 13/04/2004

Pressure mounts over intelligence 'manipulation'

Reporter:



TONY JONES: The Federal Government is tonight facing new accusations that the nation's intelligence is being manipulated for political purposes.

As we've said, a secret report leaked to the Bulletin has found the Defence Intelligence Organisation (DIO) distorts intelligence to suit Government policy, effectively telling the Government what it wants to hear.

From Canberra, Dana Robertson reports.

DANA ROBERTSON: The political debate is still raging over the future of Australia's forces in Iraq and whether they were sent there based on flawed intelligence.

But now the doubts about the accuracy of Australia's intelligence have gone beyond the Iraq conflict.

The Army's top intelligence analyst has written to the Prime Minister, urging him to: "appoint an impartial, open and wide-ranging royal commission into intelligence".

Lieutenant Colonel Lance Collins was appointed by General Peter Cosgrove as his senior intelligence officer in East Timor.

In his letter to John Howard he details a long list of intelligence failures in the recent past.

Including on: "Iraq's WMD, the Willie Brigitte case, the Bali bombing, the independence of East Timor, the fall of the Suharto regime, and the Sandline affair in PNG".

He says: "it is clear that the Australian intelligence community is unable to identify reality in a timely manner, or convey its significance to the Government. No end to this state of affairs appears in sight."

JOHN HOWARD, PRIME MINISTER: I don't believe a royal commission is necessary but, as I say, I'll give the Colonel a detailed, courteous and comprehensive reply.

He's served his country well and I respect that and I'll treat the letter with the respect it deserves given who wrote to me.

DANA ROBERTSON: The letter is the latest development in a four-year long campaign by Lance Collins to clear his name after being accused of leaking confidential material.

A final report into those accusations is equally damning of the independence of intelligence being delivered to the Government.

It found that there's a pro-Jakarta lobby within the Defence Intelligence Organisation which: "distorts intelligence estimates to the extent those estimates are heavily-driven by government policy. In other words, DIO reports what the Government wants to hear".

It also recommended a Parliamentary inquiry: "primarily into the fact that the product is driven by the policy of the government of the day".

JOHN HOWARD: I continue to have full confidence in our intelligence agencies.

They do a very good job for Australia.

DANA ROBERTSON: Asked about the reliability of Australia's intelligence earlier today, the Opposition Leader advocated learning from past mistakes.

MARK LATHAM, OPPOSITION LEADER: The fact that weapons of mass destruction have not been found obviously points to some problems in pre-war intelligence and Government decision-making.

So they're obvious problems we need to learn from them.

DANA ROBERTSON: The Government has already stared-down the adverse findings of a Parliamentary committee into pre-Iraq war intelligence.

But the latest revelations will undoubtedly reignite the debate about political manipulation in the nation's spy agencies.

And that is the last thing the Government wants as it talks up its national security credentials in an election year.

Dana Robertson, Lateline.


[Edited on 13-4-2004 by sanctum]

Quote: L.C. Lance Collins: (above)
Including on: "Iraq's WMD, the Willie Brigitte case, the Bali bombing, the independence of East Timor, the fall of the Suharto regime, and the Sandline affair in PNG"

Sandline?! Merc's, private army whatever...
www.sandline.com...

I'll give you odds-on, Sandline or whatever they call
themselves are in Iraq. Dont ask me what they're doing
'cause i have no idea

S.

[Edited on 13-4-2004 by sanctum]