His Excellency Paul Keating
Prime Minister of Australia
Parliament House
Canberra, ACT 2600
Australia

Your Excellency,

The International Press Institute (IPI) protests most strongly at the conviction on 8 September 1993 of Ms. Deborah Cornwall, a journalist for the Sydney Morning Herald.

We are informed that Ms. Cornwall was given a suspended sentence of two months imprisonment and ordered to perform 90 hours of community service for refusing to reveal the identity of a source to the New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). We understand that Ms. Cornwall will lodge an appeal against her conviction.

IPI is most concerned about the proliferation of court cases against journalists in Australia. In 1990 Mr. Tony Barrass, a Western Australian journalist, was jailed and fined for refusing to disclose to a court the name of his source. In 1992 Mr. Joe Budd, a Queensland journalist, was jailed. In 1993 Mr. Chris Nicholls was jailed, Mr. David Hellaby fined and Ms. Cornwall found guilty of contempt. Another journalist, Mr. John Synott, also faces contempt proceedings.

This acceleration is viewed by members of the international media community as a serious threat to press freedom in Australia. While Australian law does not specifically protect the confidentiality of journalists’ sources, in the past journalists knew that they would not have to reveal sources except at a trial and then only when this was relevant to the proceedings. However, this did not happen often.

We believe that the deterioration in the situation is in part due to the wide investigative powers with which such statutory bodies as ICAC and the Queensland Criminal Justice Commission have been provided. We understand that these bodies now have ancillary powers to require the production of documents or compel the answering of questions.

IPI believes that one of the fundamental elements of journalism is the right to withhold a source of information. Without the guarantee of confidentiality, sources will no longer feel able to disclose matters of public interest and the press will not be able to effectively carry out its role in exposing all abuses of power.

IPI, representing over 2000 journalists and editors from leading newspapers, magazines and broadcasting organizations and news agencies in 68 countries, strongly urges that Ms. Cornwall’s conviction be rescinded immediately. We also ask you to initiate a thorough review of the law under which she was charged.

I would be most grateful if you were to give this appeal your personal attention.

Yours sincerely,

Johann P. Fritz
Director