Contributed from New South Wales

Australian citizen Daniel Duggan faces court over a United Sates application to have him extradited to that country and face four charges related to an accusation of training Chinese pilots. He faces the prospect of 60 years imprisonment if this goes through.

Huis legal lawyer, Bernard Collaery, who had himself been a victim of persecution and faced imprisonment, for acting on behalf of a military whistleblower, argued before magistrate Daniel Reiss yesterday (March 2024) that his client should be given more time to get financial aid and time to prepare for his case.

Dniel Duggan and his children

Reis showed clear hostility to both the defendant and his lawyer. He not only denied the application but whet out of his way to disparage both. He accused Duggan of being “a bit irresponsible” over how he used his money and claimed that Duggan had had a reasonable opportunity to prepare.

Colleary was told off for “hyperbole,” after saying his client has spent 520 days in solitary confinement in Lithgow prison. After this, the magistrate went on a rant about how the United States will treat a prisoner well because it is an “advanced democracy” rather than a (third world country.”

Therefore “it’s not as dire as might usually be the case,” Reiss added.

Such behaviour by a magistrate deserves rebuke. There hasn’t been any and Daniel Duggan has been treated unjustly.

This case is important because it brings serious implications.

Daniel Duggan in a former citizen of the United States who migrated here years ago and subsequently became an Australian citizen. He built a pilot training business with his wife, and this led to a contract with a South African company to train commercial pilots in South Africa. It just happens that there were some Chines trainees.

This was between 2010-2012, at the time when the rift n=between China and the United States was beginning to widen, but not yet reached the gulf that exists today.

The attempt to get hold of Duggan did not begin till years later. This is an obvious political manoeuvre, designed to help with banging the war drums.

Daniel was lured back to Australia form South Africa under a pretence of a new contract with the involvement of the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) and Federal Police acting on a request from Washington and its Central Intelligence Organisation (CIA). he was arrested on landing back into Australia, denied bail, and locked in solitary confinement without charge.

This has bee nan abuse of legal process, which sets a terrible precedent. Who is safe when they can do this? The extradition request should be dismissed, and Daniel set free, and Australia must put a stop to the deterioration of our legal rights that this case is an example of.

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