Human rights commissioner Gillian Triggs has again been attacked by federal government ministers after she criticised the government’s boat turn-back policy.
In a report by ABC political reporter Peta Donald, we learn that the opposition has accused immigration minister Peter Dutton of bullying Professor Triggs ‘after a new round of hostilities broke out between the professor and the government’.
‘Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus said Professor Triggs was doing her job despite being bullied and vilified by the government, after Mr Dutton launched a scathing attack on the human rights chief following two speeches she gave late last week.
‘”It’s no way for any government to behave and they need to just get an understanding of what’s called for,” Mr Dreyfus told the ABC’s AM program.
‘”Next we’ll see them attacking judges,” he added.
‘The renewed tensions between Professor Triggs and the government began on Thursday, when she criticised the policy of turning asylum-seeker boats back to Indonesia at a forum in Adelaide.
‘”Have we thought about what the consequences are of pushing people back to our neighbours, Indonesia? Is it any wonder that Indonesia will not engage with us on other issues that we care about, like the death penalty?” Professor Triggs said.
Read more http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-06-08/labor-accuses-government-of-bullying-over-triggs/6528618
