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Kim Dotcom
When 1000 students started chanting f*ck John Key we can only assume they meant f*ck John Key's office ;-)
9:16 PM - 22 Aug 2014
New
email trail between
Judith Collins and Whale Oil
The
relationship between Justice Minister Judith Collins and Whale Oil
blogger Cameron Slater has been headline news, with confirmation Ms
Collins had emailed her friend not only the name and job title of a
public servant they suspected of leaking, but his phone number as
well.
23
August, 2014
Ms
Collins and Justice Binnie fell out very publicly over that report
and Mr Bain has sought a judicial review of Ms Collins' handling of
the case.
Lisa
Owen details how the documents show Slater's OIA requests were
handled with unusual haste. Patrick Gower gets reaction from Labour
MP Grant Robertson and Green Party co-leader Russel Norman and
discusses their fiscal costings.
To
watch video GO
HERE
From the NZ Herald
Whale
Oil blogger Cameron Slater got a response to an Official Information
Act request from Justice Minister Judith Collins in just 37 minutes.
He
received another OIA response with just a five-hour turnaround by Ms
Collins' office - including being given correspondence which had come
in just that day.
Documents
released to the Herald through the act show Slater made three
requests in relation to Canadian jurist Ian Binnie's report, which
recommended David Bain be paid compensation after being found not
guilty of killing his family in Dunedin.
According
to the documents, Slater made two requests as editor of the
now-defunct Truth in December 2012 and a third in February 2013.
The
first came on the same day as a Herald on Sunday verbal request for
copies of information provided to campaigner Joe Karam, including a
copy of a letter sent to Mr Karam which Mr Bain's first lawyer,
Michael Guest, had written to Mrs Collins.
The
same information was provided to Slater, who asked at 1.27pm for
almost identical information with a slightly different phrasing.
Collins
press secretary Rachael Bowie sent him the information at 6.11pm,
adding: "Also attached is an email from Michael Guest received
by this office today." The email held a detailed account
attacking Mr Bain's position, which was featured in the next edition
of Truth.
On
February 12, a Monday, Slater made another OIA request. It was for
the same material the National Business Review had been provided the
Friday before. Slater's OIA request was sent at 9.53am to Ms Bowie
who responded 37 minutes later.
Slater's
third request was filed in December and responded to in March with a
cluster of others which sought broad amounts of information.
Ms
Collins' office has told the Weekend Herald it has always complied
with the legal guidelines laid out in the act, which require a
response inside a maximum 20 working days.
Labour's
justice spokesman, Andrew Little, said he had never had an OIA
response back from Ms Collins' office in under 20 working days.
Labour
Party MP Grant Robertson told TV3's The Nation it was "pretty
much unheard" to receive an OIA response so quickly.
"It's
a good time for a pizza delivery - 37 minutes - but you'd never
expect that from an OIA."
Ms
Collins' swift response to the request looked like "favourable
treatment", Mr Robertson said.
"It
fits into a pattern of behaviour that we've seen from Judith Collins
with relation to Cameron Slater. Friday night having a request
processed, it just doesn't happen."
It
looked like Slater knew what to ask for, he said.
Green
Party co-leader Russel Norman told The Nation the government had
established a system where there was a "friendly face" to
the public, but "behind the scenes they're working directly with
Slater".
"And
so he's the dark operations and does all the really nasty attack
stuff, but he's doing it hand in glove with John Key, Judith Collins
and all the rest of them.
"It's
the system that they established that keeps them looking nice and
clean and friendly while at the same running these attack campaigns
against anyone who gets in their way."
Slater
faces probe over court
breach allegation
Whale
Oil blogger Cameron Slater is being investigated by police for an
alleged suppression breach that could jeopardise a high-profile
extradition case
23
August, 2014
The
case is subject to a sweeping suppression order imposed last year by
a judge to "ensure the integrity of trial".
Justice
Minister Judith Collins has the final say on whether extradition
should be granted.
When
Slater's online posting, which appears to breach the court order, was
raised with Ms Collins' office, she refused to comment.
"The
granting and monitoring of suppression orders is a matter for the
courts. It would be inappropriate for the minister to comment,"
a spokeswoman for her office said.
When
the issue was raised with Courts Minister Chester Borrows, he took a
similar view.
"I
understand that you received a response on this matter from the
office of Judith Collins. Minister Borrows supports those remarks and
has nothing further to add," a spokesman said.
The
alleged breach was brought to the attention of the crown prosecutor
acting as counsel for the country seeking extradition. He forwarded
the issue straight to police.
Yesterday
Detective Inspector Tom Fitzgerald, Canterbury district
investigations manager, confirmed that Whale Oil's apparent breach
was being investigated.
"It's
gone to one of my DIs [detective inspectors] who will be looking at
it," he said.
The
Weekend Herald has elected not to publish details of the case that
Whale Oil referred to in the blog.
The
blog ran a photo of the alleged offender despite the suppression
order that granted image protection to the offender, who is awaiting
news on whether he or she will be extradited to face charges in
another country.
The
blog also included other information which the media had been banned
from publishing.
A
later blog on Whale Oil also appears contrary to the court order.
Slater
last night said he was unaware of the suppression order.
"[We]
have not been approached by police about this, but were approached by
police in Auckland about another one, which we immediately took down.
I will be taking these ones down now that I am aware.
"This
continues to highlight the problems with suppression orders, and the
rather odious way with which criminals use them to hide from their
disgusting crimes."
If
prosecuted, Slater could face a fine of $25,000 or six months in
prison.
The
Privacy Commission has recently claimed Slater breached the privacy
of businessman Matt Blomfield after publishing dozens of posts on
Whale Oil based on a computer hard drive he obtained.
It
passed the case to the office of the Director of Human Rights
Proceedings, which is now prosecuting him over five days in October.
Mr
Blomfield is also suing Slater for defamation with a full hearing
expected next year.
A
High Court decision is pending in the case on whether Slater is a
journalist - a status he is seeking in the belief it will allow him
to withhold information about his sources.
Slater
won best blog this year at the country's premier journalism awards,
the Canon Media Awards.
From the Standard
English to lead the National Party?
Written
By: NATWATCH - 8:54
am, August 22nd, 2014 - 67 comments
Bill
English was the first senior Nat to distance
himself from
Key’s dirty politics. Now, according to one of
our commenters (Tracey) who
was called, the Nats’ polling company is sounding out English as a
possible party leader.
With
Key caught
in a major lie over
the SIS document release, it looks like the Nats might need their
“Plan B”.
Minister's
staffer took part in blog
The
press secretary of Cabinet minister Gerry Brownlee has admitted
posting anonymously to the Whale Oil blog as the impact of Dirty
Politics continues to hit the election campaign.
23
August, 2014
Nick
Bryant was named in Dirty Politics as the person who had used the
pseudonym "Former Hack" to post anonymous comments
encouraging blogger Cameron Slater's campaign against a public
servant which resulted in death threats.
The
Herald was able to confirm the use of Mr Bryant's ministerial
computer through details obtained from an individual other than the
hacker who also accessed information from Whale Oil during the Denial
of Service attack.
Under
"Former Hack", Mr Bryant told Slater "well done"
on a post which attacked Simon Pleasants. He told others he agreed
calls should be placed to ask why Mr Pleasants was still employed and
told Slater "you might have one for the harpoon gallery there"
- the so-called Whale Oil roll call of sacked officials.
Mr
Pleasants is the same public servant whose personal details were sent
from Justice Minister Judith Collins to Slater, which were then
published on the blog. The information shows the people who comment
on Whale Oil have effectively lost their anonymity.
In
the file held by the Herald, hundreds of messages sent from people
working on ministerial or government computers are linked to the
servers and IP addresses from which they were posted. The file links
those details with email addresses - including Mr Bryant's.
Asked
if he had posted to Whale Oil, Mr Bryant initially said: "I
don't know."
When
asked if he used the name "Former Hack" to do so, he said:
"Nicky Hager said I was the person who posted as that."
Told
of the new information, Mr Bryant said: "What I will say is I
stopped commenting around that time. They were about the only
comments I made on that blog."
At
the time of the comments, Mr Bryant worked for former minister Phil
Heatley.
Mr
Hager's book links Mr Bryant to another anonymous name - but the
Herald has found the email account linked to messages from the person
is actually registered in the name of yet another ministerial staff
member.
A
spokesman for Internal Affairs refused to comment on individual staff
members. He said "appropriate action" would be taken
against a staff member who acted inappropriately.
Slater
did not return calls. He did send an email saying: "Time for all
your emails to come out Fish."
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