30 October 2002

The SIEVX Affair continues to make news with editorials in the Canberra Times and Green Left Weekly adding to the call for a full powers judicial inquiry into the sinking.

• 353 deaths overshadowed by child that wasn't thrown ~ Editorial, Green Left
  The SIEV-X sinking is one of Australia's 21st century tragedies. That the Senate committee gave far greater weight to the minute detail of who lied about a child that wasn't thrown overboard, while pussyfooting around a possible coverup of government and navy knowledge of the deaths of 353 people, is a national disgrace.

  We owe it to the many innocent victims that were dragged to their deaths beneath the raging seas to continue to press for a judicial enquiry into every aspect of this terrible disaster...[Click here for full article]

• Unanswered Questions ~ Editorial, Canberra Times
  [I]t is extraordinary that a major human disaster could occur near a theatre of intensive Australian operations and remain undetected for three days after the event without any concern being raised within intelligence and decision-making circles. Not even the oversight bodies appear to have taken action to check whether the affair showed any systematic problems in the intelligence and operational relationship. It is not good enough, and there is still a case for an independent investigation to pick up continuing loose threads and to determine what we have learnt from the tragedy... [Click here for full article]