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Down Under
Police deny releasing Habibs address
2005-02-08
"Nope. We've still got it. Block 14, cell 2. It ain't gettin' out..."
FORMER Guantanamo Bay detainee Mamdouh Habib will seek compensation from the New South Wales Government if he is forced to move after his home address was publicised, his lawyer said today. NSW Police Commissioner Ken Moroney denied police had released Mr Habib's address to the media after a weekend break-in at his Guildford home in western Sydney. But Mr Habib's lawyer Stephen Hopper said police had confirmed to a journalist the location of the break-in was Mr Habib's address. He said the family would first take the matter to the NSW Ombudsman. "We're going to make a formal complaint and we'll see what happens with that complaint," Mr Hopper said today.
"We shall complain to the management!"
Compensation would be sought if privacy concerns forced the Habib family to move to another location, he said. "They don't have to move," he said. "That's a decision to be taken by the family and they're considering their options."

NSW Premier Bob Carr rejected Mr Hopper's request for compensation over the disclosure of Mr Habib's address. "If there is any complaint about the police there's a forum where lawyers can take that complaint and that is the Police Integrity Commission," Mr Carr said. Asked about Mr Carr's suggestion of the PIC, Mr Hopper said: "Bob Carr's not the family's lawyer."

The Premier said he would seek advice from the police about the matter but the Government would not compensate Mr Habib. "Mr Habib's lawyers would have to fight a long battle in the court to make a case for compensation and I don't think they'll be successful," said Mr Carr. "If you opt to operate on the frontier of legal behaviour and have associations with extremist groups, your life may not be the same — and you're not going to come to us and seek compensation and have us give in."

Mr Habib, who reportedly made a deal to tell his story to Channel Nine's 60 Minutes program, was held by the US as a suspected terrorist at its military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. He was released without charge and returned to Australia last month, almost three years after his arrest. Prime Minister John Howard has not ruled out charges being laid against Mr Habib under Australian law. Mr Habib also has threatened to sue the federal Government for turning its back on him while he was held by the US. The police investigation into the break-in at Mr Habib's home is continuing.
Posted by:God Save The World

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