It is unusual for us to place a story
in our Top Spot that has no connection with our country or the
Caribbean.

However, it is unusual for a legitimate
democratic nation like Australia to act as they have done today when
police raided the offices of one of the leading public broadcasters
ABC. There were two reporters and the news director named in the
warrants.

It has resulted in an outcry from
broadcasters and rights group all over the world.

ABC Managing Director David Anderson
said the police raid "raises legitimate concerns over freedom of
the press".

When these actions concern the ABC's
investigative report they published about the 2017 investigative
series known as The Afghan Files which "revealed allegations of
unlawful killings and misconduct by Australian special forces in
Afghanistan", it smacks much of what the Caribbean Conference on
anti-corruption is championing.

The reasons behind the raid by the
Australian Police is in relation to "allegations of publishing
classified material" and that it "relates to a referral
received on 11 July 2017 from the Chief of the Defence Force and the
then-Acting Secretary for Defence".

The warrant gives the police
extraordinary powers to “add, copy, delete or alter” material in
the ABC’s computers. In other words they can delete anything they
like with impunity.

It was only last month, May 3rd,
we celebrated World Press Freedom Day when a new report by an
international media watchdog group said press freedoms deteriorated
in 2019, fueled in part by increasing aggression toward journalists.

Whilst some of the attacks on the US
Press, in particular by PresidentTrump via Twitter being his only way
to fight back at the clearly biased reporting against him, can be
justified, the warrants giving police wide powers to raid offices of
the press and arrest journalist going about their job, cannot.

Just recently, according to Reporters
Without Borders’ (RWR)measurement, just 9 percent of the world’s
population now lives in countries where journalists can operate
freely and independently. Australia was identified as one of those
countries.

RWR are saying, there are now “violent
actions against journalists, even in places where press freedom has
historically been strong.”

“Over the past few years, internet
shutdowns have become commonplace, and authoritarian regimes
increasingly use sophisticated surveillance technologies (often
supplied by companies based in democratic countries) to track down
their critics. Ever stricter controls on internet usage have also
affected citizens’ ability to consume and share information.”

Unless the public join in would wide
with the journalists and strongly denounce this wave against press
freedom it will become a tsunami. And we don't want one of those to
hit here!