The UN is set to sanction Australia for failing to meet its international human rights obligations. On Saturday, in an exclusive interview with The Saturday Paper, vice-chair of the Subcommittee on the Prevention of Torture (SPT), Aisha Shujune Muhammad, said that Australia has failed to implement the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (OPCAT).

The UN maintains a list of State Parties whose compliance with obligations under Article 17 of OPCAT are overdue by at least three years. Currently, 14 countries have been sanctioned for non-compliance. Australia would be the first OECD nation to be included in the Article 17 list.

“It is unfortunate, to put it very lightly, that Australia was unable to do it within five years. Once the obligation is not met in a timely manner, that is reflective of how seriously those obligations are taken at face level,” Muhammad stated.

Australia ratified the Optional Protocol in 2017 following its election to serve on the UN Human Rights Council from 2018 to 2020. Under OPCAT, State Parties are required to establish independent inspection and monitoring bodies for all detention facilities and to allow regular visits from the UN subcommittee to all detention facilities, both of which Australia has failed to implement effectively. Additionally, each state and territory must establish an internal inspection and compliance body, which Australia has failed to fully implement within the contemplated timeframe.

Article 17 of OPCAT states:

Each State Party shall maintain, designate or establish, at the latest one year after the entry into force of the present Protocol or of its ratification or accession, one or several independent national preventive mechanisms for the prevention of torture at the domestic level. Mechanisms established by decentralized units may be designated as national preventive mechanisms for the purposes of the present Protocol if they are in conformity with its provisions.

The SPT suspended its review of Australian detention facilities in October last year after delegates were unable to adequately access the facilities. In February, the SPT cancelled its subsequent visit to Australia after they were unable to obtain sufficient assurances from the State Party that it would be able to access all requested facilities.

Following the SPT cancelling its visit in February, the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) urged the Australian government to take steps to reaffirm its commitment to the OPCAT. Commission President Professor Rosalind Croucher warned that the cancellation would put Australia at risk of being placed on the Article 17 list.

“This outcome could severely damage Australia’s reputation as a leading advocate for a rules-based international system,” Professor Croucher said. In 2022, the AHRC released an updated report outlining the actions required for Australia to meet compliance with the OPCAT.

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The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) West and Central Africa released a series of reports Saturday revealing a complex trafficking web across the Sahel region of Africa as part of its Transnational Organized Crime Threat Assessment (TOCTA) Sahel project.

The reports show the efforts of organized crime throughout the Sahel to smuggle firearms, medical products, fuel and migrants. The reports found that the primary source of weapons in the region is diverted from national armed forces. This is compounded by the need for local communities to protect themselves in the region, leading to smaller regional armed militias, amongst whom diversion is even easier and more difficult to track.

The reports also point out the direct relationship between increased rates of infectious disease throughout the Sahel and the increase in the smuggling of medical supplies, claiming:

In the Sahel countries and their neighbours, the high prevalence of infectious diseases, including malaria, coupled with challenges in terms of the availability and affordability of and access to healthcare, creates an environment in which the demand for medical products and services is not fully met through formal channels.

The reports further claim that due to fuel prices and the need for the majority of the Sahel to import oil, a large underground fuel market has emerged, benefiting “illegal non-state armed groups, including groups deemed ‘terrorist’ by the international community.” The reports also found that recent counter-smuggling efforts, particularly those that crack down on migration, have “contributed to the emergence of new smuggling routes connecting the Niger and Libya, as well as emerging migrant smuggling hubs in southern Algeria.” Maps were released along with the reports, highlighting the routes smugglers currently use.

Further reports are expected from the UNODC shortly on human trafficking, drug trafficking, gold trafficking and organized crime in the Sahel.

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Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a statement Saturday claiming that Pakistani police have carried out mass arrests of over 4,000 people, including opposition party members of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), in the wake of protests over the detention of former Prime Minister Imran Khan. This statement has been corroborated by the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP) and Khan himself, who have condemned the crackdown.

HRW called for the release of those arbitrarily arrested while emphasizing the distinction between those who engaged in peaceful and non-peaceful political action after Khan’s detention. HRW’s Asia Director, Patricia Grossman, stated, “[t]he Pakistani authorities should end their arbitrary arrests of political opposition activists and peaceful protesters. Anyone committing violence should be appropriately charged and their due process rights respected.”

Authorities had previously attempted to arrest Khan in March on corruption charges, sparking a prior wave of protests and mass arrests. The most recent protests began on May 9th after Khan was arrested in Islamabad outside of court. Protests continued after a May 13th address from Khan where he encouraged supporters to fight for their freedom. Khan has since claimed that the violence that ensued from the recent wave of protests was “a planned conspiracy” and that he has “video evidence of gun wielding provocateurs inciting our people.”

Khan is alleged to have received a bribe in the form of land during his tenure as Prime Minister and was forced out of office in April 2022 with a vote of no confidence after attempting to dissolve parliament. He has a history of tension with the Pakistani military, culminating in the recent unrest. The Pakistani Supreme Court has declared Khan’s arrest “invalid and unlawful.”

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The former supervisor of an infamous Bosnian prison camp during the Balkan Wars of the 1990s was arrested in the Boston area this week on charges of fraudulently obtaining U.S. citizenship by making false claims of persecution.

Kemal Mrndzic, now a resident of the Boston suburb of Swampscott, is accused by US prosecutors of having posed as a victim after the war, despite his alleged involvement in numerous atrocities carried out at the Celebici prison camp under his guidance. According to a statement by US prosecutors:

The United Nations International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) found that guards at the Celebici prison camp had committed numerous murders, rapes, and had engaged in torture and other forms of persecution of Serb prisoners held at the camp. … numerous survivors have since identified Mrndzic as being involved in the beatings and other abuses committed there.

Court documents assert that Mrndzic, after being interviewed by ICTY investigators post-war, allegedly devised a plan to escape to the U.S. by fabricating a story of personal persecution. He was admitted as a refugee in 1999 and became a U.S. citizen in 2009.

One of the ICTY’s earliest indictments concerned the suffering of Serb victims at the Čelebići detention camp in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the 1990s sectarian war. Four accused, including the camp’s commander Zdravko Mucić, his deputy Hazim Delić, a guard Esad Landžo, and Bosnian army commander Zejnil Delalić, were tried for crimes primarily against Serb victims. The Tribunal established that Serb victims were beaten, tortured, raped, and killed at the camp.

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An Australian police force is launching an internal investigation after police officers tasered a 95-year-old woman at an elderly care facility. In a statement released last week, the New South Wales Police Force confirmed that “[a] critical incident investigation has been launched after an elderly woman sustained injuries during an interaction with police at an aged care facility in the state’s south today.”

Clare Nowland was taken to hospital in critical condition on Wednesday after the police tasered her, causing her to strike her head as she to fell to the ground. Two police officers were summoned to Yallambee Lodge, an aged care facility in Cooma, southern NSW, where Nowland was believed to be carrying a knife. In a press conference, NSW Deputy Police Commissioner Peter Cotter confirmed that Nowland was alone in her room at the time of the incident, and had used a walking frame to approach the police officers.

“At the time she was tasered, she was approaching police. It is fair to say at a slow pace. She had a walking frame. But she had a knife,” Cotter said.

The incident was captured on one of the attending police officers’ body cameras and would form part of the investigation.

Disability advocates have criticised the police response, stating that excessive force was used against Nowland. People with Disability Australia President Nicole Lee condemned the incident, stating that there was a lack of resources to handle altercations with people with disabilities.

“She’s either one hell of an agile, fit, fast and intimidating 95-year-old woman, or there’s a very poor lack of judgement on those police officers and there really needs to be some accountability on their side,” Lee said.

A media release from Dementia Australia stated that the organisation has been contacted by many people living with dementia, their families and carers, expressing anger and sadness about the incident.

“While situations like this are rare, tragically this has highlighted the need for everyone working across healthcare industries to receive compulsory education about dementia to increase their understanding, knowledge and skills in dementia care,” Dementia Australia stated.

The Snowy Monaro Regional Council, owners of Yallambee Lodge, confirmed that a report had been made to the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission, and urged that all inquiries regarding the incident be directed to NSW Police.

“Our focus remains on supporting and caring for the residents of Yallambee Lodge during this exceptionally difficult time,” the Council stated.

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The Nebraska legislature passed a contentious bill on Friday, implementing a 12-week abortion ban and restrictions on gender-affirming care for minors.

Nebraska’s new abortion ban, its first since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling last year, reduces the state’s current abortion limit from around 20 weeks of pregnancy to 12 weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest, and cases where delivery could pose a risk to the life of the mother.

The bill also restricts transgender youths under 19 from receiving gender-confirming surgery. The state’s chief medical officer will establish rules for puberty blockers and hormone therapies, with some exceptions for minors already undergoing treatment.

Some lawmakers voiced concerns in the immediate aftermath of the bill’s passage. Senator Michaela Cavanaugh, whose catchphrase is #Don’tLegislateHate, tweeted:

State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh invokes God in opposition to LB574, a bill restricting abortion and transgender health care in the Nebraska Legislature. pic.twitter.com/9lPj2TYHIT

— Nebraska Public Media News (@NebPubMediaNews) May 19, 2023

The passage of the bill follows a controversial merging of the abortion limits with the transgender health bill, a move that has been criticized as underhanded by progressive lawmakers. Despite the controversy, the bill will take effect immediately once signed by the governor due to an attached emergency clause.

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Iran executed three men accused of carrying out a terrorist attack during last year’s nationwide protests surrounding the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. According to Mizan, a state-run news agency for Iran’s judiciary, Iranian officials executed Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kazemi and Saeed Yaghoubi based upon their conviction on charges of moharebeh, or enmity against god.

Mizan claimed the three men intended to subvert police and security officers by firing weapons at them. Three officers were killed in the November 2022 incident that led to Mirhashemi, Kazemi and Yaghoubi’s arrests–though it is unclear if any of the three men were actually involved in the officers’ deaths. Following their arrest, Iranian officials charged the three men with moharebeh. They were convicted in the Isfahan Revolutionary Court on January 9 on those charges and sentenced to death. The three later challenged their convictions, but on May 9 the Supreme Court upheld their sentences.

Underlying the three’s convictions, according to Mizan, was a theory that they were all involved in a terrorist organization. Their actions were allegedly taken in accordance with that organization’s goals.

The Norway-based human rights group, Iran Human Rights (IHR), condemned the three men’s executions. IHR Director Amiry-Moghaddam stated:

The execution of the three protesters are extrajudicial killings that Iranian authorities, particularly Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, must be held accountable for. Unless the Iranian authorities are met with serious consequences by the international community, hundreds of protester lives will be taken by their killing machine.

The UN also condemned the three men’s executions, writing, “We urge the Iranian Government to stop this horrific wave of executions.” UN experts called the proceedings surrounding the men “unfair” and “deeply disturbing.” They wrote:

The executions of the three men this morning underlines our concerns that the Iranian authorities continue to have scant regard for international law. The death penalty has been applied following judicial proceedings that failed to meet acceptable international standards of fair trial or due process.

IHR previously spoke on the three men’s pending executions on Wednesday. Yaghoubi’s mother reached out to IHR pleading with the organization to save the three men from execution. At the time, Iranian officials had been broadcasting recorded confessions and testimonies from the three men. According to Amiry-Moghaddam, the three men “received the death penalty based on confessions and testimonies obtained under torture and denied all fair trial rights.” Though Iran’s judiciary initially denied that the three men would be killed this week, the three men were later killed early Friday morning.

According to an April report from IHR, Iranian officials executed over 500 people in 2022 in the wake of the nationwide protests. In December 2022, one of JURIST’s Iranian correspondents wrote, “These executions, which are carried out with the aim of suppressing the protesters, have many political and social consequences…The execution of protesters is actually fueling the social movement in Iran and accelerating it.”

Since 2023 began, Iranian officials have executed 264 people.

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According to report published by Amnesty International and the National Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission on Friday, the Kakuma refugee camp, located in northwestern Kenya, is not a secure sanctuary for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) refugees and asylum seekers. This is due to the rising number of hate crimes and other human rights abuses that the LGBTI community experiences, which frequently go unreported to law enforcement.

Because of its geographical advantages, Kenya attracts many people seeking refuge because of their sexual orientation. However, similar to other African countries, the country has criminalized same-sex relationships and practices. This, combined with cultural and religious views, has created a harsh environment for LGBTI refugees in Kakuma.

According to Mercy, a lesbian interviewed by the two organizations:

I came to Kenya because I had no freedom and security in my country. The culture and the law there did not allow me to stay. I was attacked many times and my life was at risk, so I left. My mum is the one who helped me escape. I thought I would be free here, but I have not found any solution. I just want to be safe.

The report details how LGBTI asylum seekers face prejudice due to their status as refugees or asylum seekers as well as their sexual orientation and gender identity. This discrimination is reinforced by government employees and service providers throughout the registration and status determination. LGBTI refugees endure additional threats and harassment from law enforcement agencies, as well as limited prospects for local integration and resettlement.

The report also mentions the police’s continued passivity in cases involving LGBTI asylum seekers as targets of alleged hate crimes. Among the numerous unresolved incidents, the report only recounts one example in which police officers investigated charges of sexual violence against an LGBTI refugee.

According to the report, LGBTI individuals’ refugee status assessments have been specifically delayed, owing to their sexual orientation. Furthermore, both organizations are concerned that Section 19(2) of the Refugees Act, which permits the government to remove asylum seekers and refugees based on public morals, may be interpreted against LGBTI asylum seekers and refugees. This would be a breach of Kenya’s international law commitments under the principle of non-refoulement–which prohibits states from transferring or removing individuals when there are substantial grounds for believing that the person would be at risk of harm upon return–as well as a propagation of discrimination based on sexual orientation.

The two groups call on the Kenyan government to protect the security of all LGBTI asylum seekers and refugees in the Kakuma. They also call on the government to take immediate action to address the hate crimes and other forms of discrimination committed against them and the wider LGBTI community.

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Russia’s Ministry of Internal Affairs added International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Karim Khan to their wanted list, according to a Friday report from Mediazona, an independent Russian news outlet. Khan’s addition to the wanted list follows Khan’s visit to Ukraine and the ICC’s issuance of an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin. The ICC warrant for Putin is in connection to the forced deportation of Ukrainian children.

Three days after the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin, the Russian Investigative Committee announced their own investigation into Khan and the ICC via Telegram. The Investigative Committee stated that Khan’s prosecution of Putin was “obviously illegal” due to the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crimes against Internationally Protected Persons of 1973, which the Investigative Committee described as providing heads of state with “absolute immunity” from the jurisdiction of foreign states. The US, Russia and the UK–where Khan is a citizen–are all parties to the convention.

The Investigative Committee stated that Khan and the judges of the ICC violated Article 301 section 2 of the Russian Criminal Code, which makes illegal “knowingly illegal detention,” and Article 360, which criminalizes “assaults on persons or institutions enjoying international protection.”

Khan, along with several ICC judges connected to the case, are all listed as defendants in the Russian prosecution.

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Thailand’s Central Juvenile and Family Court ordered Thursday the release of Thanalop “Yok” Phalanchai, a 15-year-old girl who was detained in the Ban Pranee Juvenile Vocational Training Centre for Girls. Yok, who was arrested on March 28 and detained for a total of 51 days, was charged under Section 112 of Thailand’s Criminal Code for criticizing the Thai monarchy during a rally in October 2022.

Section 112 of Thailand’s Criminal Code stipulates that “[w]hoever defames, insults, or threatens the King, the Queen, the Heir-apparent or the Regent, shall be punished with imprisonment of three to fifteen years.” The law serves as Thailand’s royal defamation–or lèse-majesté–law. It criminalizes defamation, insults and threats to members of the Thai monarchy.

In April, Asia Director of Human Rights Watch (HRW) Elaine Pearson called for Thai authorities to immediately release Yok and “drop the unjust case against her for criticizing the monarchy.” Pearson also espoused that the Thai government arresting a 15-year-old girl would “send the spine-chilling message that even children aren’t safe from being harshly punished for expressing their opinions.” Additionally, Pearson expressed that “[t]he Thai government should permit peaceful expression of political views, including questions about the monarchy” and that “Thai authorities should engage with UN experts and others about amending the lèse-majesté law to bring it into compliance with international human rights standards.”

In condemning Yok’s detention, HRW expressed that Thailand’s lèse-majesté law does not fully comply with international human rights standards. Detaining individuals charged with lèse-majesté contravenes their rights under international human rights law as demonstrated in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Thailand has ratified the ICCPR, which encourages criminal suspects to be bailed under Article 9. In addition, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, also ratified by Thailand, states in Article 37(b) that children should only be arrested, detained, or imprisoned “as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time.” Furthermore, lèse-majesté charges may not fully comply with freedom of expression principles under the ICCPR, especially since General Comment 34 on Article 19 of the UN Human Rights Committee suggests that governments “should not prohibit criticism of institutions.”

Thailand is a constitutional monarchy ruled by head of state King Maha Vajiralongkorn, and head of government, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-ocha. Arrests under defamation laws have increased significantly since 2020 after Chan-ocha ordered article 112 to be restored. Between mid-2020 and September 2022, at least 1,860 individuals, including 283 children, were charged under lèse-majesté laws. The UN raised alarm over the law in February 2021 and called for article 112 to be repealed. The UN also called for the release of those imprisoned on defamation charges.

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G7 leaders agreed to impose new sanctions on Russia Friday at their annual summit. G7 leaders stated that their countries are prepared to “starve Russia of G7 technology, industrial equipment and services that support its war machine” and will continue their sanctions on petroleum, metals, and diamonds, which Russia has exported to fund its war. Though the leaders committed to new sanctions, they said they will continue to shield “agricultural, medical, and humanitarian supplies” from their sanctions.

In addition to announcing new sanctions, G7 leaders’ statement urged Russia to stop its ongoing aggression in Ukraine. In their statement, G7 leaders mentioned a prior joint commitment from G20 members’ 2022 summit in Bali, which affirmed that “the use or threat of nuclear weapons is inadmissible.” The commitment stated, “The peaceful resolution of conflicts, efforts to address crises, as well as diplomacy and dialogue, are vital. Today’s era must not be of war.” Russia was a party to this statement, despite having invaded Ukraine nine months prior.

 The leaders also agreed that Russia must pay for the “long-term reconstruction of Ukraine” and that the leaders will continue to support the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) investigation into Russian war crimes, including the forced deportation of Ukrainian children, and the massacre of Ukrainian people.

A recent dispatch from one of JURIST’s Ukrainian correspondents described Russia’s ongoing war for Ukrainians as “the reality of their everyday [lives].” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to appear before the G7 summit in Hiroshima, Japan, this weekend to discuss this reality and gain commitments for additional support from the seven countries.

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Five TikTok users filed a lawsuit in a federal Montana court on Wednesday to stop the state’s newly enacted TikTok ban from going into effect. The lawsuit, filed the same day Governor Greg Gianforte signed the ban into law, asks the court to declare the law invalid under the US Constitution and prevent the state from taking any action to enforce it.

The five TikTok users argue that the newly enacted law “attempts to exercise powers over national security that Montana does not have and to ban speech Montana may not suppress.”

Specifically, the users claim the law violates the US Constitution’s First and Fourteenth Amendments. The users claim that TikTok is a “forum for communications protected by the First Amendment” because it serves as a place for users to freely express themselves and exchange ideas.

They also argue that, in enacting the law, Montana sought to enforce foreign policy or national security interests, which are meant to be addressed at the federal level, not state. Specifically, the lawsuit cites the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) and Section 721 of the Defense Production Act (DPA). Both of these acts authorize the executive branch of the federal government–the US president and the Treasury Department–”to investigate and if necessary mitigate national security risks arising from foreign economic actors.” Notably, the users point out that these powers are placed with the federal government, not Montana.

Even beyond the cited statutes, users cite a legal concept known as the foreign affairs doctrine, in which the US Constitution is understood to vest the power to administer foreign affairs solely with the federal government. The users also refer to previous court rulings, which found that where the federal government has no stated foreign policy, states are not meant to enact their own.

However even the federal government’s attempts to limit TikTok’s US operations have been shot down by federal judges. In 2020, three federal judges blocked a Trump-era executive order which sanctioned TikTok in the name of national security. The judges found that former President Donald Trump’s executive order lacked a legitimate national security concern, leaving the president with no authority to regulate or prohibit TikTok’s US operations.

Gianforte signed the ban into law on Wednesday. The ban applies a $10,000 fine for any entity operating or offering for download the popular social media platform TikTok. TikTok users are not penalized under the law.

The ACLU has condemned the law as “unconstitutional.” Policy director at the ACLU of Montana Keegan Medrano said, “With this ban, Governor Gianforte and the Montana legislature have trampled on the free speech of hundreds of thousands of Montanans who use the app to express themselves, gather information, and run their small business in the name of anti-Chinese sentiment.”

If the court does not take action in this case or any others filed, the law will go into effect on January 1, 2024.

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US government prosecutors argued in court filings Wednesday that Jack Teixeira, the US airman suspected of leaking classified US intelligence documents, should remain detained ahead of his criminal trial. Prosecutors revealed new evidence showing that Teixeira had twice been caught before his arrest viewing classified material unrelated to his official duties. They also argued that messages Teixeira sent on the social media platform Discord show that Teixeira was aware of the illegality of his actions yet persisted anyways.

Teixeira’s defense counsel, in its filings to the court requesting Teixeira’s release, claimed that the government was unable to provide any evidence that “Teixeira currently, or ever, intended any information purportedly to the private social media server to be widely disseminated.” Rather, they argue, Teixeira’s character supports releasing Teixeira from his pre-trial detention to his father’s house in Massachusetts.

However, government prosecutors said that further investigation into Teixeira’s activities regarding the leaked documents shows otherwise.

New evidence reveals that Teixeira not only posted the leaked documents to the private Discord server, as originally reported, but to multiple Discord servers over multiple months. The government identified one such Discord server that had as many as 150 users, some located in foreign countries, at the time the information was posted. On those servers, Teixeira allegedly bragged about his access to classified government documents, given his position as an airman with top-secret security clearance.

It is also clear, from the government’s investigation, that Teixeira was aware that he was not allowed to disseminate the classified information. In December 2022, Teixeira explicitly posted to the servers that he was “breaking a ton of [unauthorized disclosure] regs” in releasing the documents but remarked that he did not care what the law said. Prior to his April 13 arrest, Teixeira’s superiors twice caught him viewing and taking notes on classified information unrelated to his official duties. This happened twice—once in September 2022 and once in October 2022—with Teixeira’s superiors admonishing him both times. Teixeira was then caught again in February.

Government prosecutors wrote to the court:

that the Defendant continued posting classified information despite keen awareness that he was violating the law and even after being admonished multiple times by superiors is a clear indication that he will be undeterred by any restrictions this Court places upon him and will not hesitate to circumvent those restrictions if he deems it in his interest to do so.

Because of this, prosecutors say that Teixeira cannot “now be trusted to refrain from causing further harm” if he is released ahead of his trial date. Another hearing regarding Teixeira’s release is scheduled for Friday, where both government prosecutors and Teixeira’s defense counsel are expected to make further arguments.

Teixeira is charged with unauthorized retention and transmission of national defense information as well as unauthorized removal and retention of classified documents or material. Teixeira allegedly leaked “dozens of images” of documents, containing confidential information about US national security issues, on Discord. The DOJ did not discover the leaked documents until April 10, however, it is believed that the documents first appeared online in October 2022.

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Papua New Guinea police launched an investigation into the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea James Marape after an international investigation on Wednesday exposed his potential links to Don Matheson, an Australian Businessman being investigated for corruption. The inquiry into Matheson centers around a joint report from Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) that he made multiple payments to officials at the PNG Ports, the state-owned port. This was shortly before his company was awarded several high-profile government contracts to operate in Papua New Guinea.    

Matheson has a career that has been marked with controversy in Australia. He was previously found guilty of misleading business partners, forcing him out of Australian business. In 2010 Matheson began moving many business ventures to Papua New Guinea. During that time, Matheson both made and received payments from individuals at PNG Ports. Most notably, he received 4.3 million dollars from the Philippines-based ports company International Container Terminal Services in 2017. In another instance, while Matheson served as chief contractor for PNG ports, the horse that he co-owned with the former head of PNG ports Fego Kiniafa, made over half a million dollars in prize money.

The release of the Pandora papers, a massive multi-national report exposing billions of dollars of hidden global finances, revealed these payments involving Matheson. Through his lawyers Matheson has denied all wrongdoing and stated the charges are “nothing short of obfuscatory.”

Marape has been a vocal critic of Matheson and the investigation surrounding any potential corruption charges. He has also denied having any contact with Matheson more than association and “a few rounds of golf” at a business event. However, reports indicate that there was a strong working relationship between the pair. Both men seem to have made introductions for each other to prominent politicians and businessmen in both Papua New Guinea and abroad. Included among the introductions is the head of the state enterprises William Duma. In 2021, Duma sent letters of recommendation advocating for Matheson to be awarded government contracts for land development in the heart of Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea’s Capitals city. Duma is now in charge of carrying out the investigation into any wrongdoing by Matheson. Duma has claimed that there is no conflict of interest at play in his decision-making, despite their prior relationship. He has also stated that any media questions would only be answered if there was explicit permission given to “inquire into domestic issues of another country.”

The head of Transparency International Papua New Guinea chapter, Peter Aitsi, stated that any relationship between the three could prove to be a massive blow to public confidence and trust in the government. He also stated that if there is proof of a relationship, Duma should step down from the investigation.

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Metropolitan Police Service Chief Sir Mark Rowley on Thursday accused the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) of failing victims by ‘cherry-picking easy cases’ to fast-track through courts. The CPS reacted by saying the comments “risk damaging public confidence.” In the London Evening Standard newspaper, Sir Rowley said that a “big effort was needed to reform the justice system to let juries and magistrates decide” on suspects’ guilt “rather than lawyers in advance.”

He continued to say that :

When you look at the fact that the cases the CPS prosecute, 80 per cent of them are successful, guilty pleas or convictions, that suggests that we’re not taking on the harder cases, cherry-picking the easy cases rather than trying to get as many cases [to court]… To be successful for victims of all types of crime we need a system that’s prepared to take more difficult cases through and let juries and magistrates decide rather than lawyers in advance.

Max Hill, Director of Public Prosecutions, said: “I am surprised and disappointed by the inaccurate comments made by the Metropolitan Police Commissioner,” stating that the CPS “does not cherry-pick’ cases” and is “a demand-led organisation that can only prosecute cases that are referred to [them] by the police themselves.”

This has prompted a range of views from across the legal sector with some such as ex-Victim’s Commissioner Olivia Baird agreeing with the Met Commissioner, whilst others have disagreed saying it is “utterly ludicrous to have the UK’s biggest police force and the CPS openly briefing against one another.”

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