EXTRACT
In the first months following my arrest I was determined NOT to pay even $1 in bribes to secure my release. In 20 + years of visiting Cambodia I had never once paid a bribe, as a matter of principle. I did not intend to start now. I made this clear to police and Ministry of the Interior officials on the day of my arrest and during all of my subsequent interrogations. This decision went hand-in-glove with my belief, for a few months at least, that the relevant highly-placed person within the Australian government would have an off-the-record chat with his or her counterpart in the Cambodian government and that I would soon be released. Despite 20+ years of visiting Cambodia and thinking that I had a reasonably good grasp on how the country functioned, I was still naive enough to believe that the absence of any evidence at all that I was a spy, the overwhelming evidence that I was merely a filmmaker and journalist and the sheer number of Cambodian laws that had been breached in my prosecution, would see me freed soon – if only to prevent loss of face for the police, the prosecutor and an Investigating Judge for my clearly arbitrary arrest and detention. I was wrong. It took me a few months but it soon became apparent that once a prisoner enters Prey Sar prison he is guilty until he has paid whatever sum of money is required to be found either innocent or to have his sentence reduced. Regardless of the crime a prisoner is accused of he must spend a minimum of 6 months in pre-trial detention; 6 months living in a hot and crowded cell eating food that pigs would turn their noses up at, his body ravaged by scabies and a whole host of other skin complaints; catching whatever colds, flus and upper- respiratory illnesses his 140+ cell mates might have. At the end of this 6 months he will do anything to get out of Prey Sar. He will realize by now that his guilt or innocence of the crime he has been arrested for is irrelevant. He will find some way to raise the money to buy his freedom, even if it means his family must sell their home, land and worldly possessions to do so.
The completion of my first 6 months in pre-trial detention, in early December 2017, with no trial date in sight and no evidence that the Australian government planned to help me in any way, coincided with the serious illness of a fellow Australian prisoner and friend, Giuseppe (Zippy) Nicolosi. The questions confronting myself and my family regarding tactics and strategy took on a life-and-death quality when Zippy became seriously ill in late 2017 and he seemed to us, his fellow prisoners and friends, to be in danger of dying. Zippy’s story is worth recounting in a little detail here as his fate mirrored what well could have been my own. It had a profound influence on certain decisions I made which, in turn, impacted on my relationship with members of my family.
Zippy was arrested in Cambodia “on suspicion of having sex with a 5 year old in…2010” and sentenced the following year. “The victim retracted her complaint in 2012, following the Siem Reap Provincial Court trial. Nicolosi appealed, claiming he was the victim of a false accusation and police corruption but the Appeal Court upheld the eight year sentence.” Zippy was offered to opportunity pay a relatively small bribe to buy his way out of prison but rejected it on the grounds that he was innocent; that he had been framed by someone who wanted to steal the bar he ran on a popular tourist beach in Sihanoukville.
As with my own arrest and conviction, no evidence of Zippy’s guilt was ever presented in court. There was, however, a mountain of evidence that he was innocent available to anyone prepared to ask a few questions and prepared to take judgements handed down by the Cambodian judiciary with a grain of salt. And more than a grain of salt is required in the case of a judicial system in which close to 100% of all cases heard in court result in a conviction; a judicial system that ranks as the most corrupt in South East Asia and amongst the top 20 out of 176 countries in the world.
Amongst those who could ask such questions is the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), through the Australian Embassy in Phnom Penh. DFAT refuses to do so as a matter of principle. (I had learned this well before Zippy became ill. The Australian Embassy, and hence DFAT, knew within a couple of days of my arrest that the charge of espionage laid against me was nonsense but had done nothing by late 2017 to support me; to defend my legal and human rights; not even when my name and face were used, in abrogation of Cambodian law, in government TV propaganda, implicating me in a conspiracy, along with the United States and the Cambodian National Rescue Party, to foment a ‘colour revolution’ in Cambodia.)
After his arrest and subsequent conviction Zippy believed, if he followed DFAT’s advice and maintained a low media profile, that his chances of release were greater than if his case acquired a high profile and thus had the potential to cause loss of face to the police, prosecutor, Investigating Judges and Court Judges who had convicted him on the basis of zero evidence of his guilt.
Understandably, the Australian media pretty much ignored Zippy’s case, as it has those of other Australian prisoners in Prey Sar and other Cambodian prisons.
Even if there had been evidence of Zippy’s guilt he was in the final months of his 8 year sentence when he became very ill in late 2017. Some of Zippy’s many symptoms (one of which was extreme weight loss) were consistent with his having contracted pneumonia. He had numerous other medical problems that were visible to his fellow prisoners but which remained undiagnosed. Included were bulbous outgrowths on his chest close to the size of golf balls. His health deteriorated rapidly over a period of a few months and a few inmates, myself included, alerted the Australian Embassy and the Prime Minister’s office to the seriousness of Zippy’s medical condition and the need for medical intervention on the part of the Australian government.
On 14th August 2017 an email was sent to the Australian Embassy:
“Just to let you know that Giuseppe is in a lot of pain. He has a chest problem that is making it hard to breath. He is clearly very uncomfortable. I know you are organising a doctor visit for him. Sooner rather than later I think. James is getting a lot of skin problems. He's covered in sores and now a boil. Also he has septic infections on his feet. Perhaps time for him to see a doctor also.”
(NOTE: At no stage did I ever receive treatment for my ailments)
On 21st August another email was sent to the Australian Embassy:
“Please note that Giuseppe is becoming very sick. He should be in the hospital now. Please take timely steps to see him accordingly. Thank you”.
The following day another email was sent:
“Giuseppe is in severe pain. He is deteriorating. You can see his face is grey this morning. He does not waste your time as you well know. This appears serious. Please take steps to assist your citizen without delay.”
The same day, 22nd August, the following was received from the Australian Embassy:
“As I’m sure you’re aware, embassies don’t provide medical care, and as such if any prisoner has an urgent medical issue they need to speak with the prison doctor. Any arrangements we make for external treatment of an Australian detainee takes time and isn’t an appropriate response to an urgent issue.”
4th September email to the Australian Embassy re Zippy:
“Please note he is becoming a little mentally fragile particularly as a result of his deteriorating medical condition. If you can assist in any way this is an opportune moment I suggest.”
2nd Dec:
“He's suffering badly from malnutrition and weight loss including dehydration. The cystic fibrosis is abundantly obvious and pervasive to me and he has an outstanding lung infection issue still pending. He's clearly not fit for punishment. I'm absolutely sure that the Cambodian authorities will have no problems releasing Guiseppe into proper Australian medical care on humanitarian grounds., I know he was just visited by the embassy a couple of days ago. You have to take action to help this man. We are doing what we can here but he needs proper medical care now if he is to stand a chance at any valuable recovery. I hope you take steps quickly to assist him”.
From the Australian Embassy on 4th Dec:
“While we share your desire to see Giuseppe recover quickly, the Australian Government does not pay medical costs for Australians overseas, inclusive of prisoners. The local options as provided by the Cambodian prison system are the only option available, and we will be working with officials to get the best outcomes from that system.”
4th Dec. To the Australian Embassy.
“Guiseppe is very ill. He needs medical treatment beyond that being afforded to him. He actually should be in an Australian hospital as he's not fit for punishment as is abundantly obvious. May I suggest you write to seek his repatriation on humanitarian grounds. Provide me with the costs and I will try and organise funds if Australia is too poor or too inconsiderate of its own citizens. I am appalled as I am sure the family and friends are. This is not the Australia I know. It does however unfortunately look like the UK care package. He will die soon if you don't take steps now. Does that sit well with you? I can't believe it does.”
5th Dec. Email from Australian Embassy:
“Giuseppe was moved back to the hospital at the end of last week, and I will be visiting him today. As I’m sure you are aware, the Australian Government, much like your own government, does not cover medical costs for citizens overseas. We are in discussions with Giuseppe’s family seeking a commitment to cover costs. If you feel you are able to assist with these costs, please let me know.”
Zippy was transferred to what is known as the “Russian Hospital” and placed on an intravenous drip. He had no money, however, to pay for nutrients to be added to the drip and died a few days later, on 10th. Dec, from a combination of malnutrition and medical conditions that were not addressed by the Prey Sar prison hospital or the Russian hospital.
To Australian Embassy on 12th Dec:
“We are all appalled at his passing and how badly he was cared for. Offers were there for weeks if not months. Everyone is very sad at his passing and the wasted opportunity to help him. I sincerely hope that the Australian embassy and government takes a serious look in the mirror and asks themselves if they genuinely provided reasonable care for this man.”
Zippy’s death changed everything for me. If my government could allow an (almost certainly) innocent Australian citizen to die from malnutrition and medical neglect, with no attempt at intervention, would it do anything to prevent me from dying under similar circumstances?
Our government justifies its lack of protection of the human and legal rights of Australian citizens such as Zippy with the following, to be found in the Consular Services Charter:
There are a range of tasks which are outside the consular role or which we do not provide for policy reasons. These include: intervene in another country’s court proceedings or legal matters.
This is not true, of course. The Australian government did intervene in my case more than once – the second time to secure my King’s Pardon release, though it would not be until I had been back in Australia for a few weeks that I would become aware of this.
The Consular Services Charter also states that the Embassy may:
Do what we can to see you are treated fairly under the laws of the country in which you have been arrested.
At no stage, despite multiple requests from me over a period of 6 months in 2017, did the Australian Embassy make any attempt to see to it that I was treated fairly. When I pointed out the many ways in which I was not being treated fairly, as I did on several occasions, the many Cambodian laws that were being abrogated in my case, the Embassy, DFAT, Bishop and Turnbull ignored my correspondence. In December 2017, at the time of Zippy’s death, I was in possession of no evidence at all that the Australian government was doing or would do anything to help me or, to be a little more blunt, that it would do anything to prevent me from dying as Zippy did if I were to become seriously ill. And seriously ill I did become in April 2018.
Virtually no-one in Australia has heard of Guiseppe Nicolosi. No-one, other than his family, mourned his untimely and preventable death or wondered aloud, in the public domain, why it was that the Australian government allowed him to die as he did. Zippy did not court the media as I began to do in Dec 2017, when it became apparent that the Australian government was doing nothing to help me. Or, to be more precise, the government gave no indication that it was doing anything to help me.
Zippy did not have contacts in the media to be courted, as I did. He had no celebrity friends, as I did. He did not have the writing skills I possess, making it possible for me to ‘harass’ Turnbull, Bishop and Corcoran in an ‘avalanche’ of letters and thus place pressure on the Australian government to intervene in my case. Nor did Zippy have the temerity or the courage (for lack of a better word) to challenge the Cambodian judiciary as I did. In short, Zippy was just the sort of compliant Australian citizen prepared to rely on possible behind the scenes diplomacy in his quest for justice, whose legal and human rights the Australian government could safely ignore. Out of sight; out of mind! There are other Australians in Prey Sar, as innocent as Zippy and myself, whom the Australian public will probably never hear of until they die; their death is afforded one paragraph in newspapers. I know of three such Australians in Cambodian jails and I read of one a few days ago that I do not know. Gary Knowles, aged 73. Since his arrest in Dec 2017, the same month that Zippy died, Mr Knowles has, according to the Canberra Times “vanished from public view.” Neither he nor his family want publicity. Is this because they have been so advised by DFAT as Zippy and I were? Because he hopes that quiet behind-the-scenes diplomacy will result in his release from jail? If Mr Knowles does die in a Cambodian jail will his passing receive the same publicity as Zippy’s? Close to zero?
In Feb 2018 news of my extreme weight loss and ill health, 68,000 signatories on a change.org petition, and stories in the media began to attract the attention of the Australian public. It became difficult for the Turnbull govt not to do something to help extricate a clearly innocent Australian citizen from Prey Sar, charged with an offence - espionage - that was self-evidently nonsense! Foreign Minister Julie Bishop announced she was intervening in my case. At least this is how the media reported it. She had written to her Cambodian counterpart re my case, her office informed the media. Good news. Both I and my family were able to breathe a sigh of relief. After 10 months the Australian government was finally doing something to help me!
When Cambodian Ministry of the Interior officials arrived at Prey Sar and I was called to meet them my heart was racing. They are here to announce my imminent release, I thought. Quiet diplomacy has won the day. No such luck. False alarm. They were visiting me only to enquire after my health. Why? By way of an answer they showed me the letter Bishop had written to Cambodia’s Foreign Minister. This was a letter that Bishop’s office refused to release to either the media or my family. For good reason, I discovered. In it Bishop made clear that the Australian government had no intention at all of intervening in my case but was concerned about my health. The subtext of the letter was that the Cambodian judiciary could do as it liked with me, regardless of the lack of evidence that I had committed any crime, but please make sure that during my incarceration I remained healthy and did not suffer the same fate as Zippy.
Bishop had led the media and my family astray by claiming (or allowing the media to believe) that she was intervening. She had lied! Or had she? Had she and Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull ‘intervened’ whilst at the same time I was being informed in letters from Ambassador Angela Corcoran, that they could not? It would not be until after my release that I would get an answer to this question? Yes, Australia’s Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull and Cambodia’s, Hun Sen, agreed in March 2018 that I would be found guilty of espionage and then granted a King’s Pardon.
The fact that Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull made such a handshake deal with Hun Sen to secure my release via a King’s Pardon after I had been found guilty, at the same time that DFAT was insisting, in writing, that it could not and would not intervene in any way in my case, raises interesting and pertinent questions about what takes place behind the scenes in the messy world of international diplomacy. Was Turnbull doing me a favour in securing such a deal? Was it the best deal he could make with a mercurial leader such as Hun Sen? Could he or the Australian Embassy not have let me know of this deal on the understanding that I did not reveal it to anyone? This would have saved me $100,000 in legal fees defending myself in accordance with Cambodian and international law in a case the outcome of which had been decided upon by Turnbull and Hun Sen 5 months earlier?
When I got pneumonia in April 2018, or some other serious viral infection (my illness was never diagnosed) and my weight dropped from 88 to 69 kilos, a visit from the Grim Reaper seemed to be on the cards. This was a source of great worry and anxiety for my family. As my brother Peter would recount for the “Australian Story” cameras later in the year, “We thought James was going to die.” If I had died would this deal of Turnbull’s seemed like a good one given that he, DFAT and the Australian Embassy knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the espionage charges were nonsense?
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