The Haneef scandal

Perhaps the biggest lesson from the Dr Haneef scandal is just what a joke the notion of 'national security' is. It is now becoming ever clear that Haneef had no material link to the attempted bombings in the United Kingdom other than being Muslim and giving a SIM card to a second cousin allegedly involved in the bomb plot. If the Government and powerful interests (of which the corporate media is the mouth piece) were serious about national security, they would seek to seriously investigate the Australian Federal Police for its misconduct. The impetus for such an investigation would not be sympathy for Muslim Australians or even Australia's tarnished reputation overseas. No, it would simply be a matter of making sure our federal police is capable of tackling a real terrorist threat. Clearly it can't, and clearly if Australia's national security was really under threat it would.

Now it is true Governments rarely, if ever, admit to making mistakes. That isn't peculiar to the Howard Government. But usually responsible Governments try to learn from their mistakes, even if there has to be a fall guy to protect the Government itself. Nevertheless you've got to wonder how many in the Australian community support the Government. Viz, that they are racist and fear Muslims and think 'suspicion' is enough to warrant kicking Haneef out lest he really is a terrorist (of which there seems to be not a sliver of evidence).

Quite disgraceful really.