Case against Muslim youth a secret By Linda Morris March 11 2003
Australian citizen Zak Mallah says he wants to marry in Lebanon and make the pilgrimage to Mecca.
ASIO says the 19-year-old Muslim is a risk and could conduct acts of "politically motivated violence" against Australian and Western interests.
Mr Mallah, an Australian of Lebanese parents, is contesting the Federal Government's decision of last June to refuse him a passport based on an adverse security assessment.
His passport application was denied a day after he willingly attended an interview with ASIO officers.
Yesterday ASIO and the Federal Government defended their decision in the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, going to extraordinary lengths to keep their case against the Greenacre youth a secret.
The tribunal conducted in-camera hearings to protect the identity of ASIO agents who carried out the security assessment.
Not even Mr Mallah's counsel could be present to cross-examine the ASIO evidence. The nature of ASIO's case and its sources have also been withheld although its counsel told the tribunal it would also rely on transcripts of media interviews.
In the only documents tendered to the tribunal, ASIO acknowledged Mr Mallah had no criminal conviction, no known record of violence and had talked of returning to Australia after visiting Lebanon. He had insisted to ASIO officers he had no plans or intentions to take part in violent activities and intended to "travel in peace" to Lebanon to get married.
But ASIO was not convinced: "Even if Mallah's present intention is to travel to Lebanon to meet his prospective bride we assess there is a risk he could engage in politically motivated violence. We consider his proposed travel overseas presents an unacceptable risk."
Mr Mallah is believed to have come to the attention of security authorities because of his attendance at lectures organised by the Islamic Youth Movement, whose website has given sympathetic coverage to military struggle by Islamists including Osama bin Laden but which has denied any links to terrorism.
In an edited version of its interview with Mr Mallah, ASIO says he denied any connection with those who condoned violence.
When asked if he had any intention of taking part in any violence which would damage Australian security, Mr Mallah had stated he would be stupid to do any such thing because "I'd be back here behind bars".
Had he ever expressed any views or intentions to anybody about such conduct: "I'm nobody, who am I?" When asked the question again, he said, "No".
Asked to elaborate, ASIO reported Mr Mallah had stated: "Everybody talks about it." Mr Mallah went on to explain that people discuss many things, but "nobody will actually do anything, and it's just talk".
ASIO writes reports on passport applications where security is involved and has been accused by the Council of Civil Liberties of unfairly targeting people of Middle Eastern extraction.
Mr Mallah's counsel, David Berney, said his client had strong views on the Middle East and probably expressed them "in a way you or I might not express them".
He was strongly religious and his view that religious law took precedent over state laws was not as radical as first suggested given Catholics object to abortions.
"It shouldn't be misinterpreted as an intention to break the law."
The hearing continues. http://smh.com.au/articles/2003/03/10/1047144923803.html
