NSW: Cowdery rejects claims police are soft on Middle-Eastern crime

AAP General News (Australia)
02-01-2006
NSW: Cowdery rejects claims police are soft on Middle-Eastern crime

SYDNEY, Feb 1 AAP - The NSW Director of Public Prosecutions, Nicholas Cowdery, QC,
says claims that police have gone soft on Middle Eastern gangs are false.

Mr Cowdery has again hit out at politicians, accusing them of undermining public confidence
in the judicial system by making statements that could jeopardise fair criminal proceedings.

In an interview with The Bulletin magazine, published today, Mr Cowdery criticised
NSW Premier Morris Iemma and Opposition leader Peter Debnam for describing as "thugs"

and "grubs" those responsible for violence on Sydney's beaches last month.

Mr Cowdery today stood by his remarks and urged politicians to refrain from making
comments that eroded confidence in public institutions.

He rejected opposition claims police had gone soft on Middle-Eastern crime, and singled
out the News Limited Sydney newspaper, The Daily Telegraph for seizing on unfounded statements
by politicians.

"There have been so many inaccurate reports in the Telegraph, echoed by some of the
politicians," he told ABC Radio.

"This criticism or suggestion that police have been soft on Middle Eastern crime, well
that's just contrary to the facts.

"I don't know what they're basing these sorts of reports on but they do it day after
day after day and there is absolutely no foundation in it, whatsoever."

On the contrary, there had been a heavy police focus on Middle Eastern crime through
Task Force Gain, he said.

Asked about Mr Debnam's remarks that he took no notice of what the DPP said, Mr Cowdery
replied: "It's another step in the undermining of confidence in the criminal justice process
generally.

"That occurs whenever unreasonable attacks are made on me, whenever unreasonable attacks
are made on judges and magistrates, and we see this happening constantly in the area of
politics and in the media.

"It's very dangerous that there be such a weakening of public confidence in the process
by people who are supposed to be our leaders and who are supposed to be setting the tone
for the rest of us."

But Mr Cowdery denied he was out of touch with community attitudes towards those responsible
for violence on Sydney's beaches.

"To be attacked by both sides of politics shows perhaps that I'm being even-handed
in my comments," he said.

He said politicians' descriptions of alleged offenders as "thugs" and "grubs" may resonate
with the public but they had the potential to jeopardise fair criminal proceedings.

"That's the real vice in making impatient, intemperate comments about the consequences
of criminal activity before the police have had their chance to do their investigations,"

he said.

"I've been in this job for 11 years and I've seen this happen on numerous occasions,
particularly in the run-up to elections ... and what it amounts to is politicians pointscoring
at the expense of institutions in society."

Mr Cowdery said the release of video footage showing a revenge attack after the Cronulla
riot also could jeopardise criminal proceedings stemming from the incident, and maintained
police had been right to initially withhold the tape.

Comment was being sought from Mr Iemma and Mr Debnam.

AAP dcr/nf/cjh/de

KEYWORD: SURF COWDERY DAYLEAD

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