The text of Robert Dean's letter in support of the illegal banning of Victoria Police Corruption books is below.
Robert Dean MLA Member for Berwick Suite 4 418 Princes Highway Narre Warren Victoria 3805 Telephone: 9704 6055 Facsimile: 9704 7966 E-mail: robert.dean@parliament.gov.au Our reference: 5313/00 rd 27 October, 2000
Mr Raymond Hoser 41 Village Avenue DONCASTER VIC 3108
Dear Raymond,
I refer to our numerous communications and correspondence in relation to your book "Victoria Police Corruption" and "Victoria Police Corruption 2".
I think you would agree that within the pages of your manuscript there are many statements which would potentially come under the heading of defamation.
In some states truth is a defence and in some states it must not only be true, but in the public interest.
I am not in a position to determine whether or not such allegations are correct however, it would appear that the Victorian Labor Government has come to the conclusion that they are and, on behalf of the Victorian court, has issued a warning to those who stock the books that should they publish them. The Government would possibly take action because of its view that your script contains information which defames judges and could also be in contempt of court.
I do not wish to comment on whether or not that was an appropriate action by the Victorian Government. However it is true that if the court believes that a publication is to be printed which is in contempt of the court, the officers of the Attorney-Generals would be the officers that advise those who may unwittingly be in contempt from publishing or distributing the information, or, more importantly, advising them of the Govemment's view so that the publisher or distributor can make its own decision and cannot later argue that it was not warned.
In the end, if you believe the direction of the Labor Government was unlawful then it is necessary to take court proceedings to obtain an injunction or declaration in relation to the material.
This can be done with or without representation and should you have difficulty funding legal representation, you may wish to apply to a local community legal centre for help or to the ex gratia schemes that are run by both the Law Institute of Victoria and the Victorian Bar.
Unfortunately, I am not in a position to run such a case for you or to provide the funds for you to institute such a case. It is always of concern that legal aid does not stretch as far as we in Victoria would like it to stretch.
As far as publicly making a statement as to whether or not the information contained in your booklet is not defamatory or is not in contempt of court, I cannot do that because I am not sure that it is not in contempt of court or defamatory.
You have referred to me on a number of occasions the right to publish free of censorship. In a democratic society there is a right to publish, but there is not a right to defame, just as there is not a right to commit contempt of court, or a right to discriminate against people, etc.
While these restrictions can be seen as censorship, they have been accepted by the community as a necessary restriction to prevent damage being done to innocent parties.
So the question comes down to the fact that you are of the belief that your information that you wish to publish is not in contempt of court and is not defamatory. Unfortunately, the only way this can be determined is through a decision of a court of law and I am not a court of law and cannot make that decision.
I fully support the right of people to be able to publish material that does not breach the law and where it may breach the law I would support the publication of that information subject to the determination of that question.
I hope this is of assistance to you and I appreciate your many communications in relation to this matter.
YOURS SINCERELY (SIGNATURE) ROBERT DEAN MLA Member for Berwick Shadow Attorney General Shadow Minister for Aboriginal Affairs
For an exact copy (gif images) of the two page letter from Dean
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Robert Dean supports ban media release.
Books illegally banned by Rob Hulls media release.
Labor Appointed Judge, Geoff Eames and his wild conspiracy theories - exposed!
View the relevant letters, etc:- ALLOW A FULL FOUR MINUTES TO DOWNLOAD EACH PAGE AS JPEGS - Rob Hull's reply to Adam Anthony Zoccoli dated 8 March 2000.(one page) - Dymocks Recall Notice dated 27 April 2000.(one page) - VGS Letter to Dymocks Booksellers dated 2 June 2000.(one page) - Collins booksellers recall notice of 13 June 2000(one page) - Letter from Hoser to Rob Hulls dated 23 June 2000.(one page) - VGS letter to Kirby Book Distributors dated 19 June 2000.(two pages) - Hulls' dept. letter to Kotabi ordering books. (two pages) Normal Websites (relevant documents, etc): - Supreme Court Judgement of 18 April 2000. - More on Adam Anthony Zoccoli. - Download or view a picture of Rob Hulls, the man responsible for and who approved of the illegal banning of the books. - Download or view a picture of Carlo Carli (MP) who actively supported the illegal ban of the books. - High Court ruling/s on contempt. - Letter to ACCC re ban. - Rob Hulls' department orders banned books! - Letter to Rob Hulls re his department's book orders. - Letter to the United Nations Re ban.
Non-urgent email inquiries via the Snakebusters bookings page at:http://www.snakebusters.com.au/sbsboo1.htmUrgent inquiries phone:Melbourne, Victoria, Australia:(03) 9812 3322 or 0412 777 211