Adjudication No. 762 (October 1994) [1994] APC 71

ADJUDICATION No. 762 (October 1994)

The Press Council has dismissed a complaint from Gareth Smith against an article in The Canberra Times on 25 August 1994 which dealt with, in part, a demonstration at the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra in which he had participated.

Mr Smith and his co-protester had climbed two columns of the embassy building, unfurled a banner, and remained there twenty minutes.

In the article, published two months after the protest, The Canberra Times reported Indonesian officials as complaining about "attacks on Indonesian property" in Australia. The article further noted that in one of the recent incidents "the Republic's Canberra embassy was attacked by protesters in June ...".

Mr Smith objected to the use of the word "attack". He complained that the word suggested "terroristic connotations".

However, the Press Council believes the word "attack" does not necessarily have this connotation and in its common usage was an acceptable way to describe Mr Smith's actions.

Further, it was clear from two previous reports on the protest in The Canberra Times that violence or obstruction were not involved.