Correspondence between Australia, Indonesia and IOM on the Regional Cooperation Agreement
Dear Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade,
Under the Freedom of Information Act, I request the following documents:
"Correspondence between Australia and Indonesia, and between Australia and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), regarding the establishment of the Regional Cooperation Agreement (RCA). Correspondence may include letters, emails, phone call logs or transcripts or any other form of communication. Please limit this request to correspondence in 2000 and 2001."
Yours faithfully,
Asher Hirsch
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Hirsch
I refer to your FOI request of 12 August seeking access to:
"Correspondence between Australia and Indonesia, and between Australia and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), regarding the establishment of the Regional Cooperation Agreement (RCA). Correspondence may include letters, emails, phone call logs or transcripts or any other form of communication. Please limit this request to correspondence in 2000 and 2001."
I am writing to advise you that the Department of Immigration and Border Protection (DIBP) has today accepted a full transfer of your request pursuant to section 16(1)(b) of the FOI Act. DIBP will respond to you directly.
Regards,
DFAT FOI TEAM
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 17/08/00642; ADF2017/87711
Dear Mr Hirsch
We refer to your request for access to documents under the FOI Act, sent
in the first instance to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. The
subject matter of your request is most closely connected with the
functions of this Department, and as such the Department of Immigration
and Border Protection accepted transfer of your request under section
16(1)(b) of the FOI Act.
Please find attached the acknowledgement of receipt for your recent FOI
Request.
Please do not hesitate to contact me should you wish to discuss.
Yours sincerely
Karen Chapman
Freedom of Information Section
Department of Immigration and Border Protection
UNCLASSIFIED
Important Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by
the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received
this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and
attachments immediately. This email, including attachments, may contain
confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.
Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information
by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited.
DIBP respects your privacy and has obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.
Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this
email.
UNCLASSIFIED
Our references: FA 17/08/00642; ADF2017/87711
Dear Mr Hirsch
I refer to your FOI request received on 12 August 2017, seeking access to
the following:
‘Correspondence between Australia and Indonesia, and between Australia and
the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), regarding the
establishment of the Regional Cooperation Agreement (RCA). Correspondence
may include letters, emails, phone call logs or transcripts or any other
form of communication. Please limit this request to correspondence in 2000
and 2001.’
The Department has made a decision on this request. Please see attached
the signed decision letter.
This request has now been closed.
with regards,
H Simons
FOI Officer | Freedom of Information Section
Department of Immigration and Border Protection
E: [1][email address]
UNCLASSIFIED
Important Notice: The content of this email is intended only for use by
the individual or entity to whom it is addressed. If you have received
this email by mistake, please advise the sender and delete the message and
attachments immediately. This email, including attachments, may contain
confidential, sensitive, legally privileged and/or copyright information.
Any review, retransmission, dissemination or other use of this information
by persons or entities other than the intended recipient is prohibited.
DIBP respects your privacy and has obligations under the Privacy Act 1988.
Unsolicited commercial emails MUST NOT be sent to the originator of this
email.
References
Visible links
1. mailto:[email address]
Dear Department of Immigration and Border Protection,
I am writing to request an internal review of Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's handling of my FOI request 'Correspondence between Australia, Indonesia and IOM on the Regional Cooperation Agreement', FA 170800642.
The request was refused because of s 33(a)(iii) and s 47. Please see below my reasons for seeking internal review:
International relations:
I do not agree that the release of an agreement and relevant documents surrounding that agreement would impact international relations, especially as Indonesia is a party to the agreement and would already know the details of the arrangement.
Indeed, I requested documents relating to communication between Australia and Indonesia. This could therefore not "diminish trust the trust placed in the Department's officials by the Indonesian Government". Presumably, the Indonesian Government already has these documents, therefore any such release would not be new to the Indonesian Government.
Further, I note the reason for the refusal is also that the documents have had a "very limited circulation and are only available to a select number of people on a strict needs-to-know basis". I note that this is not a ground for refusal under the Act.
Commercially valuable information
I further do not agree that an agreement with Indonesia and an non-government organisation (IOM) would be of commercial value that would be diminished or destroyed if released. There is no information in the decision which shows that the information is of a commercial nature.
I therefore request an internal review of the decision.
Yours faithfully,
Asher Hirsch
UNCLASSIFIED
Dear Mr Hirsh,
I refer to your email below seeking internal review of a decision made by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection ('DIBP').
Your email requesting internal review has been sent to the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade ('DFAT'), however, DFAT did not make the original decision.
Your request for internal review should be directed to DIBP.
Regards,
DFAT FOI TEAM
Asher Hirsch left an annotation ()
Note: appealed to Information Commissioner