Our Ref: 1412F1039

Dear Jaimie Bruce

Re: Freedom of Information (FOI) Request

Thank you for your email dated 7 December 2014 in which you seek access under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 to:

“I am requesting any relevant information surrounding the death of Ben Zygier A.k.a Ben Alon a.k.a Ben Allen, who's date of death was reportablely the 15.12.2010 in Ramla, Israel. Aswell as the gag order ruled in petach tikra district court by judge hila gerstl in June 2010 relating to the case Israel v John Doe.”

Searches are now being undertaken in relevant areas of the Department for documents relevant to your request. I will contact you again once the searches have been completed.

Timeframe for receiving your decision:
We received your request on 7 December 2014 and the 30 day statutory period for processing your request commenced from the day after that date. You should therefore expect a decision from us by 7 January 2014. The period of 30 days may be extended in certain circumstances. We will advise you if there is any extension of time.

Scope of request:
If it emerges that the scope of your request is unclear or is too large for processing, the Department will contact you to discuss re-scoping the request.

Exclusion of officers’ names and contact details:
It is the Department’s policy to withhold the names and contact details of officers not in the Senior Executive Service (SES) within the Department and other agencies contained within documents that fall within scope of the request. If you require the names and contact details of non-SES officers please let us know at [DFAT request email] so the decision-maker may consider; otherwise we will take it that you agree to that information being excluded from the scope of your request.

Charges:
Please note that the Department issues charges for processing FOI requests. We will advise you of these charges when we are in a position to estimate the resources required to process your request.

Timing of release:
As the subject matter of your request will require DFAT to upload any documents released to you to the Department’s FOI Disclosure Log, I take this opportunity to advise you that the Department’s policy is to upload released documents within one business day of your receipt of the documents.

Extension of time:
I would also be most grateful if you could confirm by return e-mail your agreement to a 30-day extension of the statutory processing time, due to the significant loss of working days over the forthcoming Christmas/New Year period. The revised due date would be 6 February 2014. Should you agree to this extension, we will inform the OAIC.

Personal Information:
Your personal information has been collected by the Department as a result of your correspondence, and will be used in order to process your FOI request. Your personal information is protected by law, including the Privacy Act 1988. The Department’s privacy policy is available at dfat.gov.au/privacy.html and contains information about access to or correction of your personal information, and how you may complain about a breach of your privacy.
Please note that if we need to consult with other people regarding release of the documents you have requested, we may need to disclose your personal information. When we consult with other people about a request you have made, it may be apparent to those people that you have made a request, even if we do not disclose your identity. If you have concerns about the Department consulting with other people about your request, please let us know your concerns.

I am including the internet address to the Department's publically available information on the subject matter you have requested. Please advise if this provides the information you seek. - 2010 Consular case - report - Report into the handling by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade of the consular aspects of the Zygier case - foreignminister.gov.au/releases/2013/bc_mr_130305

Should you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me on (02) 6261 1701, or by return email.

Please note a copy of this email has been sent to Ms Shaanti Sekhon, A/G Director, Freedom of Information and Privacy Law Section, for her information.

Yours sincerely

Lindy Judge

Assistant Director– FOI and Privacy Law Section
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
____________________________________________________________________

Corporate Legal Branch    E | [email address]
Legal  Division                  T | +61 2 6261 1701

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Dear Jaimie Bruce

Please see attached document in regards to your FOI request dated 7 December 2014.

Many thanks

Freedom of Information and Privacy Law Section
Corporate Law Branch
Legal Division
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Tel: +61 2 6261 1111

Our reference: RQ14/02987

Agency reference: 1412F1039

Jaimie Bruce

Dear Mr Bruce

Extension of time request under s15AB

On 17 December 2014, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT)
requested further time to make a decision on your FOI request of 8
December 2014.

This request was on the basis that the processing period is insufficient
to deal adequately with your request, because it is complex and/or
voluminous.

The Information Commissioner has decided to grant the DFAT an extension of
time of 21 days for this request, to 28 January 2015. This decision has
been made under s15AB(2) of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (Cth) (the
Act).

Review rights

If you are unhappy with the way we have handled this matter, you may
complain to the Commonwealth Ombudsman. This service is free, and you can
contact the office on 1300 362 072 or visit [1]www.ombudsman.gov.au.

If you would like to discuss this matter you may contact me on 02 9284
9731 or via email [2][email address].

Yours sincerely

Timothy Fleming| Investigations Officer

Office of the Australian Information Commissioner

Level 3, 175 Pitt Street, Sydney NSW 2000

GPO Box 5218 Sydney NSW 2001 |www.oaic.gov.au

Phone:  +61 2 9284 9731

Fax: +61 2 9284 9666

Email: [email address]

Important update: The Freedom of Information Amendment (New Arrangements)
Bill 2014 which proposes to close the OAIC on 31 December 2014 was not
passed by the Australian Parliament before the end of the 2014 sitting
period. The OAIC will therefore remain operational until further notice.
For further information see the [3]OAIC website.

Protecting information rights – advancing information policy

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References

Visible links
1. http://www.ombudsman.gov.au/
2. mailto:[email address]
3. http://www.oaic.gov.au/news-and-events/s...

Dear Jamie Bruce,

As you have not responded to the Department's letter of 7 January 2015 notifying you of the intention to refuse your FOI request on the grounds that processing it would require an unreasonable diversion of the Department’s resources, your request has been deemed to be withdrawn, in accordance with section 24AB(7) of the FOI Act.

Your review rights are as follows

Internal review
Under the provisions of section 54 of the FOI Act, you are entitled to request a review of the access decision. Your request in writing within 30 days of the date of this letter should be directed to:

Director
Freedom of Information and Privacy Law Section
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
R G Casey Building
John McEwen Crescent
Barton ACT 0221

Australian Information Commissioner
Under the provisions of section 54 of the FOI Act, you are entitled to request a review by the Australian Information Commissioner of my access decision. You may also make a complaint to the Australian Information Commissioner under section 70 on the Department’s performance of its functions or the exercise of power under the FOI Act.

Your request for review or complaint should be directed to:

GPO Box 2999
Canberra ACT 2601
Telephone: 1300 363 992
Fax: (02) 9284 9666
Email: [email address]

Complaints to the Commonwealth Ombudsman

You may complain to the Ombudsman concerning actions taken by an agency in the exercise of its powers or, more specifically, the performance of its functions under the FOI Act. There is no fee for making a complaint. The Ombudsman will conduct an independent investigation of your complaint.

You may complain to the Ombudsman by calling or writing to:

Commonwealth Ombudsman
GPO Box 442
Canberra ACT 2601
Telephone: 1300 362 072
Fax: (02) 6249 7829

Yours sincerely

Ada Cheung
Acting Director
Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Freedom of Information & Privacy Law Section

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