Documents relating to the private wreath laying ceremony at the Australian War Memorial on 12 September 2019
Dear Australian War Memorial,
On the morning of 12 September 2019 the Australian War Memorial conducted a private wreath laying ceremony for executives from Australian Federation of Totally and Permanently Incapacitated (TPI) Ex-Servicemen and Women.
https://twitter.com/AWMemorial/status/11...
A number of disabled TPI veterans, including some who were wounded in action in Afghanistan and other theatres, have stated that they were not aware of this ceremony, were not invited, and/or were deliberately excluded.
In accordance with the FOI Act, I hereby request to be provided with AWM documents relating to the conduct of this activity, including:
1. List of invitees.
2. List of attendees.
3. Programs or order of service.
4. Transcripts or recordings of speeches.
5. Photographs and videos of the event.
6. Financial records of costs for catering and additional staffing.
Given that the AWM is a publicly funded, public memorial, that this is a matter if public interest, and that I am a disabled veteran on disability support, I ask that the standard processing fees for this FOI request be waived.
Yours faithfully,
Stuart McCarthy
Dear Mr McCarthy,
Your Freedom of Information Request
I refer to your email of 14 September 2019 (received by the Memorial on that date), seeking access to documents under the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (the FOI Act), in particular I understand you seek:
Information pertaining to a wreath laying ceremony conducted at the Australian War Memorial on 12 September 2019.
Further information on processing of your request is set out below.
Timeframe for receiving your decision
The statutory timeframe for processing a request is 30 days from the date upon which your application was received by the Memorial.
This timeframe may be extended where:
•charges are levied as prescribed by the Freedom of Information (Fees and Charges) Regulations 1982 (the FOI Regulations) (see charges below);
•consultation with third parties is necessary (see consultation with third parties below).
Charges
Agencies may decide that an applicant is liable to pay a charge in respect of a request for access to documents. These charges are set by the FOI Regulations and are for search and retrieval of documents, decision making and provision of access (for example, copying and postage).
If the Memorial decides to charge you in respect of this FOI request, we will send you a preliminary assessment of the charges as soon as possible following retrieval of any documents that may be relevant to your request.
Consultation with third parties
The Memorial may be required under the FOI Act to consult other parties (third parties) where information relating to third parties arises in documents sought by your request. The FOI Act prescribes a further 30 days processing time for the Memorial to undertake this consultation. You will be advised as soon as possible of any requirement to consult with a third party.
If you require clarification of any of the matters discussed in this letter, or have any queries throughout the process, please contact me via email at [email address] or by telephoning 02 6243 4211.
Yours sincerely
Catriona Smith
Dear Mr McCarthy,
Please find attached a copy of the decision letter regarding your recent Freedom of Information request.
Kind regards Catriona Smith
[AWM Logo not displayed in text email]
Dear Mr McCarthy,
My apologies. It appears I omitted to send you the original attachment.
Regards Catriona