Ekermawi v Nine Network Australia Pty Ltd

CITATION:

Ekermawi v Nine Network Australia Pty Ltd and anor [2007] NSWADT 295

DIVISION:

Equal Opportunity Division

PARTIES:

FIRST APPLICANT
Sam Ekermawi

FIRST RESPONDENT
Nine Network Australia Pty Limited

SECOND APPLICANT
Sam Ekermawi

SECOND RESPONDENT
Harbour Radio Pty Limited trading as Radio 2GB

FILE NUMBER:

071003, 071004

HEARING DATES:

31 July 2007

SUBMISSIONS CLOSED:

31 July 2007

 
DATE OF DECISION: 

12 December 2007

BEFORE:

Hennessy N - Magistrate (Deputy President)

CATCHWORDS:

Application for leave to proceed

MATTER FOR DECISION:

Preliminary matter

LEGISLATION CITED:

Administrative Decisions Tribunal Act 1997

CASES CITED:

Veloskey v Karagiannakis [2002] NSWADTAP 18
Xu v Sydney West Area Health Service [2006] NSWADT 3

REPRESENTATION:

In person

K Wood, solicitor (First Respondent)
S Thomas, solicitor (Second Respondent)

ORDERS:

1. Leave is granted for the complaint of racial vilification against Nine Network Australia Pty Ltd to proceed; 2. Leave is granted for the complaint of racial vilification against Harbour Radio Pty Ltd trading as Radio 2GB to proceed.

REASONS FOR DECISION

Introduction

1 Mr Ekermawi is requesting the Tribunal’s permission for two complaints of racial vilification to go ahead despite the fact that the President of the Anti-Discrimination Board declined them as lacking in substance. When the President declines a complaint as lacking in substance, the applicant must obtain the Tribunal’s leave before the complaints can proceed: Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (AD Act), section 96. The first complaint relates to broadcasts on Radio 2GB on 16 and 17 August 2005 by Mr Alan Jones. The second complaint relates to a telecast on Channel Nine’s Today Show on 19 August 2005, again involving Mr Jones. In both cases Mr Jones read an email from a listener by the name of Robert. It appears that the email was in response, among other things, to a program on Channel 7 on 15 August 2005 when three Muslim youths allegedly expressed extremist views and said their loyalties were to Islam, not to Australia.

Content of Radio Broadcasts on 17 August 2005

2 In relation to the broadcasts on Radio 2GB, Mr Ekermawi said that on 16 and 17 August 2005, between 8.45 and 9.15 am Mr Jones made inflammatory comments including reading an email he had received from a listener. Mr Ekermawi also mentioned a telephone call from a person about a hotel on the Gold Coast which has prayer rooms for Islamic people but no prayer rooms for Christians. A compact disc labelled “2GB 16/8/05” was provided to the Tribunal together with a transcript of some of the material on that compact disc. The transcript is set out below:

ALAN JONES: Ken, hello.

CALLER KEN: Hello Alan.

ALAN JONES: Yeah.

CALLER KEN: It’s always a delight to listen to Radio 2GB because your whole team there, from their management and every single one of you have got such high ratings because you’re so positive, you’re so encouraging, you’re so democratic in so many ways. I just simply love it...

ALAN JONES: Thank you.

CALLER KEN: ... I’m entertained, I’m educated.

ALAN…