Govt cleared over Wilson case

19 Sep 2012, 6:35 pm   -   Source: AAP

A coroner says there's no reason to criticise the Australian government for its handling of negotiations over kidnapped backpacker David Wilson.

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After 18 years of waiting, the family of David Wilson is still without answers and a vindicated former foreign minister remains haunted by the backpacker's murder at the hands of the Khmer Rouge.

A Victorian coroner has dismissed criticisms about the way the Australian government handled negotiations for the release of the 29-year-old youth worker after he was kidnapped in Cambodia.

Mr Wilson's father Peter, who has always maintained that more could have been done to save his son, was not in court on Wednesday to hear the findings from a 14-year inquest into his death.

"Peter Wilson chose not to be here because there would be nothing new - it would be same old, same old, whitewash job," former Australian diplomat Alastair Gaisford told reporters.

"He told me he thought at best it would be a bland set of findings and at worst, not worth bothering."

Deputy State Coroner Iain West found the government did all it could under "exceptionally difficult circumstances".

He said its practice of not paying ransoms was "sound".

"During the relevant period the mission staff of the Australian embassy, numbering 10 people, treated the efforts to secure the release of Mr Wilson as their highest priority," he said.

"I do not believe it is appropriate to make recommendations or comments which are critical of the handling of negotiations or the taking of measures directed toward securing the release of Mr Wilson from the Khmer Rouge forces."

Former foreign minister Gareth Evans, who was personally criticised for not having done enough to try to rescue Mr Wilson, said the coroner's vindication of his actions had done nothing to relieve his personal distress over Mr Wilson's murder.

"For me as the responsible minister, this was by far my most harrowing experience in 13 years of government," Mr Evans said in a statement.

"I have always strongly believed - even armed with all the wisdom of hindsight, and after reviewing all the incredibly complex and sensitive issues and negotiations involved - that there was nothing more any Australian official could reasonably have done to change the course of events."

Mr Wilson, Frenchman Jean-Michel Braquet and Englishman Mark Slater were kidnapped during an attack on a train in July 1994.

The Khmer Rouge demanded a ransom of $US50,000 in gold for each of the hostages, but the Australian government maintained its policy of not paying ransoms.

The men were murdered in September of that year after negotiations with the captors broke down.

Mr Gaisford, who was stationed in Cambodia at the time, gave evidence at the inquest opening in 1998 that the government botched the negotiations and covered up crucial details surrounding the death.

He said the finding was riddled with factual errors and labelled it a "travesty of justice".

"If inquests are about getting to the truth, that's not the case in the Victorian coronial jurisdiction," he said.

"The findings that the coroner has made today are even shallower than the grave that David Wilson was bludgeoned into.

"This coroner took 870 weeks to whitewash DFAT and the government."

Mr Gaisford called for the inquest to be reopened by "fearless" NSW deputy coroner Dorelle Pinch, who found Indonesian forces had deliberately killed five Australian journalists to cover up their invasion of East Timor.

In his finding, Mr West said he did not propose to pursue Mr Gaisford's allegations because he was "not satisfied as to his reliability as a witness and historian".

Three former Khmer Rouge guerrillas, including the commander of the group that kidnapped Mr Wilson, were jailed over his murder.

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