Julian Moti
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Julian Moti QC (Solomon Islands), CSI [Cross of Solomon Islands], BA (Hons) (Sydney), LLB (Australian National University), GDLP (University of Technology, Sydney) is the recently appointed Attorney General of the Solomon Islands.
An Adjunct Professor of Law at Bond University on Australia's Gold Coast near Brisbane, Queensland since 1992, Moti taught comparative constitutional law, public and private international law, transnational litigation and arbitration, international trade, finance and investment in Australasia and the Pacific. He was founding President of the Pacific Islands Branch of the International Law Association (ILA), serves on the ILA Committee on Compensation for Victims of War and has been a Visiting Professorial Fellow at the Centre for Law and Governance at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, India and a Visiting Professor at Gujarat National Law University in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, India.
[edit] Allegations of child sex charges
Mr Moti has been at the centre of an international row over attempts by Australia to have Moti extradited from Papua New Guinea to Australia to face charges of child sex abuse[1] for an incident of sexual abuse of a female minor alleged to have taken place in Vanuatu in 1997.[2] Moti has had his position of Attorney-General suspended by the Public Service Commission of the Solomon Islands in light of the charges made in Australia.[3]
Moti claims that his life was threatened, and so sought sanctuary in the Solomon Islands High Commission in Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea.[1] He was then taken by a PNG defence plane to Solomon Islands where he was arrested by officers of RAMSI on his arrival in Munda, Western Province. In leaving Papua New Guinea, Moti failed to appear at a PNG court hearing on September 30th[4], and this has caused additional controversy in the form of a PNG Defense Ministry inquiry into how Mr Moti was able to leave the country whilst still on bail. Additionally, in October of 2006 the offices of the Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands were raided by federal police investigating the potential link between Moti's illegal escape from Papua New Guinea as he was awaiting extradition to face child-sex charges in Australia. The Papuan New Guinean Defence Ministry inquiry, which had initially claimed that PNG Prime Minister Michael Somare must've known about the flight, has since been officially disbanded by Somare's office amid claims of bias[5], however inquiry lawyer John Kawi has signaled his intent to complete the inquiry and submit it's findings to the Papuan government.[6]
The Australian government has insisted that in its pursuit of Moti there is no political agenda with respect to ongoing issues between it and the Solomons government of Manasseh Sogavare, while Mr Sogavare has insisted that Mr Moti's arrest constitutes a violation of Solomon Islands' national sovereignty[7], and Mr Moti himself has described the charges as a politically motivated "witch-hunt".[8]
The Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands, Manasseh Sogavare, has faced much criticism from the Australian government for his refusal to allow the extradition of Moti. [9] Sogavare and the Papua New Guinea Prime Minister Michael Somare consider that the Australian Government has broken their domestic laws and international law in its pursuit of Mr Moti.[citation needed]
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200610/s1754372.htm
- ^ http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=148998
- ^ http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200610/s1759414.htm
- ^ http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/solomons-must-hand-over-ag-says-downer/2006/10/02/1159641267127.html
- ^ http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200702/s1856007.htm
- ^ http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200702/s1856161.htm
- ^ http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/solomons-must-hand-over-ag-says-downer/2006/10/02/1159641267127.html
- ^ http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21239823-5001561,00.html
- ^ http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=151863
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Moti, Julian |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Attorney-General of the Solomon Islands |
| DATE OF BIRTH | |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | |
| DATE OF DEATH | living |
| PLACE OF DEATH | |
