Topics: Australian Border Force’s Operation Jardena; reopening of international borders; welcoming tourists back to Australia.
ROSS VASTA: Welcome to the electorate of Bonner, I’m the member for Bonner, Ross Vasta, and I’m very, very proud to have the ABF here in my electorate. They do an outstanding job, and we’re here to demonstrate some of the new technology and the new techniques that they are using to make sure that our borders are safe. So I want to pay particular credit to the men and women of the ABF that do an outstanding job in protecting our country.
Without any further ado I’d like to introduce the Honourable Karen Andrews, Minister for Home Affairs.
KAREN ANDREWS: Well, thank you very much, Ross. It’s an absolute pleasure to be here today in the electorate of Bonner, to be here in Brisbane also with the Commissioner of Australian Border Force, Michael Outram. It’s a pleasure to have you here. Today is actually a very exciting day for a number of reasons – we are opening our international borders here, so they’re fully opened so international visitors and tourists are able to come into Australia now. This comes on top of the reopening of our borders last year for family members to come into Australia, also for international students and skilled workers to come in. So it is a great day for us to be able to be here today to talk about not only the opening of Australia’s borders but also to speak about the great work that the Australian Border Force has done and continues to do, in this instance under Operation Jardena.
What we are very much aware of is that during the Covid pandemic we have seen significant increases in freight coming into this country. We are now starting to see that there’ll be increases in passenger numbers coming in. But, importantly, what we do know is that there are criminals that are embedded into the supply chains here in Australia that are doing us some significant damage by making sure that there is an easier pathway for them to bring in narcotics, drugs and potentially other illicit things such as tobacco, particularly weapons coming into this country.
So Operation Jardena has now been in place for a couple of months. It is being led by the Australian Border Force, but in cooperation with the Australian Federal Police and also state and territory police right across Australia. The intention is to crack down on illegal drugs coming into this country that are supported by trusted insiders. So these are people that are part of the supply chain that are facilitating drugs coming across our border.
Now, recently and as part of this Operation there were 50 kilograms of cocaine that were seized at the border. These drugs had come in the refrigeration units within a container. But Border Force, because of their great work, had been able to detect that. Now those drugs were actually concealed, and we believe that insider traders and there were a whole range of things that actually led to these drugs being able to be brought across the border.
But with Operation Jardena the Australian Border Force has increased the number of officers involved. It’s gone from 65 to 130, so a doubling in numbers, and they will be making sure that they are cracking down on drugs and other illegal, illicit materials coming across our borders.
So for some more details on Operation Jardena and the great work of the Australian Border Force, let me introduce Commissioner Michael Outram.
MICHAEL OUTRAM: Minister, thank you very much, and, Ross, thank you very much as well for your introduction. Ladies and gentlemen good morning. Transnational serious and organised crime groups have, as the Minister said, embedded themselves in the international supply chain but also, more importantly here in Australia as well. And they hold some key roles in parts of our supply chain. In 2019-20 the Australian Border Force detected an estimated 11.1 tonnes of major drugs, precursors and new psychoactive substances at the border. And in 2020-21 this jumped to 23.2 tonnes.
We’ve seen the ACIC’s – the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission’s – waste water drugs monitoring program, and this would suggest that we need to do more. In December 2021, as the Minister mentioned, the ABF detected over 50 kilograms of cocaine hidden within a refrigerated sea container right here in this facility in Brisbane. The cocaine was placed there by criminals who had infiltrated the supply chain overseas offshore, and it was to be removed by people working within the supply chain here in Australia. This method is known as a rip.
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reports that rips account for about half of the drugs coming out of South America globally. Rips are entirely dependent on trusted insiders, as the Minister said, those working within the supply chain at the port of export or trans-shipment or at the port of import who work to move contraband in what is other regarded as legitimate cargo.
Some companies which operate in positions of trust at our border in Australia unfortunately have hired or are being run by individuals whose sole purpose is to enable the import of illegal drugs and other goods. We’ve established Operation Jardena to combat these individuals and groups and to make the supply chain much more resilient and much more hostile to criminal infiltration.
We will be resolute, of course, in our pursuit of dismantling and disrupting organised crime that is operating within our supply chain in the ABF, though, through our specific legislation and powers and expertise as an integrated border agency, and in doing so we’re working happened in glove, as the Minister said, with our partner agencies, including the federal and state police but also, importantly, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission.
The design of Operation Jardena draws on the ABF’s own unique capabilities and skills and those of our people and our experiences. We also are including elements of models that we’ve observed overseas that we regard as best practice internationally. We’re also ramping up our work with key overseas agencies and bodies, as you might expect. The operation has seen the ABF double the number of officers, as the Minister said, actually involved in operations here in Australia but we’re also focusing on our partnerships overseas.
And we will persistently undertake targeted strikes against identified threats, those companies and individuals operating on our border in Australia. And we’ve already begun to do so. And some of those individuals and companies are already feeling our pressure of our operations.
Working hand in glove with industry here in Australia will be key. We know that the vast majority of businesses and companies here in Australia – those that operate at the border and those that actually export and import – they abide by our laws. We share a mutual desire with them to create a border that has integrity and enables more seamless trade and travel. So the ABF is also working with our Australian trusted traders and other businesses to draw on their knowledge to help them protect themselves against infiltration by criminal actors and to remove criminal threats from our border. Thank you very much.
JOURNALIST: For the Minister, how long is this Operation meant to run for? How much is it costing? What [indistinct]?
KAREN ANDREWS: Okay, well, I’ll start by answering that, and I will ask Commissioner Outram to add to that. Look, this is a very important Operation. It effectively commenced in November of last year. This is an opportunity for the Morrison Government to demonstrate without a doubt our strength in making sure that our borders are well protected. In this case it’s in relation to illicit substances, drugs that are coming across the border.
So this operation, while it is only new, comes off the back of work that the Australian Border Force, the Australian Federal Police have done over a number of years. Quite frankly, this is a step, we will be looking to make sure that the operation continues well into the future, we will build on it as necessary.
We know that mums and dads want drugs off the streets. We as a Government want drugs off the streets. So it’s important that we do all we can to stop these drugs coming into Australia. That’s why this Operation is so important. But I’ll ask Commissioner Outram to provide some additional detail.
MICHAEL OUTRAM: Thank you, Minister. Well, as the Minister said, we prioritise this in the Australian Border Force. We’ve doubled the number of resources that are pointed towards Operation Jardena because we see the importance of it. Working very closely with the police, as I’ve said, and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission will be key. But we’re really going to focus on our powers in the jurisdiction under the Customs Act. We want to take on the people who’ve got licences at the border, the people who have licensed depots and warehouses, people who work at our airports, working underground in the airports in terms of baggage handlers or crew of aircraft. So it’s the trusted insider, so it won’t be quick.
This is going to take time, because, as we undertake those operations, I’ve got no doubt that we’ll recognise that there may be a need for legislative or regulatory change. There may be a need for different technologies. And you’ll see some of the demonstrations if a moment about, for example, container seals. So we’re in this for the long haul. I don’t think we can achieve the kind of changes that we need overnight.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
MICHAEL OUTRAM: Absolutely. And it’s a really good question, thank you. So there’s no organisation that’s immune from being infiltrated by criminals simply because of the amount of money that they wield and their determination actually bring narcotics across the border. So we’re very, very focused inwardly in terms of the threats to the Australian Border Force and our partners.
So this just isn’t about industry; this is a team effort. We need to look at the border as a system and work in partnership with industry to try and improve the integrity of the border and remove these unscrupulous players, companies and individuals that have infiltrated it.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
MICHAEL OUTRAM: A combination, I would suggest, of both of those. And plus some people who’ve acquired businesses for the purposes of conducting criminal activities primarily.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
MICHAEL OUTRAM: Well, so far it’s early days. We’ve issued a hundred infringement notices through Operation Jaradena. There’s been a number of drug detections at the border through Operation Jardena. And to give you another example, since we started we’ve done 160 visits to depots and warehouses just am the state of New South Wales. So it really is about making our presence felt and collecting the intelligence. We’re being very targeted and precise in the sort of strikes that we put forward. But we will expect to take much more serious action going forwards, particularly in relation to people who hold licenses to conduct these sorts of businesses at the border.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
MICHAEL OUTRAM: So we have licensed depots, licensed warehouses, customs brokers. There’s a number of people who work in the supply chain that require a licence to conduct these operations. And they’re actually critical because they work at key nodes in the supply chains – excuse the noise. They work at key nodes in the supply chain and that’s where we need to focus our efforts.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
MICHAEL OUTRAM: It’s very significant. If you think about the AFP’s Operation Ironside and the scale of organised criminality that laid bare and you relate that to the border and what we can do at the border, I think the police have done a fantastic job. It’s now time for us to add to the effort and do our job as the customs service and really start to tighten up and make that presence felt across the border. That would be my point. I think we’ve lost our presence a little bit at the border because we’ve been very focused on other areas of operation. We’ve had to make some hard choices and prioritise.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
MICHAEL OUTRAM: Well, my message is that we’re going to find you and we’re going to make it very hostile for you to operate at our border. And we’re not going to do that on our own; we’ll do with the police, we’ll do it with industry and we’ll do it with people who we can trust.
JOURNALIST: Minister, [Indistinct]
KAREN ANDREWS: So the Australian Government is very concerned about what happened not so long ago where we did have a Chinese vessel point a laser at one of our surveillance aircraft. We are concerned about that. The Prime Minister has spoken specifically about his concerns about an act of intimidation. But he’s also called for the Chinese government to make it very clear why such an action was undertaken, because with the absence of any explanation from the Chinese government, it leaves us to conclude that this was an act of intimidation, and that is very concerning to us.
As a Government we have always taken a very strong position in relation to protecting Australia and Australians. So we are asking for a response from the Chinese government to the question of why this action was taken.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
KAREN ANDREWS: As a Government we have always called out poor behaviour. We have always attributed when it has been clear that there is a case for someone else to answer to. So we have in the past in relation to, for example, cyber attacks, we have called out China, we have called out Russia, we have called out other nations. We will continue to do that. We always make sure that we are as certain as we possibly can before we attribute any activity to a foreign government.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] What is the threat level, I guess, to Australians [indistinct]
KAREN ANDREWS: So there are a number of issues in what you have just raised, so I’m happy to respond to those issues. We are very concerned about the threat of cyber attack here in Australia. Since I’ve been in the role of Home Affairs Minister I’ve made it very clear that cyber is my number one priority. So cyber crime, but particularly cyber security and, of course, cyber defence.
So we have called out other nations when they have been responsible for attacks on cyber systems, whether that is in Australia or whether that is internationally. Now, we have called out some of the activity by Russia, particularly in relation to Ukraine. We will continue to do that.
We’ve also said that we will be supporting Ukraine, that we will be giving assistance with training in relation to cyber matters. We remain ready, willing and able to assist Ukraine with cyber activities. But we are also very conscious of potential impact here in Australia.
We have introduced two pieces of legislation in relation to critical infrastructure, and that includes our energy systems, health, food and grocery. So legislation was passed last year. There’s a second tranche of legislation currently before Parliament now which will ensure that our critical infrastructure is well protected.
So the Morrison Government will continue to act in relation to cyber security to make sure that we are keeping Australia’s critical infrastructure safe from cyber attack. That means, of course, that industry has to be partners in this. So it is effectively a two-way street, but the Morrison Government will continue to work with industry to make sure that we are as well prepared as we possibly can to deal with a cyber attack. And the preferred course of action is to be able to prevent that.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
KAREN ANDREWS: Well, I’ll leave the military response and discussions in relation to that and any announcements to the Minister for Defence. What I can speak about is our response in relation to cyber security. And we have indicated very clearly that we will be able to provide support to Ukraine. We will continue to do that, and we will assist them in training.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
KAREN ANDREWS: All I can add in addition to that is really more broadly talking about the role of the Australian Federal Police. And they are internationally focused as well as focused on Commonwealth offences here in Australia. So all credit to the Australian Federal Police and, of course, to all of the state policing people around Australia. They do a fantastic job to keep us safe. They will continue to look at what they can do to disrupt activity, whether it be in relation to weapons, whether it be in relation to drugs.
JOURNALIST: [Indistinct]
KAREN ANDREWS: Our preference is also for there to be a diplomatic response to any unrest in the world. Sanctions is something that we could consider, but we are looking for a peaceful resolution of the matters between Russia and the Ukraine, and we will continue to promote a diplomatic response. Thank you.