‘We’re going to do our best’ to keep people safe, says Australian Federal Police chief

The head of the Australian Federal Crime Commission (AFP) says he will not be quitting his role until the government is fully transparent about its handling of sexual assault cases, and the country is safe.

Key points:Commissioner-General Michael Bradley has criticised the government’s handling of the issue, saying it was “not fair to victims”Mr Bradley says he does not want to “be in the middle of this fight” and has called on the government to put its policies into actionMr Bradley told ABC News the government has “not been doing its job” in addressing sexual assault, and he will continue to work to “rebuild trust and trustworthiness” in the criminal justice system.

Mr Bradley said the AFP has been under pressure to release information about sexual assault and to “take accountability for what has been done”.

“It is my position that it is not fair to the victims, because they’ve had their say, to be in the same position as the police and the judiciary,” he said.

“And that is not the kind of country we want to be living in.”

The commissioner-general, a former police chief, said he has not heard of a case where an officer was forced to resign because of the way they responded to a rape allegation.

“We have no problem with sexual assault,” he told reporters at the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) headquarters in Canberra on Thursday.

“I’m not going to say there’s not, but I don’t think it’s the case.”

If you think there is a way of getting that information out, I don.

I’m not doing that because it’s my job to do that, but if there is no way, it’s not fair for victims.

“The AFP chief said he was not seeking a change in policy on sexual assault but he was “concerned” about the lack of transparency.”

What I’m concerned about is the way that the government and the police have been handling the issue,” he added.”

It’s not working.

“He said the government should be putting more emphasis on victims’ safety and trust, and make sure it was in compliance with laws.”

The issue of sexual abuse is very serious, and it’s a serious crime.

I think it needs to be addressed,” Mr Bradley said.

The Australian Federal Government (AGP) declined to comment on Mr Bradley’s comments.

The commissioner told the ABC’s AM program the country needed to work together to make sure that sexual assault allegations were treated with the seriousness they deserved.”

That is a very difficult and complex issue,” Commissioner-General Bradley said, adding he hoped the Australian people would “do what is right for them”.

Topics:police,crime,government-and-politics,police-sieges,australia,act,canberra-2600,act-politics-and-“politics”,austria,aurelia-2285,sydney-2000,nsw,port-augusta-5700,qld,nalgene-6026First posted April 08, 2020 12:00:35Contact Victoria Haynes