30 Oct 2006

Julian Moti accuses Australian government of political motives

12:01 pm on 30 October 2006

The suspended Solomons Attorney General, Julian Moti, has accused the Australian government of trying remove obstacles to its ambitions in the Solomon Islands.

Speaking publicly for the first time since the row erupted over Australia's pursuit of him on child sex charges, Mr Moti has accused the federal government of trying to gag him.

In an interview on Australian television, he said Canberra viewed him as someone who would obstruct the implementation of their agenda for the development and repression of the Solomon Islands.

The Australian news agency, AAP, quotes Mr Moti as saying that he could not comprehend why he was being cast as a fugitive, and was "distressed" that Australia had branded him as such.

He questioned the child sex charges, which stem from allegations that were thrown out by a court in Vanuatu in 1999.

He asked how how many times one had to prove one's innocence?"