The Albanese government has been referred to the Australian Federal Police over a leaked diplomatic cable from Japan as the Prime Minister’s melon scandal explodes.
Anthony Albanese has endured weeks of controversy in the wake of his Bush Deep podcast appearance in which he joked about the Japanese Prime Minister’s “melons”.
Mr Albanese denied sexual innuendo regarding the Japanese PM’s “melons” and his government pointed to a diplomatic cable sent from Tokyo which played down the saga.
However, the diplomatic note, which was allegedly leaked by the government to the media, has since been referred to authorities.
Shadow defence minister James Paterson said on Wednesday the leaked letter was an apparent “unlawful disclosure of confidential correspondence”.
“The government appears to be leaking confidential correspondence from the government of Japan to the media,” he said at a press conference.
“It is important that our closest allies have confidence that when they share confidential correspondence with us that it will not find its way in the media.
“In a dangerous strategic environment that trust with our closest partners is critically important. It is important that the AFP get to the bottom of this matter.”
Mr Paterson confirmed the police had received the referral, which he said included calls to investigate the Office of the Prime Minister.
“Under Division 122 of the Criminal Code it is an offence to disclose confidential information if you are a public servant,” Mr Paterson said.
“That includes for example members of the Prime Minister’s office including his media team.”
Shadow foreign affairs minister Ted O’Brien warned that diplomatic trust between Australia and Japan could be eroded if there was not accountability in this situation.
The diplomatic cable sent from Japan to Australia said Tokyo took no “ill intention” from Mr Albanese’s comments and was willing to move on from the issue.
However, despite this, former Japan ambassador to Australia Shingo Yamagami told News24 that the incident had certainly “made an impact” on the relationship.
“There is a difference between … real feelings and … facade, and I think the Japanese government is sticking to this facade to maintain a cordial relationship,” he said.
“If you take a close look at what’s being said on Japanese SNS (social media), certainly, this has made an impact on our special strategic partnership.
“So what is important? Yes, we need to move on, but I think we need to show mutual respect to each other.”
The Albanese government has repeatedly accused the Coalition of trying to misrepresent the diplomatic exchange in order to score political points.
Assistant Multicultural Affairs Minister Julian Hill told News24 that the opposition was wasting police resources by making the referral.
“The opposition is so desperate for a political stunt that they’re literally wasting the time of the Australian Federal Police with ridiculous referrals,” Mr Hill said on Wednesday.
“They should be investigating, they should be allowed to focus on child sex trafficking and money laundering.”
The Australian Federal Police recently spent months on an investigation into One Nation leader Pauline Hanson’s comments about Muslims.
At that time, Mr Albanese said the police should be allowed to investigate the comments which he said were “aimed at just dividing people”.
Asked by News24 whether the remarks could fall foul of hate speech laws passed by his government, he declined to comment.
“I’m not a lawyer, nor am I in charge of fulfilling those laws, I’ll allow the appropriate authorities to engage,” Mr Albanese said.
“There’s a separation here. Politicians, we’re responsible for putting laws in place. It’s important that the authorities, who I have confidence in, be allowed to do their job.”