Saturday, January 09, 2010

Excerpts from DDB's Autobiography on Justice for Hamidur Rahman pt 8

This follows part 7. Hamidur Rahman was a boy I met in passing. I had nothing to do with his death. However, had my abusers not been so bent on abusing me, I believe Hamidur Rahman would be alive today.
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I had approached my church in 2008, but was not well enough established to garner much support in the issue of my welfare or Hamidur Rahman. I wasn't really known and didn't have a history. I hadn't been able to turn to family. I had shielded my students from the abuse, and so they weren't aware of it, and other staff that were witness were too weak or morally ambivalent. I believe the ALP were afraid they would be seen as having messed up to take the necessary steps of fixing up their mess. With outstanding issues of pedophilia dogging the footprints of the ALP, and connections with organized crime being leaked to the press and weakness at the top of the ALP (three post election premiers and counting) the partisan press were not keen on investigating.
I joined the Liberal Party in late '08 and at almost the same time attracted the attention of Joseph Adams who headed the Australian Business Party. Joseph was a former student who had had little contact with me over the years. He was a political clean-skin who pushed to get my story heard through the proper political channels, which was how Marie Ficcarra got to ask some questions of the Legislative Council of NSW on my behalf. The government delayed answering the questions beyond their prescribed limit, but when they posted answers immediately before recess for the end of year they failed to address the questions.
Update Item number 2292
Questions by Marie Ficarra MLC of the NSW govt.

1) Does the former Minister for Education Mr John Della Bosca acknowledge that on the 6th of April 2007, he received a letter from a former teacher of Hurlestone Agricultural High School regarding possible negligence in the death of Hamidur Rahman?

2) Can Mr Della Bosca affirm to this house that this allegation was duly investigated given the gravity of the case?

3) What steps has the Department of Education taken in liasing with Mr David Daniel Ball and his concerns for the Rahman family.
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In reply, the following
I am advised that the Department of Education and Training has no record of a letter from a former teacher of Hurlstone Agricultural High School to Minister Della Bosca dated 6 April 2007 relating to this matter, but that an unsigned, undated message to Minister Della Bosca from a former teacher of Canley Vale High School, who also worked after school hours as a supervisor or tutor in the boarding school at Hurlstone Agricultural High School in 2001, was received by Minister Della Bosca, apparently some time in April 2007.
The Department has assumed that this is the teacher referred to in the Member's question. Two phone calls to the Member's office to verify this assumption were not returned.
I am also advised that Minister Della Bosca received a second copy of the letter as one of a number of documents sent by that teacher's local Member, who made representations to the Minister on his behalf. Allegations relating to possible negligence by staff at Hurlstone Agricultural High School were contained in the message, in addition to a range of other matters. The former teacher alleged that the school should have held, but did not hold, information about an unidentified student's allergies.
The tragic death by anaphylaxis of a student of Hurlstone Agricultural High School in March 2002 was the subject of a Coronial Inquiry conducted by Senior Deputy State Coroner Milledge. She delivered her findings on 9 September 2005. The recommendations of the Coronial Inquiry have been closely examined by the Department of Education and Training, NSW Health, non-government schools and other organisations as part of a Coronial Taskforce chaired by the Chief Health Officer. As a consequence, many changes to the management of food allergies were introduced from 2006 onwards and have become a standard part of Departmental policy and practice.
I am advised that the letter from the former teacher in April 2007 was provided 18 months after the conclusion of the inquest. The information appears not to relate to the boy who died, as it describes an event that occurred in the dining hall of the boarding house in 2001. That is, it appears to relate to a boarding student, while the boy who died was a day student.
I am advised that an extensive phone interview was conducted with the former teacher by a Chief Investigator of the Department's Employment Performance and Conduct Directorate on 19 April 2007. On being interviewed about the allegation by the Department, the former teacher indicated he did not know whether it was the same student.
The Department's legal advisers have formed the view that the information provided by the former teacher appears to be of little relevance to the matters determined by the Coroner.
I am advised that a Chief Investigator of the Department's Employment Performance and Conduct Directorate conducted an extensive phone interview with the former teacher on 19 April 2007, and that Minister Della Bosca later responded to representations by the former teacher's local Member, providing details of a contact officer should the former teacher wish to discuss matters further.
I am advised that the knowledge by staff at the school of the former student's allergy to peanuts was a matter extensively examined by the Coronial Inquiry. The findings of the Senior Deputy State Coroner were published on 9 September 2005.

A possible reply to the Government
Hamidur Rahman may have been a day student. All students are required to spend time in the boarding school in year 7. Hamidur was still the responsibility of the Head teacher Welfare (Boys), Richard.
Hamidur was in the boarding school when I met him as a casual boarder tutor supervisor.
There was no extensive phone interview, but there was a short phone call in which questions were restricted to items and yes/no replies were mainly what were accepted.
My certainty as to wether or not it was Hamidur is not relevant .. it was certainly to do with peanut allergy.
The minister's response was to refer me to a departmental officer I had named as an abuser of me (James).
I wasn't present when the incident had occurred, and a departmental officer had advised me that the department would not talk to me as a result of the death of the boy .. prior to the coronial investigation publishing a report.

At no time have I been in a position to state my case regarding my issues, or Hamidur. However the government and the Department of Education admit to being aware that there is much that has not been discussed. Even so, other than the yes no question time restricted to a few paragraphs of an initial complaint with no follow up by the department or government it is clear that the ALP as a unit are covering up details of the boy's death.
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Part 9 follows

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