Politics Jock Palfreeman - bring him home

[Witch1]

Jock Palfreeman was freed without condition by Bulgaria's highest court in September 2019 after spending nearly 12 years in a shitty, squalid, foreign prison cell.

But to this day the corrupt Bulgarian government refuses to allow him to leave the country - an act of sheer bastardry. Our government and minister for FA Marise Payne will not lift a finger to help him.

Jock is a bloody hero to get thru what he has and still works tirelessly for social justice issues. It is beyond disgusting the treatment he has received from both the Bulgarian system and the apathetic Australian government.

 

[Sweet Jesus]

Why was he jailed?

 

[Witch1]

Why was he jailed?

Glad you asked! Murder and attempted murder - in a blatant sham trial and miscarriage of justice.

Jock was barely 21 yo, on a night out in Sofia, when he went to the aid of a couple of Roma being attacked by a drunken gang. Said gang then turned on him, and being heavily outnumbered, Jock produced a knife, waving it in the air hoping to scare them off. Then he's knocked unconscious by a thrown rock and next thing he remembers he's arrested and thrown in the back of a police van with no idea why. He was deeply shocked to learn later that someone had died.

Obviously with no sober, objective witnesses it's impossible to know exactly what happened, but interestingly Jock's knife had no blood on it nor his clothes. The rest of the gang were let go and never searched. So it was either self-defense, an accident, like the dead boy running into the knife (he had .29 blood alcohol) or someone else was involved. Jock is adamant that the CCTV he was not allowed access to at his trial backs up his version, and now wants a retrial to clear his name.

The dead boy's father, Hristo Monov, is a prominent right-wing politician and has campaigned relentlessly for Jock to be imprisoned for life, if not the death sentence. Monov maintains his fury and hatred towards Jock to this day.

So Jock got 20 years, released after 11 for being a model prisoner. Indeed in prison he didn't waste time feeling sorry for himself, instead devoted himself to the welfare of his fellow prisoners and trying to fix the broken, horrible system that exists there, forming the Bulgarian Prisoners Association - I think he is the president.

So the issue now is that he is legally a completely free man - but they won't let him go. He keeps clearing all the silly, (il)legal hurdles they keep putting up, then they put up more. It is a total farce. A travesty.

 

[Sweet Jesus]

Jock was barely 21 yo, on a night out in Sofia, when he went to the aid of a couple of Roma being attacked by a drunken gang. Said gang then turned on him, and being heavily outnumbered, Jock produced a knife, waving it in the air hoping to scare them off.

Why did he have a knife with him?

I don't recall ever taking a knife with me "on a night out".

You mention it like it's a normal thing.

 

[RobbieK]

Why did he have a knife with him?

I don't recall ever taking a knife with me "on a night out".

You mention it like it's a normal thing.

You can read his explanation of events, including the knife, here: https://www.untergrund-blättle.ch/international/english/jock_palfreeman_statement.html

 

[Witch1]

You can read his explanation of events, including the knife, here: https://www.untergrund-blättle.ch/international/english/jock_palfreeman_statement.html

Thank you. Much better to use an official link than my homespun explanations

 

[Sweet Jesus]

You can read his explanation of events, including the knife, here: https://www.untergrund-blättle.ch/international/english/jock_palfreeman_statement.html

Tldr.

 

[Sydney Kicker]

Jock Palfreeman was freed without condition by Bulgaria's highest court in September 2019 after spending nearly 12 years in a shitty, squalid, foreign prison cell.

But to this day the corrupt Bulgarian government refuses to allow him to leave the country - an act of sheer bastardry. Our government and minister for FA Marise Payne will not lift a finger to help him.

Jock is a bloody hero to get thru what he has and still works tirelessly for social justice issues. It is beyond disgusting the treatment he has received from both the Bulgarian system and the apathetic Australian government.

View attachment 992939

This is a very sad story. Has been covered in the media a bit over the years and it does seem like a significant miscarriage of justice. However what evidence do have to suggest that the Australian Government isn't trying to help him? As you noted, his "victim" has friends and family in very powerful places. I suspect the government would have done significant outreach with the Bulgarian Government and hit a brick wall. Even the Bulgarian judiciary has freed him and it hasn't got him anywhere. Indeed if Payne goes public with a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights, the Bulgarian Government or additionally decides to publicise the issue, Jock could easily end up back in the clink.

As I said, horrible case but if you have evidence that the Australian Government is not lifting a finger, it would be good if you could elaborate.

 

[Witch1]

This is a very sad story. Has been covered in the media a bit over the years and it does seem like a significant miscarriage of justice. However what evidence do have to suggest that the Australian Government isn't trying to help him? As you noted, his "victim" has friends and family in very powerful places. I suspect the government would have done significant outreach with the Bulgarian Government and hit a brick wall. Even the Bulgarian judiciary has freed him and it hasn't got him anywhere. Indeed if Payne goes public with a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights, the Bulgarian Government or additionally decides to publicise the issue, Jock could easily end up back in the clink.

As I said, horrible case but if you have evidence that the Australian Government is not lifting a finger, it would be good if you could elaborate.

I’ve never met Jock but I follow his Facebook page and I chat with him occasionally on Messenger. He’s never made any secret that he feels massively let down by successive Australian governments, although has recently faintly praised the current Aus ambassador in BG supporting him in latest court case.

Kevin Rudd was the only PM who actually tried to help, but back then it was a much tougher task because Jock was a convicted prisoner. Now, of course he’s not and they still can’t get him out. Minister Payne has been spectacularly unsuccessful in making ANY headway in Jock's case. Her last public statement that his case was at its ‘final end’, basically meaning that the Aus government had done all it could and it was down to Bulgaria, was misconstrued by many as an announcement of Jock's imminent freedom!

Which means, it’s time to cut the crap and for the PM to pick up the phone to BG PM - or maybe even Attorney General Christian Porter to have a chat to BG counterpart. But of course they won’t. If they thought about Jock at all, it would be, ‘Pfft, who cares? He’s not my responsibility, he’s used to waiting, he’s not important enough for me’ etc (I've written to them both, never got past the gatekeeper.)

I was shocked to hear (but shouldn’t have been) that Jock gets NO financial support from Australian government either, it’s the policy. Not even a Jobseeker-level wage to cover basic living expenses. He’s entirely dependent on the goodwill of his Bulgarian friends and presumably his family who’ve been footing his never-ending legal bills for 14 years. So a couple of months ago Jock was forced to rattle the tins thru his FB page, just to get by - utterly galling for such a proud man and just another stressor! He wants to work, but legally isn’t allowed - not allowed to do a lot of things. Shudder to think how he could have survived if not for loyal friends and a willing family.

 

[Witch1]

I’ve never met Jock but I follow his Facebook page and I chat with him occasionally on Messenger. He’s never made any secret that he feels massively let down by successive Australian governments, although has recently faintly praised the current Aus ambassador in BG supporting him in latest court case.

Kevin Rudd was the only PM who actually tried to help, but back then it was a much tougher task because Jock was a convicted prisoner. Now, of course he’s not and they still can’t get him out. Minister Payne has been spectacularly unsuccessful in making ANY headway in Jock's case. Her last public statement that his case was at its ‘final end’, basically meaning that the Aus government had done all it could and it was down to Bulgaria, was misconstrued by many as an announcement of Jock's imminent freedom!

Which means, it’s time to cut the crap and for the PM to pick up the phone to BG PM - or maybe even Attorney General Christian Porter to have a chat to BG counterpart. But of course they won’t. If they thought about Jock at all, it would be, ‘Pfft, who cares? He’s not my responsibility, he’s used to waiting, he’s not important enough for me’ etc (I've written to them both, never got past the gatekeeper.)

I was shocked to hear (but shouldn’t have been) that Jock gets NO financial support from Australian government either, it’s the policy. Not even a Jobseeker-level wage to cover basic living expenses. He’s entirely dependent on the goodwill of his Bulgarian friends and presumably his family who’ve been footing his never-ending legal bills for 14 years. So a couple of months ago Jock was forced to rattle the tins thru his FB page, just to get by - utterly galling for such a proud man and just another stressor! He wants to work, but legally isn’t allowed - not allowed to do a lot of things. Shudder to think how he could have survived if not for loyal friends and a willing family.

From a report in The Australian today :

"Labor frontbencher Penny Wong told a budget estimates hearing she found it hard to believe Senator Payne would not have registered Australia’s condemnation of the searches directly to her Qatari counterpart.

Foreign Minister Marise Payne during estimates in Parliament House. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Gary Ramage

“I don’t understand why, given what happened to Australian citizens, that our objection to that and our concern about that was not registered by you to your counterpart at the earliest possible opportunity,” Senator Wong said. “Isn’t it the least you could do, to pick up the phone and speak to your counterpart when you heard about this?”


So Payne will not even deal with a hot topic of the moment, the state-sanctioned sexual assault of Australian women at Doha airport. She will huff and puff, be 'appalled' and 'outraged', playing to the media, but of course is too timid to actually pick up the bloody phone. Surprise, surprise, she's going to wait for an Official Report ... All the time hoping all the fuss dies down and she doesn't end up doing anything.

So what hope do cold cases like Jock have for intervention by this hopeless minister? Not to mention poor Kylie Moore-Gilbert.

 

[Sweet Jesus]

Why did he have a knife?

 

[RobbieK]

Why did he have a knife?

I gave you the link to his full explanation earlier, to which you replied TLDR. Maybe just read it?

 

[Sweet Jesus]

I gave you the link to his full explanation earlier, to which you replied TLDR. Maybe just read it?

Maybe you tell me.

 

[Chief]

Now campaigning for prisoners rights in Bulgaria:

Jock Palfreeman on the Bulgarian far-Right

We're back for Year 3 of YNP! This week, for our 100th Episode, we're having a yarn with Jock Palfreeman about the Bulgarian Prisoners' Association and the Bulgarian far-Right.

www.3cr.org.au