QC given access to Zaoui SIS secrets

The Inspector-General of Intelligence has created a position called "special advocate" to examine and access the SIS evidence held against Algerian refugee Ahmed Zaoui.

In what is being hailed as a significant development in Mr Zaoui's case, the special advocate will be able to view SIS material that has not previously been disclosed to Mr Zaoui or his legal advisers.

Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security Paul Neazor confirmed the creation of the position - the first of its kind - in an article in the Listener magazine, which is on sale today.

Auckland QC Stuart Grieve has been appointed to the position of special advocate and will access the SIS material on Mr Zaoui's behalf.

Mr Grieve will be operating under strict conditions and once he has seen the classified information he will not be able to have direct communication with Mr Zaoui or his lawyers. Justice Neazor told the Listener the development meant that any material about Mr Zaoui would now be available to the special advocate.

Mr Zaoui, a former politician who fled Algeria, has been here since December 2002.

On his arrival he claimed refugee status, now granted, but his future remains in doubt because of the suggestion that he is a security risk.

In 2003, a security risk certificate was issued by the SIS on the basis of classified information which says Mr Zaoui is a threat to national security.

He was released on bail last December after two years in jail without charge.

Once Mr Grieve has viewed the security material he will appear before Justice Neazor during the review of Mr Zaoui's risk security certificate. Mr Grieve will be able to make challenges to the classified material on Mr Zaoui's behalf.

With the permission of Justice Neazor (and possibly the SIS), Mr Grieve will be able to communicate in writing with Mr Zaoui and his lawyers.

Mr Zaoui's lawyer, Deborah Manning, said the development did not make the process any fairer, it just ameliorated it.

"It is an attempted improvement to a situation which is far from perfect."

Constitutional law expert Dr Andrew Ladley, director of the Institute of Policy Studies at Victoria University, said the creation of the position was a significant development. It made the problematic process fairer, but it was still not fair.

The Supreme Court is considering whether broader human rights issues must be considered by the inspector-general, who will review whether the security risk certificate has been properly issued.