Hilton?
Letter
Ananda Marga?
Bombing Inquest
Uncovered
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On the 13 February 1978 at 1.40 am,
a bomb exploded outside Sydney's Hilton hotel, killing three men and
seriously injuring several others. Commonwealth heads of government
were staying at the Hilton hotel at the time of the explosion.
Many government leaders claimed the bomb
was meant for them. The media went into a frenzy describing it as
the first act of terrorism in Australia. The then Prime Minister,
Malcolm Fraser, called out the army and a highly publicised hunt
for the bombers began. The New South Wales Special Branch was assigned
the task of finding those responsible.
Soon after the bombing a drifter and drug
user named Richard Seary offered to help Special Branch find the
bomber. He said he thought the Hare Krishna were responsible, however
he was told to infiltrate the international meditation and social
service group Ananda
Marga. The India Prime Minister
at the Hilton hotel claimed Ananda Marga tried to kill him with
the bombing.
Five months later three members of Ananda
Marga, Ross Dunn, Tim Anderson and Paul Alister were in jail charged
with conspiracy to blow up the leader of a Neo-Nazi group leader,
Robert Cameron. In court Seary also claimed they confessed to doing
the Hilton Bombing. Although never charged with the Hilton bombing,
they were convicted of the Cameron charge and sentenced to 16 years
without parole.
Seven years later they were freed after a
special Inquiry found that a serious doubt surrounded their conviction.
They were given a full governmental pardon and compensation. Four
years later Even Pederick claimed he had done the bombing under
the influence of Tim Anderson. Pederick received a life sentence
for his guilty plea while Tim Anderson successfully defeated his
conviction in the appeals courts. The judges rejected Pederick's
evidence as unreliable, contradicting known facts about the case.
Years into Pederick sentence, he expressed
doubt about his own guilt, however he was made to serve his sentenced
until his release in late 1997 (see "Pederick or Ananda Marga" link).
Many people, included policemen and army
men, believe ASIO and Special Branch were the most likely to be
responsible for the bombing.No one claimed responsibility for the
bombing and the only ones to benefit were the security forces.
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 Bombs,
Bliss & Baba the spiritual
authobiography behind the Hilton bombing,
by Paul Alister. A new book on the Hilton bombing, from
a person/spiritual perspective by one of the three originally
implicated in the bombing. Also the author of this site.
Complete chapters on the arrest, imprisonment, trails and
Hilton Inquest can be read here.
Other good books to read
on the Hilton case are:
Take Two
by Tim Anderson, Bantam Books,Sydney,1992
Free Alister, Dunn
& Anderson by Tim Anderson,
Wild & Woolley, Sydney, 1985.
Spies, Bombs, &
the Path of Bliss by Tom
Molombi, Potoroo Press, Sydney, 1986.
The Incredible Exploding
Man by John Jiggens,Samizdat
Press,Brisbane, 1991.
Beyond Terrorism
by Jenny Hawkins
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If you want to know
all the latest in Australian prison activism, visit
the Justice
Action site,by Breakout
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