In what is seen as a landmark decision against free speech, the
High Court has ruled that a public servant should have been sacked
after making comments that were critical of the federal government
on an anonymous social media account outside work hours.
Michaela Banerji was sacked from her job at the Department of
Immigration and Border Protection in 2013 when it was found she had
been operating a Twitter account called @LaLegale that posted
opinions criticising the government's immigration policies and
treatment of asylum seekers.
Unofficial public comment tests limits of free speech
Even though Ms Banerji posted her opinions under a pseudonym and
did so outside of work hours on her personal phone, the department
said she had breached Australian Public
Service Code of Conduct terms which aim to maintain an
apolitical public service.
