Greens MLC Tammy Franks will today move an ‘order for the production of documents’ motion in the Upper House.
The motion will use the powers of the Parliament to require the State Government to produce all documents relating to payments or agreements made for South Australia to host the LIV Golf tournament, including details of moneys paid to the Greg Norman Company.
The move comes after criticism from human-rights organisations that the tournament, which has the Saudi Public Investment Fund as its majority shareholder, is being used to distract from the Saudi regime’s widespread human-rights violations.
Human Rights Watch wrote to LIV Golf in August 2022, urging the league to develop a strategy to mitigate the risk of laundering the reputation of the Saudi government. That correspondence remains unanswered.
Quotes attributable to Tammy Franks MLC:
“Gather Round was great for our state, but the LIV Golf ‘Bonesaw Cup’ will be a blight on our international reputation for years to come.”
“Golf clubs and other State Governments across Australia were not lining up to hoist LIV Golf, rather they were turning them away. That is because they saw the sportswashing of the Saudi Arabian regime as a reputational risk. There were good reasons that Royal Sydney and the Andrews Government turned Greg Norman down. Premier Malinauskas should have done the same.”
“The Saudi regime don’t need South Australia’s money, they do need our willingness to allow the sportswashing. With $2b in the kitty for Greg Norman to run LIV Golf what the ‘Great White Schill’ required was a southern hemisphere course willing to host and a Premier willing to wear the stain that this sport washing effort brings to our State.”
“To add insult to injury South Australia has paid for the supposed privilege of hosting an event contrary to human rights values and won’t even tell us how many millions in public money was handed over.”
“It’s now time for the State Government to come clean and disclose just how much money it paid to LIV Golf to use our state as the place to sportswash the reputation of the brutal Saudi regime. The Parliament can overcome Commercial in Confidence claims that shield not only the cost of this ‘Bonesaw Cup’ from public scrutiny but any other contractual arrangements we have signed up to.”