Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young is considering referring allegations she was spied on while in Nauru to a parliamentary committee that could see the individuals involved face prosecution.
In a submission to a Senate inquiry into serious allegations of abuse and conditions at the Australian-run Nauru detention centre, a former employee subcontracted to security provider Wilson Security accused the company of engaging in serious misconduct.
It also said Hanson-Young was subject to extensive surveillance and monitoring, including observations at her hotel room.
She said on Friday she was outraged by the revelations, and added that she was seeking legal advice to determine whether the surveillance could constitute contempt of parliament.
Hanson-Young said: “You’ve got to wonder what on earth is going on when management of that team decided that running a surveillance operation on a member of parliament was appropriate. I was there to do my job.
“I don’t think it was appropriate for anybody on Nauru to watch me and to listen to the conversations I was having with individuals.
“Members of parliament must be free to be able to work without intimidation or interference … spying on a politician, that’s frankly illegal.”
Hanson-Young also hit back at comments by prime minister Tony Abbott that she was being “looked after” on the island, and disputed the characterisation.
Hanson-Young said: “Women don’t like to be watched. The fact the prime minister, the minister for women, doesn’t seem to understand that, beggars belief.”
Shortly after her press conference, the immigration minister Peter Dutton also said that his understanding was that Hanson-Young “was provided with assistance” while at the centre and that “somehow that’s been constructed into something else.”
In relation to the allegations of surveillance of Hanson-Young, Wilson Security conceded that it was “aware of individuals who attended the Menen hotel” in a capacity that was “not authorised” at the same time Hanson-Young was present. It said the individuals involved were subject to disciplinary action.
But Hanson-Young also said she was contacted on Friday morning by other private contractors who said they were “well briefed” on the operation, and that it was not simply a rogue unit.
The Nauru inquiry is continuing to reveal extensive testimony from former staff member who are alleging a range of sweeping failures to properly manage the Australian detention centre.
