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SUNDAY AFTERNOON - YELLOW WATER
Anna Sentoro had little sleep over the past few days and was not looking forward to giving another press conference. She had been briefed by Fisher as to the events leading up to the plane crash and had decided not to mention Jake and Bill’s involvement in the shooting down of the aircraft which killed the Chinese. She braced herself as she walked over to the podium blinking from the numerous flashes from the cameras. She was flanked by John Fisher of the AFP and her Press Secretary. A large part of the reception area of the Yellow Water Resort had been cordoned off for the briefing and was packed by representatives from all the major Australian media networks as well as a large contingent from Japanese, American and other international news outlets. The news of the Australian Prime Minister’s assassination and the disappearance of the Japanese Prime Minister had made headlines around the world.
She announced that the Japanese Prime Minister was safe and was on his way to Darwin where he would meet with her that evening before flying home to Japan. She then also advised that the assassins had been killed and had been identified as Chinese. Three of them had been killed fleeing the scene and two others and the pilot had died while trying to escape in a small aircraft. She commended the Northern Territory police and the Australian Federal Police for their efforts.
She then asked the press gallery for questions. A barrage of questions was shouted out by several reporters and she gave succinct answers to each one as best she could. The main line of questioning was as to the cause of the explosion to the aircraft carrying the Chinese and the identification of the Chinese assassins. She responded that the aircraft had exploded after take-off for reasons unknown to date but the wreckage was being examined by aviation experts. The bodies were badly charred but everything was been done to identify them and their associations with any terrorist groups, but at this stage it was too early to draw any conclusions. She deflected questions which related to any political motives of the Chinese Government and indicated that police were working closely with their counterparts in China to identify the assassins.
Helen Kwang managed to get in a question about the death of Barry Buckstone outside the Jabiru Police Station. Sentoro deferred this question to John Fisher who explained that Buckstone had died from injuries received in a hit and run accident and that the Northern Territory Police were pursuing the matter. The AFP was also investigating his treatment by police prior to the fatal car accident. Fisher was stung by her follow-up question as to whether he knew of allegations that a certain member of the Land Council had received bribes to allow mining to take place on sacred aboriginal ground. Fisher stated he had heard the rumours but had no information that would substantiate such allegations.
The questions kept coming and Sentoro patiently answered them for another thirty minutes before thanking the media for attending and closing the briefing session. She walked back to her suite and started packing for her trip to Darwin for a farewell meeting with Prime Minister Koshi.